Customer Reviews

Something Wicked This Way Comes

5 star:		(97)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(15)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

Something Wicked This Way Comes(1962).

Ray Bradbury, author of such renound classics as The Martian Chronicles and Farenheit 451, took a stab at the horror genre in 1962. Much like Mary Shelley(Frankenstein) and Bram Stoker(Dracula), Ray Bradbury helped in the shaping of the Horror genre, now ruled by such authors as Stephen King and Dean Koontz. Combining Horror and Classical Literature, with a plot of Greed and Deception, Bradbury created what today would be known as a Horror Classic, Something Wicked This Way Comes, and also one of the most recognizeable novels in his catalog. Bradbury was the first Horror author to use children, the most unlikely heroes, that Stephen King later used in his commercial smash IT and his short story "The Body", and have been used by numerous other authors and directors of popular culture. Based on a famous quote of Shakespeare, Something Wicked This Way spawned a popular movie of its own, and Modern Day Metal Artist Iced Earth even used it for the title of their popular album. In the next paragraphs, you will read just what made Something Wicked This Way Comes such a timeless classic, and one of the very few classics I can stand!

Plot-
During the time before Halloween, in the cold Autumn of October, a Train seemingly spawned out of hell comes into town, a dark omen of the days ahead. As a calliope crackles mysterious doomy tunes, Cooger & Dark's Pandemonium Shadow Show, a carnival of sorts, unloads their dark materials, tents, animals, and sideshow freaks of equal gruesomeness. Jim Nightshade and Will Holloway, two young curious 12 Year old boys, seemingly are the only ones to hear the hellish calliope(FYI, an organ) music at Three in the Morning, so they set out to see where all the noise is coming from. Soon they find out, and flee back to their homes to await the coming storm. The next day, The Carnival is out in full force, and most of the entire town is there, to view such rides and shows as A Mirror Maze, a Ferris Wheel, seeing Skeleton Men, Dwarfs, Fortune Tellers, Mr. Electro, and Mr. Dark, the Amazing Illustrated Man. Their is also a Merry-Go-Round, but it is strangely Out of Order. After the crowd leaves and the carnival shuts down, the crowds subsided totally and all is quiet, Jim and Will stay behind, hiding, waiting to learn the mystery of the carnival. Soon they are thrusted into a world where their wildest dreams are imaginable, and their worst nightmares are staring them right in the face, and they are the only ones who can subside the Growing Storm...

Writing-
Since this is my first Ray Bradbury novel I've read(And probably not the last), I won't compare Something Wicked This Way Comes to his other works, but instead rate his writings as my observations as a reader. The most memorable part of Bradbury's writing, is his descriptive writing, which, even such a simple act as running, Bradbury lets you Feel, Hear, See, Taste, and almost makes you think you can reach out and touch what isn't there. Although many times his descriptions run-on for too long, other times he hits the right notes in the right amount of space, and his genuine talent for writing and descriptions bring the story and the characters alive. Something Wicked This Way Comes, along with Stoker's Dracular, is one of the few classics I can stand, because too much emphasis in other classics is placed on descriptions rather than plot, but Bradbury's plot is deftly place Center-Stage here, and the Reader never feels bored or let down.Many times his ideas may seem unreasonable, but against the other material it doesn't take too much away from the book to me.

Overall, Something Wicked This Way Comes left a strong impression on me for Bradbury, and this won't be the last book I read by him. If you noticed the 4 star rating, it's mostly because of the things that plague classics so much for me. Overlong descriptions. I must emphasize though Bradbury isn't nearly as inconsistent as many authors, so this is just minor. Also some of his plot ideas seem odd and leave the reader thinking "Huh?", but most of the time the plot is easy to follow.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! A GREAT HORROR AND CLASSIC NOVEL NOT TO BE
MISSED BY ANYONE! BRADBURY MAKES THE CARNIVAL SEEM MORE EVIL THAN
IT DOES IN REAL LIFE!

