Book Review - 'Something Wicked This Way Comes' by Ray Bradbury

2020 EDIT: Yeah, I'm not wasting any more of my time on this.

SO. MANY. METAPHORS.

The amount of metaphors and self-aggrandizing in this book could topple the Eiffel Tower.

Ray Bradbury was a good writer, but he tended to wax lyrical a lot, and go overboard with meandering purple prose in order to evoke imagery. He took it to whole new levels in 'Something Wicked This Way Comes', where the imagery isn't very provocative or clever, and often makes no sense. Too many times whilst slogging through 'Something Wicked' I thought, "What the hell are you talking about? Get to the bloody point already!". If not that, then I'm constantly blinking and thinking, "...what?". The beginning of the book is the worst offender. Figures of speech are repeated and switched around over and over again.

The written word that is obsessed with metaphors is done at the expense of the plot and the characters. Action takes so far a backseat (at least in the first seventeen chapters or so) that even details that should flow naturally in the writing go missing; such as what certain characters, interacting with one another, are doing and/or holding on to at that moment. Events, voices and things just pop right into the narrative, out of nowhere, and the reaction of the characters is less than nonplussed. It's like people and settings barely exist on page.

If that was the intended atmosphere, I still don't have to like it. It is the same reason why I'm not a fan of magical realism novels: For me personally, if you want to get "weird" or "mysterious", remember that even in the fantasy genre, there needs to be rules and some grounding in reality, for believability and investment, and we should still care about the characters - who should feel like real people - and what happens to them.

The writing overshadows and undermines those most crucial elements in any book - characters, story and action - and I didn't care about anyone and anything. Hardly any of the names on the pages act like human beings.

How did I manage to read 'Something Wicked' all those years ago, let alone love it? I don't remember. To be honest, I hardly remembered anything that happened in the book before deciding to reread it. The creepy horror atmosphere had stayed with me, thanks to the overly-wordy and self-indulgent writing. Sorry, but 'Something Wicked This Way Comes' is pretentious. It contains some awesome horror elements, but the writing ruins it for me.

And what is all this about women being magical creatures who are unaffected by time, who are time, who are never stressed, and who never worry and tire? Not like men do - like fathers do. Women are "immortal" and perfect angels because of motherhood? Aaaaaaaaaaaarrrrgh! Again, what was even the point of those paragraphs (on pages 51-52 of my copy)? The stay-at-home mothers in this book are barely characters, predictably. They don't do anything!

Based on my original review, I'm sure 'Something Wicked This Way Comes' has an audience, particularly with younger readers. But I couldn't stand it now, without the nostalgia goggles. It's no longer a favourite of mine.

Final Score: 2/5





Sometimes it's hard to review something you love. Because you can't top what others have already said about it, praising it. They've taken the words right out of your mouth and said it better than you ever could. That's the case for me anyway.

But I feel I have to say my piece regarding Ray Bradbury's masterwork, 'Something Wicked This Way Comes'. It is beautiful, haunting, frightening, sad, intelligent, poignant, very imaginative, and is written in a prose and choice of words which any poet would be jealous of.

'Something Wicked This Way Comes' is a tale about friendship, family, growing up, growing old, and the dire consequences of wishes. You'll feel glad of your life and childhood once you've read this. Another way to describe it is that it's a coming-of-age magical reality horror story that is executed to pure brilliance. Its imagery, themes and characters are engaging and they grip you on each thrilling page.

Mr Dark, aka The Illustrated Man, is one of the best literary villains of all time. Scary, sadistic and macabre to the extreme, you won't believe he might be an actual human being and not an evil spirit. The eyes, the eyes!

The carnival - the Pandemonium Shadow Show - shrouded in mystery, is alluring to children and their parents. But what lies beneath is blood-curdling; a realm where wishes lead to torture and doom. Not to mention the carnival itself is creative - with mirrors that reflect one's very soul and insecurities, etc. It's a vampire carnival of sorts, as it and its poor "freaks" only appear at night.

Rich, dark, claustrophobic, and as spellbinding as the contents in the story, 'Something Wicked This Way Comes' is a truly wicked read.

(I've tried to make this review all mysterious without giving much away, to make it seem fresh, and to emulate the novel. I can't do it well - I can't write like Mr Bradbury could - but it never hurt to give it a go. How 'bout you give 'Something Wicked' a go if you haven't yet, hmm?)

Final Score: 5/5