Something Wicked This Way Comes

There’s something deliciously attractive about this book.

The language Bradbury uses draws me in every time I visit it, and it keeps me hooked. This was another book I found as a kid, and it left its hooks in me from when I was young.

Is it morbid? There are definitely morbid parts to it. And it deals with life-and-death situations, but it’s just so good. I never wanted it to end.

I decided to read this book after learning of its connection to Stephen King’s Fairy Tale, for King hints in the novel that Ray Bradbury himself may have visited the same lands Charlie has. From the start, though, I was won over by Bradbury’s beautiful and unparalleled prose. Every paragraph is a work of lyrical art, and I became so intrigued by the story and the mysteries that unfolded.

This is a coming-of-age adventure, and Bradbury has you caring for his characters from the beginning.

There are no writers who have influenced and, more importantly, inspired me more than the great Ray Bradbury. 

When I read a classic Bradbury story, I not only want to race to the computer and create literary wonders of my own, I want to race out the door with my arms wide, embracing the entire universe.      

I first read Something Wicked decades ago, and although I enjoyed it, it wasn't among my favorite Bradbury tales. Rereading it decades later changed that opinion. The book is a mix of terror, wonder, and deep humanity; the writing is rich and poetic; and… show more.

I would say I came late to Bradbury’s work, but it’s never too late to discover a brilliant author.

This was my first foray into Bradbury’s oeuvre and I was captivated by his electric prose. You can always tell when an author had fun writing something, and Bradbury’s excitement bled through the page as to be outright infectious. The story itself is a straightforward good vs evil tale: a sinister carnival (and its proprietor Mr. Dark) that comes into the town, bringing death and corruption with it; the townspeople battle against the forces of evil.

Highly atmospheric and chockful of… show more.

I’m not sure how I had gone so long having not read any Ray Bradbury. Sure, there had been movies and television that he was involved in I’m sure I came across, and I had somehow skipped over Fahrenheit 451 in high school (along with a tidal wave of good books). It wasn’t until reading Stephen King’s full-throated support of the man in Danse Macabre that I decided to give him a try and picked up Something Wicked This Way Comes. Reader… I wasn’t prepared. This isn’t a novel… it’s poetry. He blew apart what I thought of as… show more.

I’ve always feared carnivals and clowns. If you share this same fear, few books will be more terrifying than Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury. In the book, a mysterious ringmaster “Mr. Dark” brings his dark carnival to the small town of Green Town, Illinois. They arrive by train in the middle of one October night and unhappy clowns and other carnival workers set up the circus tents silently. Even the circus animals are quiet. The spookiness grows as the townspeople learn that Mr. Dark can grant their every desire. The only cost is their souls! Much like the many cautionary tales about… show more.

Ray Bradbury's stories ooze charm—an approachable and inviting essence that is absent from nearly all other works of science-fiction. This novel, and in a broader sense many of Bradbury's works, taught me to let loose, to have a little fun with my writing. From this I learned that you can have a spooky and suspenseful story that isn't grotesque, that is funny, that doesn't cling to suspense like it's the only thing holding the plot together, that is poetic, that is fun to read, that is a story you can share with anybody, that is engaging, witty, and philosophical. Ray… show more.

Something Wicked This Way Comes is for me about personal perspective and how our own shame and regret can darken our experience of the world and leave us emotionally vulnerable in our striving to reach our hearts’ desire. As an alcoholic, I did a lot of stupid things while intoxicated and trying to reach my heart’s desire, which was to be a successful illustrator. As a sober alcoholic now, I recognize a lot of that intoxicated striving in certain characters in the novel, especially, Jim Nightshade, Mr. Tetley, Mr. Crosetti, and Miss Foley, while the sobering influence of Will Holloway… show more.

A coming-of-age novel, dealing with the difficult transition from childhood to adulthood and the loss of innocence, combined with adventure in the style of Treasure Island and True Grit. The adventure that these boys undertake is Weird, a sinister and supernatural carnival that appears in town, out of season and bearing strange gifts. The nature of Codger & Dark's Pandemonium Show adds a deeper element to the danger, the peril in Something Wicked This Way Comes is not just physical but spiritual as well.

Some books I read and still have crystal-clear memories of the imagery, even decades after my last read. That’s a testament to Ray Bradbury’s Something Wicked This Way Comes. I can still easily remember the story's climax and the “visuals” at the end. This is a story about life and death, what it means to grow older, and what a certain circus can teach us about that.