Also Recommended-

Farenheit 451- Ray Bradbury
IT- Stephen King
Dracula- Bram Stoker

Thanks For Reading!

Something Wicked This Way Comes was my first contact with Bradbury, and it was a mindblast! The powerful story of archetypes and conviction that has inspired not a few of Steven King's books, and the beautiful and colorful prose of the novel enchanted me in a way that very few authors have ever managed.

The story is set in a small Midwestern town. One October, a mysterious traveling carnival arrives, filled with strange attractions and stranger performers. And as the carnival's dark promises of secret desires turn to madness and despair, the lives of two 13-year old boys change forever.

The beauty of Something Wicked This Way Comes is contained in its contrasts. Will Halloway is born a minute before midnight on October 30. Blond and blue-eyed, he is careful and timid. Jim Nightshade on the other hand - born a minute after midnight on October 31 - is his exact opposite. With his chestnut hair and dark eyes, brooding and always "looking at his shadow", he is ever getting into trouble. Perhaps it is this duality that accounts for the boys' friendship. It is also another beautiful contrast that Jim's brashness is what makes him the weak one in the story, while Will's timidity hides greater strength.

The monstrous performers of Mr. Dark's carnival are among the most vivid images of nightmarish dementia I've seen in any type of fantasy, not in small part due to Bradbury's amazing descriptions. The scene of the Wax Witch's flight in a balloon held by her breaths, as she touches people's dreams in search for the boys, brands itself deep into the imagination, and won't let go long after you've put the book down. And it is but one example of the powerful imagery that occurs many times throughout the book.

In the end, Something Wicked This Way Comes is a story of growing up and coming of age, of overcoming the greatest obstacles - your own desires and self-doubts - and of finding strength in what makes us human, against a power that would steal your dreams and turn them to nightmares. The book has mythic resonance, despite its "YA" setup and small-town setting, and in its wake one feels maybe a little stronger, as if the reader, and not the characters, has overcome the obstacles of Mr. Dark's traveling carnival. It is a beautifully written and imagined novel, and an attestation to the genius of Ray Bradbury's writing. I can not recommend it enough!

10/10

[...]

Something Wicked This Way Comes(1962).

Ray Bradbury, author of such renound classics as The Martian Chronicles and Farenheit 451, took a stab at the horror genre in 1962. Much like Mary Shelley(Frankenstein) and Bram Stoker(Dracula), Ray Bradbury helped in the shaping of the Horror genre, now ruled by such authors as Stephen King and Dean Koontz. Combining Horror and Classical Literature, with a plot of Greed and Deception, Bradbury created what today would be known as a Horror Classic, Something Wicked This Way Comes, and also one of the most recognizeable novels in his catalog. Bradbury was the first Horror author to use children, the most unlikely heroes, that Stephen King later used in his commercial smash IT and his short story "The Body", and lods have been used by numerous other authors and directors of popular culture. Based on a famous quote of Shakespeare, Something Wicked This Way spawned a popular movie of its own, and Modern Day Metal Artist Iced Earth even used it for the title of their popular album. In the next paragraphs, you will read just what made Something Wicked This Way Comes such a timeless classic, and one of the very few classics I can stand!

Plot-
During the time before Halloween, in the cold Autumn of October, a Train seemingly spawned out of hell comes into town, a dark omen of the days ahead. As a calliope crackles mysterious doomy tunes, Cooger & Dark's Pandemonium Shadow Show, a carnival of sorts, unloads their dark materials, tents, animals, and sideshow freaks of equal gruesomeness. Jim Nightshade and Will Holloway, two young curious 12 Year old boys, seemingly are the only ones to hear the hellish calliope(FYI, an organ) music at Three in the Morning, so they set out to see where all the noise is coming from. Soon they find out, and flee back to their homes to await the coming storm. The next day, The Carnival is out in full force, and most of the entire town is there, to view such rides and shows as A Mirror Maze, a Ferris Wheel, seeing Skeleton Men, Dwarfs, Fortune Tellers, Mr. Electro, and Mr. Dark, the Amazing Illustrated Man. Their is also a Merry-Go-Round, but it is strangely Out of Order. After the crowd leaves and the carnival shuts down, the crowds subsided totally and all is quiet, Jim and Will stay behind, hiding, waiting to learn the mystery of the carnival. Soon they are thrusted into a world where their wildest dreams are imaginable, and their worst nightmares are staring them right in the face, and they are the only ones who can subside the Growing Storm...

