theshonz0705's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Gore, Alcoholism, Blood, Body shaming, Child death, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Murder, Suicide, Cultural appropriation, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Sexism, Violence, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Racism, Self harm, Grief, Hate crime, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, and Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Antisemitism and Incest
emccardel's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Racial slurs, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Body shaming, Fatphobia, Sexual harassment, Suicide, Misogyny, Incest, Sexism, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Sexual violence, Racism, Antisemitism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Child abuse
kreglow's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Drug use, Hate crime, Infidelity, Stalking, Body horror, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Excrement, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Vomit, Xenophobia, Pedophilia, Rape, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Gun violence, Incest, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Torture, Cancer, Chronic illness, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Homophobia, Misogyny, Police brutality, Drug abuse, Forced institutionalization, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Physical abuse, Antisemitism, Fatphobia, and Fire/Fire injury
chambecc's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
It, I think, is properly described as a horror epic, not strictly a novel. The book is a veritable brick at roughly 1150 pages, and I took a bit over 2 months to read it (caveat being I took breaks to read other material, but still).
I'm a King fan and will generally read most anything by him. But in some ways, I think "It" will always be my favorite book of his. Less because of detailed descriptions of a vulgar, malevolent, shapeshifting entity terrorizing a small town in Maine, and more about the book's heart: friendship. Growing up. Overcoming fear. The fading of memory. How our roots haunt us even when we thought we've left them behind.
Ben, Beverly, and Richie are some of my favorite King characters ever. But every kid in the book has a voice, a perspective, that broadens the narrative and makes you more deeply invested in the story's outcome. A common complaint is that the book is too long. Speaking candidly: I think the book was exactly as long as it needed to be to tell the story of the Losers' Club and their odyssey to conquer the manifestation of pure evil, which we commonly know as Pennywise.
And more importantly - to my brain, anyway - is the friendship that suffuses the story. The love these kids have for each other. The loyalty. Their marrow-deep trust of each other, despite facing visceral terror. In many ways, King is at his best when he's writing kids, and this book shows it better than any other.
King doesn't regard himself as much of a prose stylist, but I think this book shows that the man writes wonderfully. The descriptions of Derry are granular and gorgeous to read at points. I still think about the passage of Bill soaring over the hill on his bike and into downtown Derry, not caring about mortality, fear, his stutter - pure, unvarnished freedom. Bill Denbrough beats the devil, indeed.
I'm not sure I'd say "if you only ever read one King book, let this be it (or is that It?)... but on the other hand, if you're craving something that isn't just horrifying and skin deep, pick this one up. Who knows... maybe you'll float, too.
Graphic: Murder, Domestic abuse, Child death, and Homophobia
Moderate: Racism and Misogyny
sav_22's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Terminal illness, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Eating disorder, Domestic abuse, Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual violence, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Police brutality, Gun violence, Gore, Gaslighting, Excrement, Death of parent, Alcohol, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Torture, Misogyny, Mental illness, Infidelity, Hate crime, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Child death, Body shaming, Body horror, Stalking, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Racism, Rape, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Death, Confinement, Bullying, Blood, Violence, Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Medical trauma, Incest, Fatphobia, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Forced institutionalization, Dysphoria, Drug abuse, Cursing, and Alcoholism
donavanmoore's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Child death, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Suicide, and Bullying
Moderate: Alcohol, Murder, Body shaming, Racism, Cursing, Death, Hate crime, Misogyny, and Gore
Minor: Sexual harassment, Sexual content, and Classism
analea_lucille's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Hate crime, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual harassment, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Mental illness, Animal death, Antisemitism, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Alcoholism, Cursing, Alcohol, Child abuse, Child death, Murder, Rape, Blood, Body horror, Suicide, Homophobia, Fatphobia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Sexism
maggiefaerie's review against another edition
I really wanted to love this book. I'm not scared easily, and everyone I know says this is the most frightening book they've read. I've had some disappointments recently, so I wanted something to scare me at least a little. I finally threw in the towel after chapter 7-6.
This book drags so much. I'm 1/3 of the way in and there's so much bloated writing that I honestly don't feel invested at all. There's a balance between atmosphere and plot, and this book leans heavily on settings before establishing motives or developing the characters. I basically spent 10 hours reading a book with the exact vibes of Stand By Me when I thought I was reading horror. I'm really disappointed because I wanted to be completely and absolutely terrified by the book, and I was, but not because of the monster.
I honestly cannot get past the homophonia, anti-semitism, fat shaming, mysogony, abuse, and racism. If you want to read this, be aware that this book casually drops many slurs in reference to minority groups. The liberal character descriptors that involve all the really bad slurs you can think of were unnecessary and truly uncomfortable.
The abuse is also way too explicit for me. There's nothing I've enjoyed about this experience of reading this book.
Graphic: Fatphobia, Gore, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Violence, Toxic friendship, Rape, Child abuse, Child death, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Death, Antisemitism, Body horror, Bullying, and Murder
Moderate: Addiction, Medical trauma, Suicide, Blood, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Cursing, and Alcoholism
deathtoy4444's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Antisemitism, Blood, Child abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Child death, Cursing, Bullying, Hate crime, Self harm, Racism, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Homophobia, Murder, Emotional abuse, Ableism, Misogyny, Suicide, Sexism, Racial slurs, Mental illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Fatphobia, Gore, Sexual content, and Stalking
prunechips's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Pedophilia, Murder, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Police brutality, Sexual content, Death, Racism, and Misogyny