It

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Steven Weber

Length: 44 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

It: Chapter Two - soon to be a major motion picture in 2019!

Stephen King’s terrifying, classic number one New York Times best seller, “a landmark in American literature” (Chicago Sun-Times) - about seven adults who return to their hometown to confront a nightmare they had first stumbled on as teenagers…an evil without a name: It.

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 are grown-up men and women who have gone out into the big world to gain success and happiness. But the promise they made 28 years ago calls them reunite in the same place where, as teenagers, they battled an evil creature that preyed on the city’s children. Now, children are being murdered again, and their repressed memories of that terrifying summer return as they prepare to once again battle the monster lurking in Derry’s sewers.

Readers of Stephen King know that Derry, Maine, is a place with a deep, dark hold on the author. It reappears in many of his books, including Bag of Bones, Hearts in Atlantis, and 11/22/63. But it all starts with It.

“Stephen King’s most mature work.” (St. Petersburg Times)

“It will overwhelm you…to be read in a well-lit room only.” (Los Angeles Times).

©1980 Stephen King (P)2010 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"For a book with such a tiny title, Stephen King’s IT is one huge undertaking. It's a good thing actor Steven Weber is on board to perform it... Weber is skilled at wringing all the emotion, evil, and mystery out of King’s book about an ancient evil that haunts a Maine town and the seven childhood friends who band together to destroy it. He delivers a good Maine accent, a malicious clown, several women, and a giant screeching spider-thing." (AudioFile Magazine)

A Classic with a Top-Notch Performance!

I first would like to start off with saying that I have listened to Stephen King's It four times already, and I still can't get enough of it! Stephen King is a mastermind (like always) with the beautiful attention to detail he gives for every single character's background and inner thoughts. It's captivating and sucks you into Derry, a town with a dark history, a scary present, and an uncertain future. If you're like me who saw the TV movie before reading the book, you will be shocked by how different the book is! The details of the novel makes you feel as if you have lived in Derry all of your life and live next door to all of the characters. The book is beautiful, and the performance by Steven Weber is only worthy of praise. If you thought Tim Curry was the best Pennywise you had ever seen, wait until you see what Steven Weber can do with only his voice. The performance will give you chills!

The story of It is a dark one that must not be listened to lightly. The novel is, in my opinion, the most graphic, brutal, and original novel that Stephen King has ever written. Because the victims of Pennywise are children, one must listen at their own caution because Stephen King does not shy away from any grizzly and provocative detail that is needed to make this story as powerful and shocking as it is. The story is told in various character perspectives, however it's heavily centered around the 7 main characters voices and experiences. The additional perspectives given only adds to the depth of the intricate story that King molds. The novel goes back and forth between different point of Derry's history in order to set the stage for what has been going on in Derry, Maine long before the town was even there. The real beauty is in the character development that takes place in these time jumps. You will learn so much about all of the characters, and it will help understand and empathize all of the characters for what drives their behavior. No character can be deemed insignificant in this novel. The book is nearly 45 hours and has no dragging parts because every word is essential for the understanding of the story. The TV movie can't even begin to touch the depth that King has given this story. It truly is amazing how far this novel reaches.

Steven Weber's performance is one that left me shaken to the core. The first time I listened to the book, I was skeptical at the thought of the audiobook being better or even comparable to the movie (crazy right?). However, 5 minutes in, I realized I was listening to a ingenius and chilling performance. Weber clearly gives each character its own voice and brings the story to life without the need for visuals. You can hear the fear, the courage, the desperation, and etc. that each character feels through his performance. When it came to the voice of Pennywise, he honestly made me feel fear (something I had not felt while watching Stephen King's It, even as a child). His rendition honestly reminded me of the sewer that It crawled out of. It was beautiful! Weber is a genius at what he does, and this novel was perfect to show the range that he can reach. From the voice of a frantic New England mother to the little children he portrayed, you felt as if these were different people all together, not just one man doing voices.

I had modest hopes for this audiobook, and I was given a masterpiece. I will continue to listen this book because I could never tire of it.

It or The Stand

When I first became an active reader, I asked a friend of mine, who loved Stephen King, which book she thought was his best. She thought for a long time and was pretty conflicted. She said, she was trying to decide between It and The Stand. Finally, she decided The Stand. I read The Stand because of that and yes, I listened all the way through. Back in those days I finished every book, I started, my wife still does. Boys and girls, if a book has not got you excited in the first three hours, don't waste your time. You are not breaking any laws, by not finishing a book your not enjoying. Anyways, I was okay with The Stand, but I did not love it, as many others have. After that, I did not read any King for a long time.