Writing-
Since this is my first Ray Bradbury novel I've read(And probably not the last), I won't compare Something Wicked This Way Comes to his other works, but instead rate his writings as my observations as a reader. The most memorable part of Bradbury's writing, is his descriptive writing, which, even such a simple act as running, Bradbury lets you Feel, Hear, See, Taste, and almost makes you think you can reach out and touch what isn't there. Although many times his descriptions run-on for too long, other times he hits the right notes in the right amount of space, and his genuine talent for writing and descriptions bring the story and the characters alive. Something Wicked This Way comes, along with Stoker's Dracular, is one of the few classics I can stand, because too much emphasis in other classics is placed on descriptions rather than plot, but Bradbury's plot is deftly place Center-Stage here, and the Reader never feels bored or let down. Many times his ideas may seem unreasonable, but against the other material it doesn't take too much away from the book to me.

Overall, Something Wicked This Way Comes left a strong impression on me for Bradbury, and this won't be the last book I read by him. If you noticed the 4 star rating, it's mostly because of the things that plague classics so much for me. Overlong descriptions. I must emphasize though Bradbury isn't nearly as inconsistent as many authors, so this is just minor. Also some of his plot ideas seem odd and leave the reader thinking "Huh?", but most of the time the plot is easy to follow.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! A GREAT HORROR AND CLASSIC NOVEL NOT TO BE MISSED BY ANYONE! BRADBURY MAKES THE CARNIVAL SEEM MORE EVIL THAN IT DOES IN REAL LIFE!

(...)

Something Wicked This Way Comes, is one of the most amazing books ever written ever! "By the pricking of my thumbs, Something wicked this way comes." Every time I hear that saying I think of this book written by Ray Bradbury. Also I think that it was kind of odd how Mr. Dark used the diguise of being the lightning rod salesman, and how Jim and Will found out all the secrets of the mirors and the mazes and the fariswheel. All that Mr. Dark and Mr. Cooger were trying to do were to take the peoples souls and trade them for what they (the people) wished for the most as in their sins. To all that haven't read this book should really read it because it will make you interested in it more and more...page after page. This book is one of the best ever written and it will make you more interested in it because of all what happens it makes you wander whats going to happen to Jim and Will next, so it keeps you gessing, and it makes you wander if Will and Jim will make it out alive or dead!! Who know till you read it, so go out and read it for my sake and for yours.

There is a dark veil hanging over this book and it absolutely scary. Scarier than some horror movies.

Ray Bradbury is of course one of the greatest sf/fantasy writers of the 20th century and if you have never read any of his books, read this one or Fahrenheit 451.

It has many dark and mysterious themes, a traveling show with many strange characters. It is about how people can play with time and how that may affect the souls of people. It could be, and I mean this positive, a Star Trek or X-Files episode. I wonder what the movie is like...

I admit i thought this book seemed strange and somewhat corny from first reading the synopsis. But after begining to read i was imediately swept into Bradbury's vision. I could clearly see every detail and believe in the fantastic events. This book also provides a wonderful discourse on good and evil and the nature of each. As all good literature should it does not provide answers but asks deep questions.

