Something Wicked This Way Comes

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Summary: No one writes like Bradbury
Review: Out of all of Ray Bradbury's prodigious gifts, perhaps none is greater than his ability to capture the true essence of childhood in a timeless manner. While his most prolific period is now four decades past, Bradbury's descriptions of the hopes and fears of childhood still strike a powerful chord; in particular, he is able to capture the fears of childhood from an adult's perspective, without in any way minimizing them.

In "Something Wicked This Way Comes" the reader is treated the pinnacle of Bradbury's writings on childhood. In it, he explores the most fundamental desire, and conversely, the most fundamental fear of childhood: growing older. Who among us wouldn't have leapt at the opportunity to be "grown up" at the snap of our fingers, but what about the consequences? Here, Bradbury uses the metaphor of a carnival that preys upon the fears of growing older, quite literally, in order to sustain itself.

The two main characters, Will in Jim, are fourteen, and in that awkward time that is not quite adulthood but not quite childhood either. They are torn between the desire to plunge into adult life, even as they cling to the safety of childhood. In this regard they are no different from any other child, the difference is that the carnival, and it's mysterious merry-go-round make it possible for them to do something about this situation. Juxtaposing their dilemma is Will's father, who married and had Will relatively late and life, and feels his age all the more as a result of his young son.

"Something Wicked This Way Comes" is a clever, spooky story, perfect for Halloween time. Bradbury is a master of descriptive writing, and no one sets a mood better than he does. More than that, tough, this is a novel about coming of age, about the value of youth, but also about appreciating where you are and what you have achieved. It is heartfelt and sincere in an age where far too many novels use cynicism as a mask for a lack of ideas. For that reason alone, this is a novel that is well worth reading.

Enjoy!

Rating:
Summary: Classic.
Review: I first read this book ten years ago when I was 13. At the time, I didn't understand the metaphors and symbolism that Bradbury's books are known for. I enjoyed it at the time, but it still wasn't one of my favorites. But now as I reread the book, I realize how great of a book this is. As I mentioned, like other of his books like Fahrenheit 451, this book uses a lot of metaphors.

Anyways, I've been re-reading many of his books recently, and this is one of my favorites. I couldn't put it down and I read it less than a day. It's not really extremely scary, but the atmosphere and dialogue is masterful and tends to make the book have a mysterious and somewhat creepy feeling. It doesn't resort to violence and death to create this atmosphere as too many of today's "horror" novels do.

It is essentially the tale of two boys, Jim and Will, who discover that the carnival that has come to town is evil. It is run by Mr. Dark, and a bunch of freaks that are pretty much actually souls that he captured. The two boys and Will's father much get rid of the carnival before it "destroys" more people.

Overall, this book is excellent. While it isn't extremely scary, it is still a great piece of literature with a creepy atmosphere. It is as much a book about growing up as it is about terror and horror. I would recommend it to almost anyone who will understand the Bradbury metaphors. Another Bradbury classic.

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Summary: A little dated, but still an eerie page-turner
Review: Two 13-year old boys are the centre of this book, but this is not really a children's book. In fact, I suspect that the modern 13-year-old would find the philosophising tedious and the action trite. However, to the older reader (say, high school and up), there is much to recommend the book. The plot: a carnival arrives in town, unusually late in the season, and a few townspeople disappear. The two boys investigate and learn that the people who were thought to have disappeared still exist, but in altered form: one has become a wizened dwarf while another has become a little girl. They discover a carousel that can turn the clock - make you older or younger. The carnival operators become alarmed by the boys and try to buy them off (by making them "grownups") or kidnap them.

Of course, the plot isn't as important as the atmosphere, which is truly creepy. Carnivals and freak side-shows are creepy at the best of times, but Bradbury manages to instill dread and darkness into every scene. The boys eventually enlist one of their fathers, who works at the local library, and who supplies the philosophy in the book. Naturally it focusses on death and aging, which the carnival's carousel can reverse.

The supernatural elements are a nice touch, and unique (I don't think they've been copied). Especially well-designed is the blind "witch" that can smell souls - she is essentially the bloodhound that tracks the boys for the carnival's master.

The only drawbacks are that the philosophy is a little simplistic (mostly because the father is simplistic) and the notion of a carnival is outdated. It sounds quaint to modern ears that 13-year-old boys would be this excited about a carnival and its acts. However, I enjoyed the book, and recommend it to others.

