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Loading... Something Wicked This Way Comes (original 1963; edition 1998)by Ray Bradbury
Work InformationSomething Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury (1963)
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At the center of this dark fantasy, an allegory of good and evil, are two best friends about to turn fourteen: Jim Nightshade and Will Halloway. They were born minutes apart, on October 30 and 31, respectively, and have lived next door to each other their whole lives. On an October night a week before their birthdays, a sinister travelling carnival comes to their Illinois town: Cooger & Dark’s Pandemonium Shadow Show. Bradbury paints a haunted landscape, against which the boys grapple with their approaching adulthood amid a plethora of bizarre and bone-chilling carny figures. Will’s father, Charles, a janitor at the town library, is also a central character in the novel. I read this first more than half a century ago, when I was in late grade school; this time I can better appreciate the masterful writing and the gothic tropes. A circus comes to town with truly scary features: a house of mirrors that you can get lost forever in; a carousel that takes the riders either forward or backward in their timeline; and worst of all a blind witch who can fly through the air and determine where you are hiding. All are destined to steal your soul and turn you into an inhabitant of their freak show. Unlike other inhabitants of the town, two boys see through it and become targets. They are not enough to end the evil, but when one of the boy’s, father, a janitor at the local library, adds his determination to their will, can it be enough to keep the town safe? Apparently Bradbury stated that he wrote this as an homage to boyhood turning into manhood. And like, the first time I read this when I was in 8th grade in the 70’s, my question was and is ‘Where are the adventuring girls?' I remember the other adventure stories I was assigned as part of the adventure group included Treasure Island and Travels With Charlie, both of which also lacked adventuring females. Also, there is a scene with the father facing down the witch with a gun which I have always felt was eerily similar to the scene in [To Kill a Mockingbird] when Atticus Finch reveals his strength by shooting a rabid dog. Scary, well written period piece that leaves out one half of the human race. Not my favorite Bradbury. 3.0 stars no reviews | add a review
Belongs to SeriesGreen Town (2) Belongs to Publisher SeriesIs contained inHas the adaptationIs abridged inInspiredHas as a student's study guideDistinctionsNotable Lists
Fantasy.
Fiction.
Literature.
Science Fiction.
HTML: Few American novels written this century have endured in th heart and mind as has this one-Ray Bradbury's incomparable masterwork of the dark fantastic. A carnival rolls in sometime after the midnight hour on a chill Midwestern October eve, ushering in Halloween a week before its time. A calliope's shrill siren song beckons to all with a seductive promise of dreams and youth regained. In this season of dying, Cooger & Dark's Pandemonium Shadow Show has come to Green Town, Illinois, to destroy every life touched by its strange and sinister mystery. And two inquisitive boys standing precariously on the brink of adulthood will soon discover the secret of the satanic raree-show's smoke, mazes, and mirrors, as they learn all too well the heavy cost of wishes -- and the stuff of nightmare. .No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.54Literature English (North America) American fiction 20th Century 1945-1999LC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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This is an abridged version which I missed when I was buying the audio. I also didn’t understand what an audio drama truly is. This review is based solely on this audio version. I have not read the book, but I intend to just to see the differences and whether I hate it as much as this particular one.
Honestly, I think this version does a disservice to the story. It’s all over the place with crappy dialogue and a lot of dumb sound effects. Since I haven’t actually read the story I don’t know if this is the way it’s written by Bradbury (doubtful) or how it was written for the audio drama. I will be following up with the book to see. It sounds like it would be interesting and scary, but falls far short. A quick sum up: I hate this version. ( )