Stephen King IT for 10 year old?

[Anonymous]

My DD has been obsessed with IT since the movie came out and she heard about the general story from classmates and older siblings. She's an advanced reader and really wants to read the book. I have never censored any of her reading choices in the past, but don't know what to do about this one. It's been a long time since I read the book so I don't remember much. Common sense media mentions some very disturbing content and violence that I don't think she is ready for, but I don't like the idea of making books off limits ( movies I have no problem incensoribg). Would you let your 10 yo DD read IT? FWIW, she is not super sensitive and does enjoy the kid version of "horror."

[Anonymous]

I haven’t read it, but I thought it has an orgy near the end?

[Anonymous]

I read it recently because the movie came out. It’s long and kind of tedious for a 10yo. I did not find it scary or too violent. I mean it’s violent, but it’s a book. Nothing too graphic. That’s my opinion. What I would not want my 10yo reading is the sexual stuff. And as much as I would bet she wouldn’t even read that far, she may skip to it. I would honestly rather my 10yo watch the movies. So maybe you can persuade her to just watch the movie(s) instead.

[Anonymous]

A lot of Stephen King has horrifically visual depictions of domestic violence and other violence in it (think depictions of eyes being punched out and the smells, sounds, etc) as well as graffic sexual scenes, and IT is not an exception. I'm not one to judge for others whether your kid is old enough to deal with this. Myself, I was reading high level adult stuff in 5th grade and beyond and it was fine, but I'm not sure id let my kids do the same.

[Anonymous]

I read it when I was in 7th grade. No ill effects. I also don't believe in censoring books, and my ten year old has read two SK novels and a collection of short stories.

But I can tell you some elements that would be concern for a 10 year old and would definitely make me lean toward NO!

Child abuse and molestation inferences/wife abuse. Explicit and powerful but whoa.

Not just children who get murdered, but at least two children who are the murderers.

A gay man who gets murdered brutally but first there is a lot of hateful talk (from characters, not the authors) toward gay men. Explicit, hateful talk.

Time jump narrative and confusing timelines (for a 10 year old).

50% of the book is from adult perspective, not children.

The sex scene at the end.

Plus more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I haven’t read it, but I thought it has an orgy near the end?

Yes, there is a scene in the book after the kids have defeated the It monster where they get lost in the tunnels and everyone panics, so Beverly Marsh tells them the only way they'll find their way out is if they unite through everyone having sex with her. If I remember correctly, it's a pretty lengthy scene of Beverly encouraging the boys to have sex with her and depicting the sex itself. It's basically a kiddie gang bang. In general I don't censor my kid's reading material either, but this is one where I would hold a line.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I read it recently because the movie came out. It’s long and kind of tedious for a 10yo. I did not find it scary or too violent. I mean it’s violent, but it’s a book. Nothing too graphic. That’s my opinion. What I would not want my 10yo reading is the sexual stuff. And as much as I would bet she wouldn’t even read that far, she may skip to it. I would honestly rather my 10yo watch the movies. So maybe you can persuade her to just watch the movie(s) instead.

This is mostly wrong. Most of the sex stuff is fairly benign, save the questionable end scene. Violence should always trump sex stuff when it comes to children.

The book is one of my favorites for dealing head on with social issues: bullying, child abuse, racism, domestic violence, bad parenting, young friendships. It is amazing and Iw ant my kid to read it.

But prob not at ten.

The violence and situations the children are put into--the descriptions are not bad, but it is rough material. My ten year old can handle it, but I would rather him wait until he is older so he can [i]appreciate[b] it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A lot of Stephen King has horrifically visual depictions of domestic violence and other violence in it (think depictions of eyes being punched out and the smells, sounds, etc) as well as graffic sexual scenes, and IT is not an exception. I'm not one to judge for others whether your kid is old enough to deal with this. Myself, I was reading high level adult stuff in 5th grade and beyond and it was fine, but I'm not sure id let my kids do the same.

The difference between when we were kids, and today, is that there is MUCH more literature written to the level of a strong 10 year-old reader, but without the adult themes.

[Anonymous]

My 9-year-old daughter is good with horror, but she had a really hard time with this movie. I regret letting her watch it.

There's no orgy at the end of the movie update, though - they basically prick their fingers and commingle their blood.

I probably wouldn't have her read the book, in part because it is REALLY LONG. Unless she's zipped through the Harry Potter books, could be a tough slog.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I read it recently because the movie came out. It’s long and kind of tedious for a 10yo. I did not find it scary or too violent. I mean it’s violent, but it’s a book. Nothing too graphic. That’s my opinion. What I would not want my 10yo reading is the sexual stuff. And as much as I would bet she wouldn’t even read that far, she may skip to it. I would honestly rather my 10yo watch the movies. So maybe you can persuade her to just watch the movie(s) instead.

This is mostly wrong. Most of the sex stuff is fairly benign,[/b] save the questionable end scene. Violence should always trump sex stuff when it comes to children.

The book is one of my favorites for dealing head on with social issues: bullying, child abuse, racism, domestic violence, bad parenting, young friendships. It is amazing and Iw ant my kid to read it.

But prob not at ten.

The violence and situations the children are put into--the descriptions are not bad, but it is rough material. My ten year old can [b]handle it, but I would rather him wait until he is older so he can [i]appreciate[b] it.

Well, yeah. All that is true. But it was that end scene I was hinting at. I don’t want her reading that. The violence is terrible too.

[Anonymous]

I recently re-read IT. I read it when I was about 12 and "that scene" was what stuck with me years later. What I'd forgotten was the other trauma and horrors the children experience. I think whether I encouraged my DD to read it would depend a lot on her maturity level, what other stuff she's read, etc. Like other PPs, I think that the bigger concern than "that scene" would be that the thing is 1100 damn pages long. It's entirely possible that your DD will not even make it to "that scene" because the book itself is such a slog.

[Anonymous]

Thanks so much everyone! As silly as it sounds, I feel much better continuing to hold the line and say no after all the feedback. I just wanted to make sure that I was not over-reacting. As far as book length, my DD breezed through all Harry Potter at 8 and recently devoured the His Dark Materials trilogy. Unfortunately, book length does not deter her when she is motivated. I have no doubt that she would and it to the end. Guess I need to gear up for a few years of tears and attempted convincing. Lol

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks so much everyone! As silly as it sounds, I feel much better continuing to hold the line and say no after all the feedback. I just wanted to make sure that I was not over-reacting. As far as book length, my DD breezed through all Harry Potter at 8 and recently devoured the His Dark Materials trilogy. Unfortunately, book length does not deter her when she is motivated. I have no doubt that she would and it to the end. Guess I need to gear up for a few years of tears and attempted convincing. Lol

OP, I was this kid, and realistically, she is going to read IT whether you want her to or not. If you tell her that it's a very long book that has some adult material that she will find upsetting and to wait until she's 12 or something, that might work. But it also might not. With a kid who is that motivated, it might be a better strategy to have her read it and talk about the material.

- had literally read 3 VC Andrews books by age 11 because my mom told me not to

[Anonymous]

You can read the plot summary on wiki https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_(novel)
I assume it is more or less correct.

[Anonymous]

Rarely do I say this but movie over book.