Horror Reader 13

The page count on this book was something I found daunting, but I kept hearing that it was one of King's best, so eventually I took the plunge. It started out slower than I expected. Just a quick introduction to Derry and what happened there in 1958 followed by some individual stories of people in 1985 when they each get a call, asking them to come back and fulfil a pledge. I guess you would say it's a slow reveal of what actually happened.

For a while there are short glimpses of 1985, but the story of what happened in 1958 unravels at what I thought was a slow pace. There are enough weird happenings to keep interest, but basically it's the story of a group of boys and a girl, growing up in a small town, but with child murders and a few other frightening occurrences. For a while I was beginning to compare it to Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer with the exploits of the children dominating the narrative, but eventually the supernatural happenings increase and the story starts to really get going.

Just before halfway, it switches back to 1985 and the reunion of the gang. King shows his special talent for describing changes in a small town over time and how the memories of an adult who grew up in the town's earlier version can be superimposed over the place it has become. I get the feeling that King reminiscences his own childhood a lot in some of his books.

The appearances of Pennywise, the clown they call "It", becomes more of a regular feature and the Horror aspect of the book finally unfolds fully while the group go their separate ways in Derry to try to remember exactly what happened when they were kids and how they made it stop. I don't want to drop spoilers so that's all I'll say about the plot.

What I will say is that I found the whole book long and drawn out and didn't feel the payoff warrented the time it took to read it, though I'm glad I did so at least now I know.

The rest I have to say does contain spoilers so don't read beyond here if you are thinking of reading the book for the first time.

>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

SPOILERS BEYOND THIS POINT

One thread left untied really bothers me. What happened about Henry's body in the hotel room? Surely a hotel maid would have come in to clean before the flood happened? If this was a recent release, I would accuse Mr. King of starting to lose it.

And, after making we read a thousand pages of build up, a spider? That's the best you got Stephen, a f-ing giant spider?!? I expected something really scary, scarier than an evil clown.

Then there was the thing about the children having sex. I can get what he was trying to do there, but it felt shoehorned in. Like something he was planning to include and just had to find a place to put it. It didn't feel either natural or realistic. A girl that age having sex for the first time wouldn't be likely to have her first orgasm with an inexperienced boy either, no matter how big his dick is, not to mention two. King needs to talk to his wife more.

I found the last few chapters a slog. I'd rather be gripped and unable to stop reading, but I was counting off pages and feeling relief that it was almost finished so I could get on and read something else.

I appreciate that a lot of people really liked this book, but we'll just have to agree to disagree. I love King, I really do. But I'm going t be wary of his longer books after this. They're just not for me.