For someone in search of a dark read, this is it. The poetic prose of Ray Bradbury swept me off of my feet and into the small town in Illinois country where the midnight carnival arrived with it's empty promises and tantalizing shows. Bradbury shows us how people can be good or evil, and that the choice remains in every person; he also provides beautiful examples of how joy and imagination triumph over fear and doubt. He uses the carnival as a symbolic representatation of what happens to people who allow themselves to drift in the past and not make progress towards future happiness. Bradbury alludes to several of his earlier writings, tying together many of his other works into this chilling novel. Even if you have never read Bradbury's work before, this book holds great insite into the world and the individual within it.

Rating System:
1 star = abysmal; some books deserve to be forgotten
2 star = poor; a total waste of time
3 star = good; worth the effort
4 star = very good; what writing should be
5 star = fantastic; must own it and share it with others

STORY: Best friends Will Halloway and Jim Nightshade are two pre-teens who get caught up in mystery and nightmares when the sinister carnival comes to town.

MY FEEDBACK:
1) Wonderful prose. Very poetic and full of great similes, metaphors, verbs full of action and adjectives that help the reader to easily envision the world the author creates.

2) This is a story that boys/men will relate to a lot more than girls/women. The pre-teen protagonists are exactly like the boys many of us use to be. I was taken down a grand road of nostalgia through these well chosen and created characters.

3) Nice story pacing and plot twists. I was so wrapped into the "present" story that I didn't even try and guess what was going to happen next (not that I could if I had tried).

4) Paul Hecht is a very pleasant narrator of this unabridged audio book. His near bass voice adds a depth to the suspense and action. Nicely acted and conveyed.

OVERALL: Very enjoyable story. I'm tracking down the movie version, though I'll probably be disappointed in comparison to the book. Wonderfully written. Nice messages that are clearly conveyed without feeling like the author was preachy. Great adventure and excitement. I REALLY enjoyed this.

This book, while wonderful, requires not only a certain sense of wonder, but also a willingness to let the magic develop. It takes patience, the reading can't be rushed or the mood will disappear. Personally, the reason I enjoyed this work so much were due to the feelings of nostalgia it invoked. It took me back to my boyhood, and the mystery of every autumn night. The prose is filled with description and metaphor, transporting the reader directly into the shadowy side of Jim and Will's sleepy little village. The ominous carnival on the outskirts of town and its strange denizens all come alive through Bradbury's master storytelling . If you are a fan of Gothic fiction or just want a tale of the dark fantastic, it doesn't get much better than this.

At core of Ray Bradbury's modern fable is the very un-Post Modernist notion of GOODNESS.Goodness is not"life style".It's not conforming to "appropriate norms"of behavior.It is not garnishing TRUTH with lies, or cosseting Lies with pseudo-truths of POLITICAL CORRECTNESS. The brilliance of Bradbury's Tale of TEMPTATION is viewpoint choice of two prepubescent youths...Will and Jim, blood brother friends and spiritual dopplegangers...who are innocent and truly cannot understand why(many)Adults are such LIARS. "Men love sin," states Mr. Halloway(the "Hallowed-Way)to the boys when they ask questions concerning the Source & Glamour of Mr. Dark's Power...

On the surface, SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES is fairy-tale simple battle between the Devil and his (for the most part) unwilling minions: THE DARK CARNIVAL AND THE SOUL TRAIN OF THE DAMMNED.Sophisticates may miss Grail Wisdom hiddden just beneath his Leaves of Autumn Grass minimalist style which is raw diamond poetry.When Jim and Will Climb the TREE OF THE KNOWLEDGE of GOOD & EVIL(peering through a shaded window at shadow forms in sexual rapture) to spy on adults'idea of consummate joy,they are BEWILDERED! "What are they doing? What's wrong with THEM!"

SWTWC asks this question repeatedly. Its answers are not always obvious or palatable. If you'll recall for what MACBETH and his pre-modern,liberated consort-in-crime LADY MACBETH (Unsex Me... You murdering ministers!)traded honor; peace-of mind;and ultimately their humanity and salvation...by treacherous assassination of THE KING...you'll spy a glimpse of what Ray Bradbury is doing in what is justly reputed epic moral fable by one of modern America's rare masters of literature.