This book is as much an epic coming-of-age story as it is a horror novel about a monster. As with most of King's stories, the characters are what make it interesting, and the children, in particular, are very well-realized. However, it also suffers from many of King's "doorstopper" novels; it could have been just as good with half as many pages. Also, it has probably one of the worst endings of any King novel.