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Summary: Wickedly Good!
Review: This book is great! The suspense is wonderful! I'm not much of a horror/suspense fan, but being a life-long Bradbury fan, I finally read it. I wish I had read it years ago! Yes, it is horribly suspenseful - but so much more! The darkness only makes the light shine all the brighter! If you haven't read this book - that is the most horrible part of all! Do yourself a favor and get this book NOW!

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Summary: Flowing look at Life, Death, Fear, and Darkness
Review: When I put down this book yesterday, two-thirds of the way through, I was pretty sure it was the best book I had ever read on the subject of death. If not death, then the peculiar phantasm of death paraded by the ghoulish, the morbid, the interminably gasping, and the paranoid. There could be no more perfect metaphor for the fascination and terror death holds for us, than the carnival. Swooping in, strange, exhilarating, mysterious, dangerous, and familiar; overwhelming and sometimes nauseating.

Bradbury's style for this novel makes heavy use of metaphor and simile, sentence fragments, and slang, which are often incongruous and insensible; at first this is annoying, largely because it seems like an affectation, but there are moments in his stream of images and phrases where all the disparate elements flow together and what's left, whether it makes sense or not, is really beautiful.

The same can be said for the spates of philosophizing, shuffled in and out of the story as we explore the allure of the carnival, and the weaknesses of it's victims. After having researched urban legends, ghost stories, and various real acts of evil for the last few months, I tend to agree with his assertions (filtered through the character of Charles Halloway) about fear and death in particular. And having been a William (unnervingly good), and a Jim (fascinated with, inured by the macabre), and a Charles (trying to rationalize a world where both exist), I also tend to sympathise with Bradbury's views on humanity. Yes he does go on, (or as Jim Nightshade says "You talk a lot.") but he has something to say, even if it is wedged into a stream-of-consciousness style that is not wholly decipherable, or one-hundred percent the truth. What doesn't work, for me, and wholly forgivable for a book from the '60s, is the dated male perspective which shadows Charles' discussions of love and compassion, which makes it seem like women exist only to be a man's emotional consciousness; forgivable, but still somewhat disruptive to an otherwise interesting discursion.

Now, the last third of the book. Perfectly suspenseful, somewhat satisfying, until the very end, which seemed mealy and saccharine compared to the subtly textured, fair-food substantialness of the rest of the book. Like having Spielberg direct the last ten minutes of a David Lynch film.

In summary, a good book, but not for horror fans, certainly not for people who insist on direct communication, who are flummoxed by effuse evocation. Definitely for someone who can appreciate the simplicity of small town life, and the difference between the percieved and real dangers of the unknown.

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Summary: "Something Wicked" comes on strong
Review: "By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes." This quote from Shakespeare adequately describes this now-classic work of horror by Ray Bradbury. Bradbury manages to use evocative language and charming characters to draw the readers into what is almost a parallel world.

Will Holloway and Jim Nightshade are boys born two seconds apart -- one on Halloween, the other on the day before. Will is the ultimate innocent, while Jim is darker and more knowledgeable about the world. These two have been inseparable friends all their lives, despite their different personalities and tiny events that divide them on subtle levels. Then, one day, a strange carnival comes to their town, with a freak show and a carousel.

But a more sinister undercurrent runs in this carnival: The freak show, with its tattooed "illustrated man," blind gypsy witch, and murderous dwarf, is more menacing than the townspeople expect. And when Will and Jim see the carousel change a man's age, they become the targets of Mr. Dark and his evil cohorts -- for fates worse than death.

Bradbury's writing is a mixed bag. While it's extremely evocative and often surreal, it becomes a little clumsy at times. He refers to the carousel horses having "panic-colored teeth," but never explains what this description means. His metaphors occasionally become very strained, and at times the lapses into philosophical musings become distractions to the overall plotline.

However, he expertly draws out a feeling of horror with only a few words, never overdoing the descriptions of something that terrifies Jim and Will. Rather than using "ghoulies and ghosties," Bradbury plays on fears in every human being, such as fears of aging, loneliness, physical decrepitude, loss of loved ones, and most horrifyingly when people are aged or de-aged and thus unrecognizable to their friends and loved ones. The buildup of suspense as the boys hide from Dark and his lackeys is utterly terrifying. And in a masterful use of nostalgia, Bradbury brings readers to the midwestern America of his youth, an innocent place of screen doors, fall leaves and barber shops.

