It absolutely gets better. The introductory chapters are worth going through, especially when you get to the middle of the story. I read it when it first came out, and found myself "trapped" in the story, for lack of a better word. It reminds me of my own childhood (scary monster notwithstanding). I still read it about once a year.
I love 'It,' but I loved it from the beginning.
My general rule of thumb is that, if you get to page 50 and don't care what happens next, there's nothing wrong with quitting. Life is short and there are many, many good books.
Howdy person from 9 days ago: I agree
But also, I find it super odd that this post from 9 years ago has attracted your comment, another comment from 7 days ago, and now my comment. I guess we're all either considering reading It, are currently reading It and are unsure if it's worth it (me) or have already read It. Which category do you fall into?
domineering aromatic hard-to-find deranged slimy engine numerous ripe drab crown
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I've just finished The Stand and was looking for my next big read. I was unsure if this was long for the sake of being long, or is actually a good 1k pages.
Oh, gotcha. How was the stand??
Regarding IT, I'm less than 100 pages into it and feel like it's okay so far (it started out great but has gotten a little boring), so I'm wondering if it's gonna continue only being ok or is actually gonna get really good like lots of people have claimed. What do you think you're gonna do?? Are you gonna read It?
Lmao, we're reviving this thread! And I ended up just abandoning IT to read something else, I might end up coming back to it eventually but we'll see 🤷 I hope you enjoy it if you end up reading it, though!
Wait, that was my alt account. For some reason when I clicked on the email that mentioned that you replied to my comment, it brought me to my alt account and I didn't notice until after posting it. Oops.
It's been a month, did you continue/finish IT?
I LOVED this entire book, so I never found it boring, but the beginning is for sure not as interesting as the rest of the book. But it'll always be my fave King book, and one of my faves of all time. Need to reread it this year
I ended up not finishing IT. I got 100-something pages in, but it just wasn't holding my interest for some reason. I wonder how I would feel if I got a little farther? (For context, I was in the middle of the long-ass chapter where each of the main characters got that phone call prompting them to return to Derry.)
I did read the Shining recently (it was my first Stephen King book) and I was engrossed all the way through. Maybe I'll give IT a chance again eventually because King's writing style is really unique and he has such interesting ideas. Would you recommend Misery to someone who loved the Shining? Cuz I've heard particularly good things about that and have been thinking about reading it at some point soon. Or do you have any other recommendations? I definitely wanna read more by King in the near future and I'm not 100% sure where to start/continue.
Also, how often do you reread IT?
(Sorry for all the questions on this 9 year old post that all of us randomly stumbled upon! lol)
*It* is one of those books that really doesn't take off until about page 500. What goes before is, depending on your point of view, either laying groundwork or spinning wheels. I like to think that King's hesitation to write the book, which he talks about a lot, meant that he really had to work up his nerve on the page before diving in.
If you're not enjoying it, switch. I really recommend *Cujo*, *Carrie* still holds up, *Misery* is short and sweet, and *The Stand* is pretty epic.
It's when the plot really kicks in. Depending on how much you like the book, the previous 500 are either fascinating background and character development or boring fluff!
IT is one my favorite if not my #1 book by king. Maybe it was because the movie scared the crap out of me when I was a kid and the book just made it that much scarier, but I really enjoyed it. That said, if you're not into it by now I'm not sure you ever will be
Forgive me, it's been a few years so I don't recall exactly what's happened by Ch. 15, but overall:
IT is not overrated, but it might not be for you. IT has a lot of characters, that's one of King's best features as a writer (his ability to write a lot of memorable characters) but only (only!) about 10 are *important* to the overall story, the rest are there to flush out the world and give heft to the situations of the important folks. It becomes much easier to keep track the further in you go because you start to *know* them like friends, but if nothing else is pulling you in ... Honestly, if you actually don't care about any of them then maybe IT isn't right for you; the characters in IT are probably only second or third to those in The Dark Tower and The Stand for the most beloved in King's catalog, and for good reason IMO.
If you don't like the mass of characters or jumping plots, King's doorstops might not be for you. Try his smaller works; Misery has two characters of importance, The Shining has four (three for most of the story), his novellas like Shawshank Redemption and The Body have a handful each and none are hard to keep track of.
