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greenidmnstr's review against another edition
5.0
This book took longer to read even though its one of the shorter ones. When I read novels, I watch a movie; this particular visualization came in strobe flashes of images and made it incredibly creepy but also difficult to read. It took a while to get through the book because of the syntax but I really enjoyed the unsettling feeling that grows as you move with the story. The depiction of the Dust Witch was probably my favorite and her interaction with the kids sent shivers down my spine. I really enjoyed this novel and although it seems like a light, quick read, I would warn you that it's much more than anything you can expect. Bradbury is proves that he's a master of his craft.
rosiealya's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
nicoleryan00's review against another edition
5.0
This is by far my most favorite book ever! I pull it off the shelf every year during the fall and reread it and love it even more!!
cpociask's review against another edition
3.0
It’s a good STORY but it took me the whole book to get used to the writing style
rh_222006's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
midici's review against another edition
4.0
My first Ray Bradbury book! And what a great one. Something Wicked This Way Comes is not a large book, but it's a fairly packed one.
Jim Nightshade and Will Halloway are best friends. They're thirteen years old and full of mischief and adventure. They're just as excited as everyone else when a carnival comes to town - only something is wrong with this carnival... it arrives in the middle of the night, with distorted music and dangerous men, who prowl the town looking for new victims to ensnare.
I really love the style of Bradbury's writing. He doesn't just describe a scene, he sets up an entire atmosphere and dumps 3 pages worth of descriptors, urging the reader to dive in and get swept up into it, and never mind how long the sentences or paragraphs are. It makes for vivid story-telling and brings a sort of new life into describing things that might not normally be interesting.
The tale itself is sort of a fable. Mr. Dark's carnival is a temptation, one that promises rewards but only for a devastating price. The characters are great. Wild Jim and steady Will are very alike and very different in just the right way to show why they're such great friends and how they manage to get in and out of so much trouble. Will's father was a bit of a surprise. I didn't expect him to have as big of a role as he did, but I really enjoyed it as well. He functions as a sort of repository of knowledge, as though he's become something like the library he works in. He's the one who discovers how to defeat the carnival, and he's the one who tries to impart these life lessons on Jim and Will:
"Really knowing is good. Not knowing, or refusing to know, is bad, or amoral, at least. You can't act if you don't know. Acting without knowing takes you right off the cliff."
Alas, not everything can be perfect. Will's dad goes into a great speech about the character of mankind, and the ways in which they can lift themselves up and choose to be better than they are - and then he describes women as living off of gossip, sucking up other people's misery to survive. Great perspective. Really. You were so close. In any case the instances of insensitive language / opinions were fairly small and the rest of the book didn't have any other problems beyond an extreme overuse of the word "calliope."
Jim Nightshade and Will Halloway are best friends. They're thirteen years old and full of mischief and adventure. They're just as excited as everyone else when a carnival comes to town - only something is wrong with this carnival... it arrives in the middle of the night, with distorted music and dangerous men, who prowl the town looking for new victims to ensnare.
I really love the style of Bradbury's writing. He doesn't just describe a scene, he sets up an entire atmosphere and dumps 3 pages worth of descriptors, urging the reader to dive in and get swept up into it, and never mind how long the sentences or paragraphs are. It makes for vivid story-telling and brings a sort of new life into describing things that might not normally be interesting.
The tale itself is sort of a fable. Mr. Dark's carnival is a temptation, one that promises rewards but only for a devastating price. The characters are great. Wild Jim and steady Will are very alike and very different in just the right way to show why they're such great friends and how they manage to get in and out of so much trouble. Will's father was a bit of a surprise. I didn't expect him to have as big of a role as he did, but I really enjoyed it as well. He functions as a sort of repository of knowledge, as though he's become something like the library he works in. He's the one who discovers how to defeat the carnival, and he's the one who tries to impart these life lessons on Jim and Will:
"Really knowing is good. Not knowing, or refusing to know, is bad, or amoral, at least. You can't act if you don't know. Acting without knowing takes you right off the cliff."
Alas, not everything can be perfect. Will's dad goes into a great speech about the character of mankind, and the ways in which they can lift themselves up and choose to be better than they are - and then he describes women as living off of gossip, sucking up other people's misery to survive. Great perspective. Really. You were so close. In any case the instances of insensitive language / opinions were fairly small and the rest of the book didn't have any other problems beyond an extreme overuse of the word "calliope."
empa's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75