The October Country

Rating:
Summary: Twilight Zone Country
Review: I'm a huge fan of Bradbury, so my review is rahter biased. The series of short stories enclosed within are for those who enjoy ironic twists ala the Twighlight Zone. Biting humor.

Rating:
Summary: Quality and Quantity
Review: Mr. Bradbury is truly one of the most creative, macabre, intelligent writers of this or any other century. This collection of 19 stories is a fine example of the range of Bradbury's abilities. I must admit, after the first couple stories, I wondered aloud the excellent reviews the book received. After I'd finished, however, I realized how remarkable this book is. I gave it a 9 (out of a possible 10) rating; the above graphic is actually 4.5 stars. Of the 19 stories, only one or two are veritable duds. About half are above average reading, and the remaining seven or eight are simply enchanting. Or harrowing. Or, well, touching. "Uncle Einar" is touching. By the way, here's my top five stories in "October Country," which I'd recommend to any reader wishing to enjoy a Poe-type experience: 1. The Wonderful Death of Dudley Stone 2. The Scythe 3. The Wind 4. The Crowd 5. The Small Assassin

Rating:
Summary: It has something no one can put their finger on
Review: Mr. Bradury, I know you've come on here reading reviews of your books. I truly hope you catch this one. I am planning to start a career as a writer and there are many that have inspired me such as Robert E. Howard, H.P. Lovecraft, John Norman and Clive Barker. But only you and Robert Heinlein have actually TOUCHED me AND inspired me. You have truly captured something in your work that is hard to understand at first. But as one reads further and further into your artistic excursions, everything becomes crystal clear. Jack In the Box was a truly amazing piece of work. The idea that a boy is confined to a house only to be introduced to a new room every so often is truly something only you could conjure. The Dwarf showed that inside little minds there can lurk huge ideas. I especially enjoyed the paragraph that spoke about the dwarf's writing skills. Truly engaging and poetic about him living in a virtual doll house. The Jar was alot like the little game we play as children as we look up at the clouds and try to turn them into images when they're really just clouds. And it had that special circus element to it that you incorporate into it so well. I'm glad I began reading your material before I got out of high school. Now I know I won't lose the magic, Ray. Although The October Country does not contain it, I'd like to thank you for giving us Night Call Collect, another of my favorites.

Rating:
Summary: Not Bradbury's Best, but still has some good work in it.
Review: Not all the stories clicked with me, but there was some that I thought superb. I found "The Skeleton" hilarious, but since I'm not sure it was suppose to be funny I think it's an indecation of my twisted nature. "The Small Assassin" was my favorite, since it was both scary and revealing.

Rating:
Summary: A classic of the horror genre
Review: Ray Bradbury is an astounding writer of short horror stories and this book (oft cited on lists of best horror novels ever) is the best collection of his work. Unlike most collections of short stories there are few if any misses out the 19 tales. The tales that really chill the bone are 'the small assasin', 'the emmissary', 'the crowd', 'the skeleton.... infact they're ALL great. Every horror fan must own a copy of this book.

Rating:
Summary: Bradbury wins again! So much more than a sci-fi collection!
Review: Ray Bradbury's collection of stories in the October Country are stunning and masterful. Each tale delicately balances beauty and horror in a way that may never be as effectively synthesized. Perhaps one of his most famous books, October Country existends, celebrates, mournes. A classic of American liturature

Rating:
Summary: Essential Short Story Collection by an Essential Author!
Review: Ray Bradbury's name is synonymous with imagination and in this collection of short stories he proves that beyond a reasonable doubt. I know, I used to cringe at his name. That is before I learned that he didn't just write science fiction (a genre of which I am not too fond). These stories range from a bizarre account of one couple's visit to a Mexican town and the mummies that reside there (The Next In Line), a loyal dog that brings its young bed-ridden owner things from out in the world, even things from cemeteries (The Emissary), a baby born with an evil intelligence (The Small Assassin), a man who is the heir to Death's job (The Scythe), and an observant boy who deals with a tenant vampire in a very unique way (The Man Upstairs). The stories I have listed are of particualr impact and my favorites of the collection, but overall word for word, page for page each story is priceless. If you are a fan of horror fiction or just plain old imaginative writing in general invest in the works of Ray Bradbury, you won't regret it.

Rating:
Summary: Poetic dark fiction written by a master of the form.
Review: THE OCTOBER COUNTRY is a collection of short stories like no other.
It's one of my desert island books and along with such masterpieces of dark/disturbing/supernatural fiction as The Nighmare Factory-Thomas Ligotti; Tales of Mystery and Imagination-Edgar Allan Poe; The Dunwich Horror and Others-H. P. Lovecraft and few others, one of the best dark fiction collections ever to grace print and certainly the most underrated of all Bradbury books.Although collections like The Illustrated Man, The Martian Chronicles, The Golden Apples of the Sun, Medicine for Melancholy and I Sing the Body Electric contains very fine material IMHO none of them replicates the dark Bradburyan magic of such tales as The Scythe, The Wind, The Cistern, The Lake and many others.

Stories:

The Dwarf ============================= *****
The Next in Line ====================== **1/2
The Watchful Poker Chip of H. Matisse = -
Skeleton ============================== *****
The Jar =============================== ***1/2
The Lake ============================== *****
The Emissary ========================== *****
Touched with Fire ===================== ***
The Small Assassin ==================== *****
The Crowd ============================= *****
Jack-in-the-Box ======================= -
The Scythe ============================ ****1/2
Uncle Einar =========================== *****
The Wind ============================== *****
The Man Upstairs======================= **
There Was an Old Woman ================ -
The Cistern =========================== *****
Homecoming ============================ *****
The Wonderful Death of Dudley Stone === -









Rating:
Summary: Deep deep stuff
Review: The October Country is one of the best horror fiction books I've ever read. It's in a class of its own. All the stories are great and if this is the only horror book you'll get, you'll never regret it.

Rating:
Summary: Not his best, but good enough to collect
Review: The stories in this book run a bit short on character and some of them have the stink of contrivance to them, but there are enough really good stories (The Jar, Uncle Einar, The Lake) that the flaws of the books are well out-weighed by the strengths.