Original title: Something Wicked This Way Comes
Author: Ray Bradbury
Year of Publication: 1962
Number of pages: 215 in the paperback, movie edition
“Death doesn't exist. It never did, it never will. But we've drawn so many pictures of it, so many years, trying to pin it down, comprehend it, we've got to thinking of it as an entity, strangely alive and greedy. All it is, however, is a stopped watch, a loss, an end, a darkness. Nothing.”
Will Halloway and Jim Nightshade are on the verge of turning 13.
They want to grow old, run faster than before. But that’s when Cooger and
Dark’s Pandemonium Shadow Show arrives into town, offering them what their
hearts desire at a terrible price.
This is supposed to be the second part of the Green Town series. But
Something Wicked This Way Comes is
far from the sunny days and sweet nostalgia of Dandelion Wine, one of Bradbury’s most famous books and the first
one to the series, the only thing they share is the town. Bradbury has always
been a master with words, and this one might be one of his most poetic ones,
evoking those chill autumn afternoons of playing with friends and not wanting
to sit around waiting for time to pass.
The characters are a representation of good an evil, of always being
on the edge of the cliff, not knowing if your actions are totally good or
tinged with bad intentions and selfishness. Jim is reckless and Will is always
afraid, Jim wants to go faster and get there quick and Will just doesn’t want
to be left behind, so he chases after whatever Jim wants. They are two sides of
the same coin, forever together. As for the other prominent characters in the
book, they all play their part. Mr. Dark, Mr. Cooger and all the other carnival
people are creepy, moved by something other than bad intentions and what a bad
life can do to a man, pure evil slides from their cracks and makes a mess of
the town. Mr. Halloway, Will’s dad and a big part of the story, is constantly
longing for the past and wanting to be younger, to run like his boy does and to
feel that autumn air the way he used to. But the carnival comes as a trial to
all of them and, at the end, whatever each needs, each gets.
Disney made a movie out of the book, starring a very young Jonathan
Pryce as Mr. Dark and with Bradbury as the screenplay writer. The movie is
short and entertaining, and hearing the calliope play the horrific carnival
music makes you more scared than seeing the Dust Witch. But the book holds a
lot more, as always, and allows you to get into the story at your own pace.
This horror fantasy book will always be a favorite for me, even if
Bradbury’s metaphoric writing makes it a bit tiring at times. His thoughts on
life, growing old and the fear of it all will stand the test of time.
- Where to buy? Amazon, Barnes and Noble, your local book shop. (I bought mine at Half Price Books in Fort Worth)
- A calliope plays this song on the book: Marche Funèbre by Frédéric Chopin
- The movie trailer