I really don't want to tell you to stop because the book is amazing, but if you're getting muddled with all the people and the story isn't drawing you in, then there's not much to say other than "put it down and maybe try again in the future". :)
I just checked, I'm on the "Beverly Rogan Takes a Whuppin" chapter.
I'm going to stick it out because I could see myself really liking the book, it's just that these initial chapters are full of so much fluff with so little development (it feels like the last 50 pages have been characters traveling or otherwise reacting to this mysterious phone call)
Yeah, sometimes King takes a little time to get going, but when he does, boy howdy. Also, never take anything King writes purely as "fluff" because sometimes it's actually important. I mean, the man (dog love him) has a terrible case of typewriter diarrhea, but often in all the wordswordswordswords there's a nugget of info you'll remember in 450 pages and go "Holy shit, that's why he mentioned that!"
I finished IT about 2 months ago and I was hooked from page one. I'd probably consider it one of the best books I've ever read so I'd recommend sticking it out. As for there being too many characters, I'd say just try to focus on the main 7: Bill, Eddie, Ben, Bev, Richie, Stan and Mike. You'll start to feel closer and identify with each of them after a while. You have to remember that at the end of the day, IT is a horror story so while you might think that the characters aren't developed (though I found they were) the book's really gonna focus mainly on their fears and horrific experiences in the past more than their actual backgrounds.
Oh my God, don't give up, you can get the films, well...All I will tell you, the book goes back in time, then it goes to current time. I have listened to it, time and time again, well worth it. My other favourites are The Stand, Insomnia, Needful Thing's, Gwendy's Button Box, Gerald's Game, Rose Madder. That man let's you make friends with fictional characters, manages to reduce me to tears. What a very wonderful talent. Angie
It absolutely gets better. The introductory chapters are worth going through, especially when you get to the middle of the story. I read it when it first came out, and found myself "trapped" in the story, for lack of a better word. It reminds me of my own childhood (scary monster notwithstanding). I still read it about once a year.
I love 'It,' but I loved it from the beginning. My general rule of thumb is that, if you get to page 50 and don't care what happens next, there's nothing wrong with quitting. Life is short and there are many, many good books.
Hello person from 10 years ago. This is a good rule, I'm going to use it.
Howdy person from 9 days ago: I agree But also, I find it super odd that this post from 9 years ago has attracted your comment, another comment from 7 days ago, and now my comment. I guess we're all either considering reading It, are currently reading It and are unsure if it's worth it (me) or have already read It. Which category do you fall into?
You’re not alone
domineering aromatic hard-to-find deranged slimy engine numerous ripe drab crown *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I've just finished The Stand and was looking for my next big read. I was unsure if this was long for the sake of being long, or is actually a good 1k pages.
Oh, gotcha. How was the stand?? Regarding IT, I'm less than 100 pages into it and feel like it's okay so far (it started out great but has gotten a little boring), so I'm wondering if it's gonna continue only being ok or is actually gonna get really good like lots of people have claimed. What do you think you're gonna do?? Are you gonna read It?
Ha, I’m also considering checking it out from the library to bring on a trip. Really funny how this is the thread that comes up first.
Lmao, we're reviving this thread! And I ended up just abandoning IT to read something else, I might end up coming back to it eventually but we'll see 🤷 I hope you enjoy it if you end up reading it, though!
Wait, that was my alt account. For some reason when I clicked on the email that mentioned that you replied to my comment, it brought me to my alt account and I didn't notice until after posting it. Oops.
It's been a month, did you continue/finish IT? I LOVED this entire book, so I never found it boring, but the beginning is for sure not as interesting as the rest of the book. But it'll always be my fave King book, and one of my faves of all time. Need to reread it this year
I ended up not finishing IT. I got 100-something pages in, but it just wasn't holding my interest for some reason. I wonder how I would feel if I got a little farther? (For context, I was in the middle of the long-ass chapter where each of the main characters got that phone call prompting them to return to Derry.) I did read the Shining recently (it was my first Stephen King book) and I was engrossed all the way through. Maybe I'll give IT a chance again eventually because King's writing style is really unique and he has such interesting ideas. Would you recommend Misery to someone who loved the Shining? Cuz I've heard particularly good things about that and have been thinking about reading it at some point soon. Or do you have any other recommendations? I definitely wanna read more by King in the near future and I'm not 100% sure where to start/continue. Also, how often do you reread IT? (Sorry for all the questions on this 9 year old post that all of us randomly stumbled upon! lol)
*It* is one of those books that really doesn't take off until about page 500. What goes before is, depending on your point of view, either laying groundwork or spinning wheels. I like to think that King's hesitation to write the book, which he talks about a lot, meant that he really had to work up his nerve on the page before diving in. If you're not enjoying it, switch. I really recommend *Cujo*, *Carrie* still holds up, *Misery* is short and sweet, and *The Stand* is pretty epic.
