Content levels
Trigger warnings
Positive tags
Protagonist archetypes
Tropes
Themes
Synopsis
Few American novels written this century have endured in the heart and memory as has Ray Bradbury's unparalleled literary classic SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES. For those who still dream and remember, for those yet to experience the hypnotic power of its dark poetry, step inside. The show is about to begin. The carnival rolls in sometime after midnight, ushering in Halloween a week early. The shrill siren song of a calliope beckons to all with a seductive promise of dreams and youth regained. In this season of dying, Cooger & Dark's Pandemonium Shadow Show has come to Green Town, Illinois, to destroy every life touched by its strange and sinister mystery. And two boys will discover the secret of its smoke, mazes, and mirrors; two friends who will soon know all too well the heavy cost of wishes. . .and the stuff of nightmare.
Tags
Is Something Wicked This Way Comes appropriate for my child?
Suitable for most readers 13 and up.
This atmospheric dark fantasy contains disturbing imagery of a sinister carnival that preys on human desires, with moderate supernatural horror, psychological fear, and themes of aging and mortality that may unsettle younger readers.
What to know going in
This book has moderate violence, no sexual content, and clean language. Content notes include death, body horror, and manipulation (see the full list above).
Who'll love this
Teens will be captivated by Bradbury's poetic prose and the suspenseful story of two boys battling a mysterious evil carnival that can grant twisted wishes.