Jim and Will are good foils for one another. Too often in books with two lead characters of the same age and background, there is no personality difference, but these boys are radically different. Will is an utter innocent, with no comprehension of the seductiveness of evil and a great deal of fear for his family and his best friend. Jim, on the other hand, is more susceptible to Mr. Dark's offers. He wants to age to the level of a young adult with the carousel, while knowing in his heart that nothing good can come of it; his temptation is frightening in its intensity. The temptation is reversed for the quiet Charles Holloway, who is haunted by his own age and the relative youth of his son. His gradual changes of thought on this matter are never clumsy or sappy, but rather with the brilliance of Charles' new perceptions.

"Something Wicked This Way Comes" is one of the rare stories that blends unusual prose, good characterizations, and skilful atmosphere into a true spinechiller. A great horror classic. Do not read after dark.

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Summary: Only saw the movie but...
Review: I've only read one of Bradbury's books, but I loved it. I have only seen the movie of this book, but it was awesome. It's quite creepy and strangely keeps you hooked on every word. Go with the majority of the reviewers, this book is awesome and appropriate for all ages.

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Summary: What could be found wrong with this book?
Review: I had to write to say do NOT listen to the many reviews of this book describing it as empty, dated, lacking creativity, etc. If you're familiar with Bradbury at all, this book will live up to your expectations of his typical high quality of writing. If you are not familiar with Bradbury, I'd personally say start with something closer to F451, Martian Chronicles, or some short stories to get a feel for Bradbury, but regardless of when you read this book, you'll be impressed. Bradbury creates suspense throughout the book, in fact, the only reason I read this book so quickly was because I simply could not put it down! There's no way to describe the magic bradbury creates, please, do yourself a favor and read this and every other Bradbury story you can get your hands on!

Rating:
Summary: Superb beyond words
Review: utterly comprehensable and delightful entertainment from the workings of Ray Bradbury. Another incredibly fun, yet absolutely terrifying thrillers that will leave you wanting more. After reading Something Wicked This Way Comes you will have to read the Illustrated Man, a sort of prolouge to this wonderful story of the mind. While reading this book you will find a place inside you where dreams are realized and nightmares just begin. From the title to the ending, Ray Bradbury has successfully surpassed his limits once again, twisting reality for his readers.

Rating:
Summary: Dated....very dated
Review: I grew up reading Ray Bradbury (6th to 10th grades). So now some twenty plus years later, in a nostalgic mood, I ordered a bunch of Bradbury books. Something Wicked This Way Comes was the first book I chose to read and now I kind of wish I hadn't.

In this book, Bradbury writes shorter sentences than Hemingway. And far too many of them contain exclamations such as: "Jim!"; "Oh gosh!"; "Dad!"; "It's hopeless!"; "Boys!"; "Like Heck!"; "Cheezeit!"; "Jim!"; "Jehosophat!"; "You're evil!"; "Jim!"; "Bangity-bang!"; and the best of all, "But for cri-yi, Jim, face it, you don't really want to be twenty!"

How about this for a sequence:

"No its all right!"
"Jim!"
"Will, yes, its ok!"
"Stand back!"
"This man is in a trance! As part of our new act I have hypnotized him! He could suffer injury if you shocked him from the spell!"
The internes shut their mouths. The police stopped moving.
"One hundred thousand volts! Yet he will come forth alive, whole in sound mind and body!"

Now that's some writing. Ed Wood himself couldn't have done that scene better.

All of this could be forgiven if there was an underlying story or even some characters worth knowing. But alas...The protagonist, Will, is a wussy. His father, Charles Halloway is dour old woman. Will's best friend, Jim, has some guts, but to Will and his father he is far too brash. The villains, such as they are, are not frightening or particularly villainous. There is a dwarf, a witch, an illustrated man--not to mention Mr. Electro. Oh my!

And what dastardly deeds come to light? Why there is a carousel that can turn a young boy into an old man and vice versa! Gasp! There is a maze of mirrors that shows people their worst fears! Shriek! There is a freak show with the implication that carnival director Mr. Dark sculpted these freaks (pinhead, sheep boy, fire eater) from ordinary folks just like Will and Jim!

As Jim would say, "I think I'm going to bawl now!"

You aren't missing much if you take a pass on this book.