Title: It by Stephen King
Details: Copyright 1986, Penguin Books
Synopsis (By Way of Front Insert):
"Welcome to Derry, Maine...
It's a small city, a place as hauntingly familiar as your own hometown. Only in Derry the haunting is real..
They were seven teenagers when they first stumbled upon the horror. Now they were grown up men and women who had gone out into the big world to gain success and happiness. But none of them could withstand the force that drew them back to Derry to face the nightmare without an end, and the evil without a name."
Why I Wanted to Read It: I've mentioned before that while I'm a fan of King's work, there's about a third of it (some of it quite famous and popular) that I still haven't read. This was one of them. The apparently quite popular film adaptation from a few years ago and its sequel last year has led to a flood of renewed interest in the book and I've seen a lot of modern fan art/criticism/theory/fan fiction that led me to finally read this for myself.
How I Liked It: Before we start properly, I've also mentioned before I've read King's memoir, wherein he talks about his problems with substance abuse and his work getting sober. He doesn't say this, but I've heard it rumored that this particular book was written at the nadir of his addiction, and some critics (among them Lindsay Ellis) feel it reads like it was written on a coke binge.
I don't know if it's quite that bad. But I do know I've developed a new understanding recently for King's reputation as a "maximalist", and this book definitely supports that theory.
It's the most ambitious back-and-forth action to timeline sequence that I think King's ever written, and one of the most ambitious I've ever read. Unfortunately it makes it harder to get a grip on the central action of the book, and some characters' introductions don't have the punch it feels like King intended with them.
As a whole, there's some meandering plotlines that don't really move the story, several loose ends that don't come together, and a particularly notorious scene that's over the top in a way King doesn't generally go and he seemed to regret writing it halfway through. To clarify, King's work is generally over the top in scaring/grossing out, whereas this feels more like the cheap shock-value-for-shock-value-in-place-of-a
However, there's a lot of heart in the book that can't be denied. The characters' friendships and interactions as children manage (mostly) to be both realistic, engaging, and service the plot. Their reflections and revelations as adults about childhood fears and illusions is another hook, although it's one more easily buried under the unnecessary.
I don't know if King's ever addressed the rumors about this book and his addiction (and presumably his state of mind to taking editorial decisions). But I do know that it's worth a read for fans of his work that haven't read it yet, because there's a compelling, worthwhile story buried in there.
Final Grade: B
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