Stephen King novel It being withdrawn from sale in Russia

It, a bestselling novel by American writer Stephen King first published in 1986, is to officially be withdrawn from sale in Russia, state-owned news agency TASS reported on Thursday.

The Russian-language version of the book has become “almost impossible” to find either in traditional bookstores or online, although English editions are said to still be available, TASS continued.

In a statement to TASS, the press service of Russian online retailer Wildberries & Russ commented that it “fully complies with the law and does not allow the sale of any products banned in the Russian Federation”. No explanation was offered, however, on how exactly King or his novel have violated Russian laws.

King has long been an outspoken critic of Russia’s war in Ukraine. The American author moved quickly to suspend ties with his Russian-language publisher shortly after the war began in early 2022 and routinely comments on the conflict on his X account.

In July 2022, King was the victim of a call by Russian pranksters posing as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky who successfully baited him into praising the controversial Ukrainian Second World War era figure Stepan Bandera, as a “great man”. King later claimed he was unaware of who Bandera was at the time.

Independent literature has come under increasing pressure and scrutiny in Russia in recent years, as a plethora of censorship laws limiting freedom of expression on topics such as the war in Ukraine and LGBT issues has led to a widespread crackdown, including police raids on bookstores for reportedly stocking “banned titles” that promoted “signs of LGBT ideology”.