It door Stephen King

INFO IN ADVANCE: Year of publication: 1986
Number of pages: 1116
Publisher: Hodder and Stoughton Ltd. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Stephen King was born in 1947. He now lives in Bangor, Maine, with his wife Tabitha and their 3 children Naomi, Joseph and Owen. He used to play in a rockband in highschool and can still be persuaded to take the stage now and then. He had a major accident a couple af years ago, but is still writing his stories. He also wrote stories under the name Richard Bachman. Other books by Stephen King include: Carrie, Pet Semetary, The Shining and The Stand. TYPE OF NOVEL: It is a horror story, and could also be seen sometimes as a thriller
THEMES: - The struggle between good and bad - Childhood and adulthood - Friendship

TITLE EXPLANATION: IT is what the children call the monster, the evil thing which lives in their hometown
SETTING: The story takes place in 1985 and through flashbacks also in 1958 in Derry, Maine, USA. MAIN CHARACTERS: "Stuttering" Bill Denbrough: When kids, he is the 'leader'. He is the tallest, the smartest and the strongest of all. He stutters badly, which became worse when his brother George was killed by IT. When adult, he is married to actress Audra Phillips. He is a very popular horrorbook writer. Richie "Trashmouth" Tozier: When kids, he got bullied a lot by Henry Bowers because of his glasses. He always tries to do voices and imitations, but they are lousy. When grown up, he is a famous comedian, and now does the voices and imitations a lot better
Beverly Marsh (Rogan): When kids, every boy had a crush on her, especially Ben. She had a crush on Bill. She was very boy-like, and also very poor. Her stepfather beat her up. When adult, she is married to Tom Rogan, who also beats her up. She still is very beautiful. Ben "Haystack" Hanscom: When kids, he was very fat, thats why his nickname was haystack (made up by Richie). He likes to go to the library and built things. He has a mayor crush on Beverly. When adult, he is a well known architect, and has been on the cover of Time magazine. Eddie Kaspbrak: When kids, his mother was always worried about him, maybe a bit to much. He was very small for his age, and had astma, for which he gets fake medicin. He is the best friend of Bill. When adult, he takes lots of medication and has a limo company. Stan "the man" Uris: When kids, he was the one who least believed in IT, and didn't really want to believe. He is Jewish. When grown up, he kills himself as soon as he finds out IT has returned. Mike Hanlon: When kids, he was the last one to join the club. His father has a farm near Henry Bowers. His dog gets poisoned by Henry. When grown up, he is the only one who hasn't left Derry. He calls all his old friends to make them come back to Derry. MINOR CHARACTERS: Audra Phillips: Bill's wife
Tom Rogan: Beverly's husband
Henry Bowers: the town bully who also returns
Belch Huggins: friend of Henry, killed by IT
Victor Criss: friend of Henry, killed by IT
SHORT SUMMARY: There's 'something' living in Derry. Every 27 years, sometimes a little more, sometimes a little less, IT comes back and kills a lot of people. In 1957 IT has again returned, and the first victim is George Denbrough. His arm is ripped off. Many children dissappear and/or are murdered in 1957 and 1958. Seven children, Bill, Ben, Beverly, Richie, Eddie, Stan and Mike all have seen it, in one way or another. Some as a werewolf, some as a mummy, some as a leper, but there was always some resemblence with a clown. They all survive their encounters with IT, as they call it, and decide to kill it. In a thrilling scene they do, and peace returns to Derry. Twenty-seven years later, IT has returned to Derry, and Mike is the only one who knows that. He calles his old friends, who have all moved away and are all very famous in what they do. Everybody has forgotten all about Derry, and still they go back to their childhood, to face IT again. They have to remember what they did that summer and who or what they were and are up against. They have to beat it again. MY OPINION: Despite the size of the book, 1100 pages, I read it quite fast. It is very exciting to read, very entertaining. I read it because I saw the film many years ago, but I have to say that the book is so much better!! (allthough the film is quite good also) I could recommend it to everybody, but it's not the best book ever, that's for sure!