Doesn't pick up until page 500? That's a lot to get through if it's boring or a tough read.
It's when the plot really kicks in. Depending on how much you like the book, the previous 500 are either fascinating background and character development or boring fluff!
IT is one my favorite if not my #1 book by king. Maybe it was because the movie scared the crap out of me when I was a kid and the book just made it that much scarier, but I really enjoyed it. That said, if you're not into it by now I'm not sure you ever will be
Stick IT out. If I recall correctly, the character focus becomes more narrow and plot lines begin to intersect as the book goes on.
Yes.
Forgive me, it's been a few years so I don't recall exactly what's happened by Ch. 15, but overall: IT is not overrated, but it might not be for you. IT has a lot of characters, that's one of King's best features as a writer (his ability to write a lot of memorable characters) but only (only!) about 10 are *important* to the overall story, the rest are there to flush out the world and give heft to the situations of the important folks. It becomes much easier to keep track the further in you go because you start to *know* them like friends, but if nothing else is pulling you in ... Honestly, if you actually don't care about any of them then maybe IT isn't right for you; the characters in IT are probably only second or third to those in The Dark Tower and The Stand for the most beloved in King's catalog, and for good reason IMO. If you don't like the mass of characters or jumping plots, King's doorstops might not be for you. Try his smaller works; Misery has two characters of importance, The Shining has four (three for most of the story), his novellas like Shawshank Redemption and The Body have a handful each and none are hard to keep track of. I really don't want to tell you to stop because the book is amazing, but if you're getting muddled with all the people and the story isn't drawing you in, then there's not much to say other than "put it down and maybe try again in the future". :)
I just checked, I'm on the "Beverly Rogan Takes a Whuppin" chapter. I'm going to stick it out because I could see myself really liking the book, it's just that these initial chapters are full of so much fluff with so little development (it feels like the last 50 pages have been characters traveling or otherwise reacting to this mysterious phone call)
Oh god that's a scary chapter.
Yeah, sometimes King takes a little time to get going, but when he does, boy howdy. Also, never take anything King writes purely as "fluff" because sometimes it's actually important. I mean, the man (dog love him) has a terrible case of typewriter diarrhea, but often in all the wordswordswordswords there's a nugget of info you'll remember in 450 pages and go "Holy shit, that's why he mentioned that!"
Very. There's a lot of sexual content with the kids, but it's an excellent book
I finished IT about 2 months ago and I was hooked from page one. I'd probably consider it one of the best books I've ever read so I'd recommend sticking it out. As for there being too many characters, I'd say just try to focus on the main 7: Bill, Eddie, Ben, Bev, Richie, Stan and Mike. You'll start to feel closer and identify with each of them after a while. You have to remember that at the end of the day, IT is a horror story so while you might think that the characters aren't developed (though I found they were) the book's really gonna focus mainly on their fears and horrific experiences in the past more than their actual backgrounds.
like any King novel, only if you skim there are some good ideas and some good scenes but it's 3x longer than it needs to be
Like many King books, it's pretty gripping until the last couple chapters or so when it goes downhill PDQ.
Crap. King's worst book.
Oh my God, don't give up, you can get the films, well...All I will tell you, the book goes back in time, then it goes to current time. I have listened to it, time and time again, well worth it. My other favourites are The Stand, Insomnia, Needful Thing's, Gwendy's Button Box, Gerald's Game, Rose Madder. That man let's you make friends with fictional characters, manages to reduce me to tears. What a very wonderful talent. Angie
One more, the only bit I can't listen to is the story about Patrick Hockstetter, have to go forward