IrishLeFay

Just the Ticket

Revisado: 04-01-13

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I know some people complain about King's narration in this. I forgot it -was- King most of the time. I've always enjoyed King's narration. He is good enough at doing different voices for different characters that I'm never confused, and I appreciate that he doesn't 'over act' either. He's reading you a book, not putting on a show. My only complaint about his narration is that he does a hilariously bad job with Rev. Willy. He's trying to do a sort evangelical televangelist cadence... and it comes out like a really hysterically bad Italian accent. Maybe that's what that sort of Reverend would really sound like in Maine, I don't know. Luckily we only have to listen to ten or fifteen minutes of it during the whole book. Other then that, I have no complaints about his narration.

If you really like King's small town drama/suspense type books, you'll really enjoy this. The interconnections of the characters and the fabric of small town life is really rich. One of the main characters, Allen (the sheriff) had me vested in him from almost the moment he was on the page. This book has a few gross out moments that seem to be common of his earlier work, but they pass quickly, and after all, this is Stephen King. I assume you're not expecting kittens and rainbows. I stop short of giving this five stars, because everything wraps up in sort of a rush. Everything's tied up well enough, but it feels a little lazy after everything we've gone through with the characters to get to that point. On the other hand, maybe that's what we're supposed to take away from this, the utter chaos left in the wake of something that has little meaning and context. In any case, its a great ride. I've listened to it several times and am sure I'll listen to it several times more.

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So Not Worth It

Revisado: 07-27-12

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I know it's and abridged version, but I've read the hardcopy and they cut out some of the most interesting things about the case. I can't complain too much, I did know I was getting an abridged version, but yikes, if other abridged books are like this, I'm amazed anyone bothers.

The narrator and I think the actual recording itself are terrible. I can't hear her well at all, no matter how much I turn up the volume, use headphones, etc. Its a very poor recording. The narrator doesn't do anything to help, she's bland and forgettable. Really, its worth just reading the actual book rather than listening to this.

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esto le resultó útil a 6 personas

More Than Just a Horror Novel

Revisado: 07-27-12

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I've been a SK fan since I was 12, but "It" had never ranked in even my top ten of my favorite works by him until I heard it in audiobook. "It" is admittedly a horror book, but it absolutely withstands the standard rule of thumb for SK books: The longer it is the better it is. "It's" moments of horror are well spaced out between wonderful moments of kids being kids and a study on friendship (as much of SK's books involving children are). The moments of horror are in classic SK fashion, gruesome but so artfully rendered that you're willing to keep reading.

For SK fans this is an excellent lynchpin in understanding what Derry is and why it is the way that it is. Definitely part of Stephen King's larger universe. (One of his most recent books, 11-22-63 has a nice nod to Derry and the events of It).

The only down side about this book is the narrator. Most of the time he's just fine, but I find that at certain moments he's too over the top for me. You can really hear the horror of the characters as if it were his own and for me, I prefer a step back.

Another thing that is worth mentioning, the telling of the story is nonlinear. It doesn't go from point A to point B, it alternates between telling the story from when the characters were 11 and 25+ years later when they're adults. There is also multiple threads to keep track of and weave together. It starts by telling each adult's story of who and what they are in their adult lives and doesn't bring them together until at least 1/3 of the way through the book. As kids, different vignettes take place with different sets of characters, and we're introduced to each child's first experience with It too. There are also moments when we jump back in Derry's history to other incidents related to It. Really, this is all pretty standard SK narrative, but if you're new to his work, its worth mentioning.

Overall, a great story, nothing about it I disliked other than a few brief moments with the narrator. This is one of the books in my library I listen to over and over again.

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Cliche

Revisado: 02-20-11

I picked this book because the premise sounded interesting. Unfortunately, 3 hours in, all the characters are unoriginal and without depth. The bad guys are unmitigated evil, with no redeeming value, their only purpose is to hurt the main character directly and indirectly. The introduction of the love interest is ham-fisted at best. Everyone is either a saint or a monster. The writer also makes a common newbie mistake, and rarely uses contractions where in natural speech we would. One might make the argument that she is trying to make the diction sound antiquated, but they don't have any other speech patterns that suggest that. She just tries too hard. This lack of contractions is only highlighted by the narrator. She enunciates every word so carefully that it feels like every word is emphasized.

Worse, even the premise that enticed me at first becomes thinner all the time. The backstory for what brings everyone into the position they are currently in is implausible, the justification for why they endure their oppression with no attempts at freedom is weak, basically I've been in no way rewarded for my suspended disbelief. The book itself suffers from shallow saints as the main characters and pointlessly cruel antagonists, not to mention inconsistencies and improbabilities within the first couple hours and a predictable plot. The narration is often Shatner-esq. If you're looking for a fantasy/sci fi book with a good female protagonist check out Garth Nix's trilogy "Sabrial" "Liriel" and "Abhorsen"

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esto le resultó útil a 3 personas