You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.03 AVERAGE
4.03 AVERAGE
Sometimes, I prefer authors' long stories over short, and I found this to be the case with October Country. Like most short story anthologies, there were some great stories, but also some that fell a bit flat, and some where I saw the ending coming before the story really got to start. Worth the read for Bradbury fans.
I originally read The October Country during my freshman year of high school in 2011. The book left a big impression on me (I even wrote a song about it with my high school band). But in the 13-ish years since I originally read this collection, I have forgotten how most of the stories end, which allowed me to have a fresh reading experience where I remembered the general ideas of the stories, but not much else.
After re-reading this collection again during the Halloween 2024 season, I am reminded as to why I have always viewed Bradbury as my favorite author. The stories within The October Country can be serious, playful, melancholic, humorous, cruel, and fun. And no matter the tone of the story, Bradbury writes each one with poetic grace that often made my jaw drop from just the quality of the writing alone.
"The Lake" and "The Emissary" are my two favorites from the set. Both of these stories, which occur back to back, are so profoundly sad that I cried while reading both of them...and then "The Emissary" - before you know it - turns into a horror story on the last few pages, which left me stunned; terrified and sad; my eyes still wet from tears. It was a wild rush of emotions and a truly special moment that I won't soon forget.
I'm pretty sure there is something for everyone in this book...and if not, thank god I am one of the people that it is for. This is a masterpiece in every respect, and is now, assuredly, one of my all-time favorite books.
After re-reading this collection again during the Halloween 2024 season, I am reminded as to why I have always viewed Bradbury as my favorite author. The stories within The October Country can be serious, playful, melancholic, humorous, cruel, and fun. And no matter the tone of the story, Bradbury writes each one with poetic grace that often made my jaw drop from just the quality of the writing alone.
"The Lake" and "The Emissary" are my two favorites from the set. Both of these stories, which occur back to back, are so profoundly sad that I cried while reading both of them...and then "The Emissary" - before you know it - turns into a horror story on the last few pages, which left me stunned; terrified and sad; my eyes still wet from tears. It was a wild rush of emotions and a truly special moment that I won't soon forget.
I'm pretty sure there is something for everyone in this book...and if not, thank god I am one of the people that it is for. This is a masterpiece in every respect, and is now, assuredly, one of my all-time favorite books.
“Quite suddenly he had broadened my horizons. I was so grateful...”
I have really loved some of Bradbury's work, namely [b:The Illustrated Man|24830|The Illustrated Man|Ray Bradbury|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1374049820s/24830.jpg|1065861] and [b:Something Wicked This Way Comes|248596|Something Wicked This Way Comes (Green Town, #2)|Ray Bradbury|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1409596011s/248596.jpg|1183550], but I really struggled through this story collection. Some of them somewhat held my attention, but for the most part I found them more vague than eerie. So, bummer. But I did complete my 2016 Book Riot challenge with 2 days to spare...
emotional
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Absolutely loved the majority of this! Such great spooky stories on the surface, with lovely turns of phrase and emotional notes that ring true. A few didn't hook me - a couple I skimmed a little - but most did, and a few will reverberate for a long time. I would enjoy reading this one again in October sometime, I think. "The Next in Line" and "The Emissary" were my favorites - so genuinely scary and layered.
adventurous
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This collection of short stories reminds me of Twilight Zone episodes in all the right ways. Sometimes I had a good idea what the twist was, but it didn't spoil the ride one bit.
I thought this would make a great late autumn read - and it was! However, it was also a bit frustrating for me, which is probably apparent by me actually finishing it in December...
Let me explain:
I've loved Bradbury since high school - his work was actually a significant drive when I decided what I wanted to study and how I wanted to tell stories.
Then, years went by without me even glimpsing at his direction.
When I first started this anthology (which I always find really hard to rate because not all short stories are equal!) it was okay. I wasn't wowed - like I thought I would be- but I wasn't hating it either.
But after a couple stories, it really started to drag for me. And I was seriously considering DNFing the whole book. The only reason why I didn't is the respect I have for his work and my curiosity.
I'm glad I didn't give up though, because there were some really good ones in there! Just hiding between a few dull ones.
Like, first of all, the foreword "May I Die Before My Voices" is superb. And my favorite stories were: "The Scythe", "The Wonderful Death of Dudley Stone" and "There was an Old Woman".
But I don't think I'll be returning to Bradbury's work for a while - I don't really know what happened, but everything changes. So maybe my taste has also changed? Or maybe, I'm just not supposed to read his work in this period of my life.
I would still recommend some stories from this collection, but as a whole, it disappointed me.
Let me explain:
I've loved Bradbury since high school - his work was actually a significant drive when I decided what I wanted to study and how I wanted to tell stories.
Then, years went by without me even glimpsing at his direction.
When I first started this anthology (which I always find really hard to rate because not all short stories are equal!) it was okay. I wasn't wowed - like I thought I would be- but I wasn't hating it either.
But after a couple stories, it really started to drag for me. And I was seriously considering DNFing the whole book. The only reason why I didn't is the respect I have for his work and my curiosity.
I'm glad I didn't give up though, because there were some really good ones in there! Just hiding between a few dull ones.
Like, first of all, the foreword "May I Die Before My Voices" is superb. And my favorite stories were: "The Scythe", "The Wonderful Death of Dudley Stone" and "There was an Old Woman".
But I don't think I'll be returning to Bradbury's work for a while - I don't really know what happened, but everything changes. So maybe my taste has also changed? Or maybe, I'm just not supposed to read his work in this period of my life.
I would still recommend some stories from this collection, but as a whole, it disappointed me.
Got like half way through. Everything just felt very dated, wasn’t impressed enough to finish it. Some of the stories were pretty funny although I don’t know if that was intentional lol. I liked The Skeleton.