This classic autumn tale of a spooky carnival that torments a small American town was written a lot more beautifully and lyrically than I had expected. When two young boys, Will and Jim, stumble upon a mysterious carnival setting up outside their town in the middle of the night, things don’t seem quite right, but the temptation of the mysterious and illicit draws their curiosity. This carnival is far from ordinary, with a mirror maze, a carousel and other attractions simmering with eerie magic. The boys get caught up and ensnared by the owner of the carnival, the aptly named Mr. Dark, and his sinister cadre of freaks. With that kind of story, it was a little surprising (but also absolutely fitting) that every paragraph of description was like its own prose poem. Ironically, the creative strength of Bradbury’s writing is also something that I found distracting and challenging. This story feels like a series of vivid polaroids full of folksy, evocative imagery. But I easily got lost among the words, so it felt like I was missing a snapshot or two along the way. Similarly, there was a dreamlike quality where each scene makes sense in itself, but often I wasn’t quite sure how we got there, or why someone just did what they did. In order not to lose the plot within the poetry, I recommend either reading very carefully, or actually rereading key portions (or the whole story, as I did).

In addition to the excellent prose, the characters were also pretty good: Jim, Will, and Will’s father Charles. Despite the latter half of the story being somewhat action-packed, Bradbury includes a number of pivotal scenes that slowed the story down significantly where Charles got to share his wholesome philosophy, and life lessons learned, with the two boys. Charles readily admits his weaknesses and shortcomings (which Mr. Dark and the others try to exploit) but he also proves himself to be a super hero for his son in a way that makes him likeable and admirable. The boys are neighbours and best friends, born minutes apart on either side of midnight, and they are often described as being opposites to each other. It’s probably no surprise that their friendship is tested, and that they are each tempted by the carnival in different ways. It’s great to see child characters given some depth where we understand their inner struggles. The visual description of the bad guys are perhaps some of the best use of the language, especially Mr. Dark (I think Bradbury had extra fun describing the phantasmagorical tattoos that covered the malevolent figure’s body). Unfortunately these bizarre characters are not so well drawn, emotionally. None of them had much in the way of personality or depth — but maybe they’re not meant to.

I listened to the Audible Studios audiobook (the one with Christian Rummel as narrator, not the new recording with actor Paul Giamatti), which was mixed when it came to narration. The main narration was great. He used a deepish voice, with a mild Southern tone. It reminded me of actor Sam Elliott (who always sounds like the quintessential voice of the Deep South to my ears). It had that charm and warmth and ease that really fit with the story and also with the voice of the character Charles. However, his voicing of Will was not so great. Perhaps it was a creative choice to fit the character, but he always sounded panicky and whiny. It made me like Will probably less than I should have. Mr. Dark was given a slightly British accent (or maybe it was just a classy New England) which felt alright. But some of the other stranger characters (including a witch) felt a bit strained and awkward. Nevertheless, I would still recommend this version as an enjoyable audiobook.

Overall, and especially after re-listening, I enjoyed this book a lot. It was a nice fit for spooky season (though it was not scary) and the autumn mood. Beautiful language, heart-warming and heroic characters, universal themes, a  supernatural conflict of the soul, wild and bizarre bad guys, and a wondrously spooky carnival. I can see why this story is a classic and so beloved. 

4 stars

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