Thursday, July 10, 2008

I'm almost half-way through reading IT, and I'm beginning to question whether or not I have actually read this book before, or not. Of course I remember reading it, but I certainly don't remember many of the fine-details. It's been well over 10 years since I read it the first time, and all of those interesting side-plots and tidbits were long forgotten. So in essence, it's basically like reading the book for the first time.

There is one story-line that is really surprising me right now -- Stanley Uris. Due to the way his character was portrayed in the TV mini-series, I was left with a certain impression of his character: That of someone who really didn't want to deal with this whole situation. That was brought to it's ultimate conclusion with him committing suicide after received Mike's phone call that It had returned.

While he also kills himself in the book, you are left with the impression that he just wasn't simply taking the easy way out and avoiding the need to confront It again. In the mini-series, even as a child he was the most reluctant to believe It even existed, the most reluctant to go and confront It, and the most reluctant to make that promise to confront It again should It return.

This isn't true in the book, where he is sometimes the first to suggest certain courses of action. He takes the lead in cleaning up the blood in Bev's bathroom. It's hinted at early on that he knows It must be confronted. He's the one who cuts everyone's hands as they make the promise. So at this point in the book, you are left wondering, "Why did he kill himself?" And you're left thinking that because everything you know about this character up to this point would never give you the impression that he would be a coward.

I don't know the answer to that question, because I don't remember how it's explained (if at all). I'm sure it is, and I'm looking forward to finding out (again), because it can't be just as simple as that.

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