I love hearing how others have the same faves as me. The Stand, IT, The Talisman, Dark Tower (Just the whole series. I realize that it doesn't work that way, and yes, some books are much better than others, but let's not get to picking nits just yet) and Eyes of The Dragon are my faves.
I've wondered many times what makes them the favorites, and the main reason that keeps coming back is the characters and their relationships. Story lines are important, for sure, but I feel like Under the Dome is a good example of a pretty lame story line, but a decent book because the reader gets invested in the characters.
I started young, and I wasn't much older than the Derry pack when I read IT, so some sort of kinship may be there. But I've been reading and rereading the books for the last 30 years, and with some books it's like meeting up with old friends.
My dad died a few years ago, and when I got on the plane to go see him, I grabbed IT to reread. It had been years, and I was pretty fragile knowing that my dad was on death's door. Opening up that book and seeing Bill and Georgie again, and feeling the love that they had for each other, I started wailing on that plane. The lady next to me didn't know what to do.
In my humble opinion, King does a good job of connecting his readers to his characters. I was obviously close to the Denbrough boys- totally fictional kids that were never real, would never be real, and ones that I had never met.
Great book. Can't wait to read it again.