After reading Misery, Cell, The Shining and Carrie, and loving them, I decided it was time to conquer another long King book and, so I listened to It. So, So glad I did. This is close to a masterpiece. It is kind of an autobiography. Kids are the main characters. I guarantee, this will pull you back to your childhood. Even though there are monsters in this, it is the humans that are the real monsters, King mentions this himself. This was written in the Eighties and King tackles Gay Bashing. These days no big deal, but in the Eighties, it was a risk on his part. He also takes on child abuse, women abuse, and discrimination against Jews, fat people, stutterers, people who wear glasses, mamma's boys and blacks.

The book is scary and gory. I lost count of the decapitations.

Few writers can make me listen for 45 hours. Off the top of my head, Robin Hobb, James Michener and Stephen King. You know, I change my mind, this is a masterpiece, not close to.

I had absolutely no problems with the narrator or production.

We All Float Down Here…

I will always cherish this book since it was the first Stephen King novel I ever picked up back when I was a teen. I watched the TV movie back then and my only reason for trying to read this monster of a book at such a young age was because I needed to know if Pennywise actually said, “Kiss me fat boy!” in the book like he did in the movie (dumb, I know but I was a kid!). Sad to say, that particular line Tim Curry delivered so well was not in the book, but by the time I figure that out, I was hooked. I’ve been a Stephen King fan ever since. Now the new movie for It is coming out later this year, so I figured I would revisit the classic via audio and refresh my memory. I’m so glad that I did! I knew the story was fantastic to begin with, but Steven Weber’s performance here was top of the line! He understood the characters perfectly and delivered the story just as I expected. If you haven’t read It and you feel the book is way too long for you to tackle, give the audio a listen. It provides over 40 hours of horror, love and fond memories of what it’s like to be a kid. King leaves no stone left unturned when it comes to the fears of children and what it’s like to face those fears as a kid and as an adult. Absolutely a fantastic story!

Great Audiobook! Editing Clarification

Steven Weber's narration of 'It' was fantastic. That narration coupled with the writing of Stephen King made this one of the most enjoyable audibooks I've heard.

Just a note on the editing:
This book is written following the adult versions of the characters in this novel. The adults then recall events that happened during their childhood. The reason King chose to end a chapter, and seemingly begin the next chapter mid-sentence, is to show that the adult character is having a flashback to their childhood. Once you realize what King is doing, the seemingly poor ceases to be an issue.

Chapters run into each other

Any additional comments?

I don't feel like the editing is bad, it's just that some chapters end in the middle of the sentence and then resume in the next chapter. It's a little jarring but not the narrators fault. (This happens a lot in the second half of the book)
Thanks
J

great book, terrible editing

the book is great, but audible should give a refund for it. it is literally missing part of a chapter. then in the second half of the book the editing is terrible.

Why do words drop off?

I gave "performance" three stars for a very specific reason. During this book, the last word of certain sentences is dropped or cut off. It makes me feel like I have missed things in the book. The performance was excellent, but it seems like editing screwed up a lot. I'd recommend a different version of this book if you are looking to get it.

The editing is great!!

I read a few reviews saying the editing is off for this... and I nearly didn't listen to it. Those reviewers I think were a bit confused because occasionally the last few words of a sentence will be continued in the next chapter... this is fairly common for writers to do so I wasn't too concerned. Also listening on double speed it just felt like a 1-second cliffhanger. On normal speed maybe people get a bit more anxious about it?

Either way -- I highly recommend this. It was awesome!!!!

Great performance - bad audio

There is something wrong with the editing of this production. Many times the end of a sentence was cut off. A few times it was so abrupt I was worried I might have missed something. I downloaded the high quality one part so it may be something with that file. Happens most in the second half of the book.

WOW! Steven Weber Does an INCREDIBLE Job. Awesome.

I will be totally honest that when I saw the guy from the TV show Wings was going to be narrating IT, I was disappointed. I thought he'd just do a sub-par job and I would lose interest in the story for sure. I figured with Audible's excellent return policy I might as well give it a try. I am so glad that I did. It was clear to me almost immediately that Steven Weber was a great choice. His narration is enthusiastic and energetic. Every character has their own "voice" and he never loses his attention to detail. Having never read the book, I had no idea what I was in for. Now having finished, I can't believe I never read this book. King's SALEM'S LOT and THE SHINING are two of my favorite books of all time. IT is right up there with them and possibly even better. I can't wait to listen to IT again. I plan on getting myself a hardcover version as well to get the experience of reading it as well.

If you are on the fence with IT, trust me, it's 100% worth your time. You'll love it. I would be willing to listen to any audiobook that Weber narrates. I hope that he does additional King books. I listened via the Audible apple on my iPhone. I downloaded the high quality version and noticed no audio issues described in many other reviews.

Do IT, Download IT, You'll Love IT......You'll Float Too!