It

I love this book for three reasons: nostalgia, nostalgia, nostalgia. As a child, I read this coming-of-age story, which really spoke to me.

I don’t know what that says about me since it features a killer clown and a little boy getting snatched down a sewer drain (looking back, it was hardly age-appropriate). But I loved seeing how the characters changed from kids to adults–and what stayed exactly the same. It inspired me to imagine how I might turn out in adulthood, and that blissful, childlike wonder is something hard to recreate as we get older.

It must be the scariest horror book I have ever read.

A superb exploration of fear delivered with surgical accuracy. I’ve never been so scared reading words from a page in my whole life.

There is no rendition, on the screen, that does justice to this novel. The backstories, history, and seemingly insignificant descriptions help to paint a picture that feels all too real, even during the most surreal moments.

A must read!

The novel, It, successfully changed how the world views clowns.

Remember when you used to think of clowns as entertaining? See them at kids’ birthday parties? Watch them spilling out of a miniature car? Big red nose, red hair, funny smile? 

Well, not anymore. 

A fear of clowns spread like wildfire following Stephen King’s publication of his most terrifying novel.

It is a true classic in horror literature. Believe me, you will never look at clowns in the same way.

And this brings us to the final of my little top five man-eating monsters list. It’s another one of which you may have heard, and after all, who doesn’t love killer clowns? And I am sure you’ll agree that Pennywise qualifies as a man-eating (and kid-eating) monster worthy of this list. Sporting a mouthful of teeth that any orthodontist would kill for, he has a voracious appetite and can alter his size to accommodate it. It is a masterpiece of terror about the past coming back to haunt you (and eat you) and how one’s fear of something can sometimes… show more.

It, is a classic Steven King horror novel that somehow manages to magnify the fears and phobias of kids and adults. From giant spiders, haunted houses inhabited by werewolves, to killer clowns, Steven King showed us that not all horrors are just the boogeymen under the bed that we were once afraid of as children…but some of those very fears will haunt you forever if you don’t face them.

It was my introduction to the deliciously deranged horror fiction of Stephen King. I first read it in my early 20s, when I was living alone for the first time. I would come home after work, and read into the night, then stay awake afraid of shadows. It is the ultimate monster, every nightmare, every insecurity or fear anyone has ever had. Only Stephen King could make a child’s balloon, or a paper boat into nightmare fuel, but they’ll float. “We all float down here.”

In my view, the quintessential Stephen King book, It is so much more than a scary tale of an otherworldly being that feasts on children using the guise of a clown. A story of love, loss, and childhood long forgotten, It is a powerful coming-of-age tale that perfectly captures what it means to grow up and apart from friends you were once so close to. Add to that the terrifying concept of a shapeshifting creature that feasts upon fear and has terrorised a town for centuries—the implications of which verge on the Lovecraftian by the conclusion—and you have an epic… show more.

Despite its biblical length, King’s iconic novel keeps the pages engaging, hilarious, and terrifying—often all at once. While his horror game plays out strong as ever in It, what really makes this story great is its unabashed perspective on childhood, nostalgia, and growing up, all centered in a gilded small-town atmosphere. It is the quintessential coming-of-age tome, tapping deep into the shadowy subconscious of our memories and pasts, while throwing in good old-fashioned blood, guts, and cosmic horror. For some reason I chose this book to give an oral presentation about in seventh grade (while my classmates mostly did The… show more.

I could not put this book down. It was 1,100 pages and I finished it in two days. Then I had nightmares about it for two months. I still can’t look at clowns as a good thing.

King is a genius, there’s no disputing that. But this book goes above and beyond. The child version of the main characters is spot on in the portrayal of kids faced with something beyond belief, at least beyond what the adults are willing to believe. The adult version of the main characters is a brilliant portrayal of people who know what they must… show more.

This book has it all! Terrifying horror. Amazing coming-of-age characters. One of the best villains ever written. Pennywise has been haunting dreams for decades and the recent film adaptations have reinvigorated the interest in this masterclass-worthy horror villain. When a book is this long people will find flaws, but what is undeniable is that the core of this story has inspired generations of horror authors and fans.