There are books that you feel you know through one medium or another (television, movies, radio, etc.) which you then read and find that it is completely different than what you expected. This was the case for me with the brilliant novel Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury. I had been familiar with the story through the 1983 film, which scared the bezeesus out of me when I was a kid. The original novel, however, is so much better.
The story focuses on two young boys on the cusp of manhood: Will Halloway and Jim Nightshade. Will and Jim are close as only young teenage boys can be, utterly inseparable yet completely different. The names are a clear indication of their personality, one light and one dark. Their friendship is tested when a Dark Carnival comes to town, tempting not only them but various members of their small town with their deepest desires.
For Jim, it is wanting to be older and to escape his small town into the wider world. Will’s desires are a bit more nebulous. My interpretation is that he wants to keep his friendship with Jim and also to become closer to his Dad, who is much older. Will’s father’s wish is to become closer in age to his son, to be able to run and play and match his youthful exuberance (as a father approaching 50 myself, I can identify with this desire). Every wish has its price and all three of these characters wisely avoid paying the price to have them granted by the proprietor of the Carnival, Mr. Dark.
The movie focused really simplified the children and focused on the horror aspects. What I loved about this book is hearing the inner monologue of the kids, to see the world through their eyes. Bradbury is really able to bring out the magic and, yes, the horror that can be present in young adulthood. The surprising part to me was the father, as I did not remember him much in the film. In the novel, he plays a key role and was a character I closely identified with as you can almost taste his longing to connect with his son and to be a better parent to him. I don’t know of any father who hasn’t felt those emotions.
When one thinks of Bradbury’s works, The Martian Chronicles or Dandelion Wine often come to mind first. Both are excellent, and well worth reading, but Something Wicked deserves to be mentioned among the greatest works in the 20th century because of the nearly lyrical quality of Bradbury’s words. The influence this book has had is vast; I can see its fingerprints on everywhere from the film Dark Carnival to various works of Stephen King. I would strongly urge you to pick it up if you have never read it. As a side note, both this version (as well as the review I will be posting next) were from the Folio Press. This edition is gorgeous, with a beautiful slipcase and incredible illustrations contained within. Definitely worth picking up this version, even if you are familiar with the book