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Adventurous,
Slow,
Graphic

4 reviews

Something Wicked This Way Comes
by Ray Bradbury

Published: 1999-06-08
Hardcover : 304 pages
4 members reading this now
15 clubs reading this now
3 members have read this book
Recommended to book clubs by 3 of 4 members

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. ...

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Introduction

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.

Editorial Review

A masterpiece of modern Gothic literature, Something Wicked This Way Comes is the memorable story of two boys, James Nightshade and William Halloway, and the evil that grips their small Midwestern town with the arrival of a "dark carnival" one Autumn midnight. How these two innocents, both age 13, save the souls of the town (as well as their own), makes for compelling reading on timeless themes. What would you do if your secret wishes could be granted by the mysterious ringmaster Mr. Dark? Bradbury excels in revealing the dark side that exists in us all, teaching us ultimately to celebrate the shadows rather than fear them. In many ways, this is a companion piece to his joyful, nostalgia-drenched Dandelion Wine, in which Bradbury presented us with one perfect summer as seen through the eyes of a 12-year-old. In Something Wicked This Way Comes, he deftly explores the fearsome delights of one perfectly terrifying, unforgettable autumn. --Stanley Wiater

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Member Reviews

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  "something wicked this way comes"by alexandra f. (see profile) 01/11/17

the way i would explain it, its like reading a Salvador Dali painting. It has so much uniqueness yet you are sucked into breathing it all in. Don't rush, take it all in.

 
  "Something wicked this way come"by Rachel R. (see profile) 11/15/13

 
  "Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury"by Edith M. (see profile) 10/26/12

 
  "A roller-coaster of emotion"by F Tessa B. (see profile) 08/14/12

Jim Nightshade and Will Halloway are neighbors, best friends, and born just minutes apart. The 13-year-old boys live in the small town of Green Town, Illinois and are looking forward to Hall... (read more)

 
  "Two boys get sucked into the terrifying world of a magical carnival"by Kiley F. (see profile) 07/01/08

Our group really enjoyed this book. The writing style was different than most of what we'd read previously, but the story was intriguing.

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