A major theme in the novel is good vs. evil; the boys Jim
and Will, as well as Will's father Charles, represent good, and the cast of
characters that make up the carnival –
such as Cooger, Dark and the dust witch, represent evil. Bradbury has a
way bringing his characters to life through unique descriptive language. He's
fond of metaphors like "That's Jim, all bramblehair and itchweed. And
Will? Why, he's the last peach, high on the summer tree." It was this
writing style, not so much the actual plot line, that kept me interested.
It's definitely got some creepy concepts in it, and once or
twice I had to put the book down because the suspense was too much! On the
other hand, there were a few scenes with Charles Halloway that went on and on –
specifically when he is talking to the boys about the carnival's past and how to
defeat it. I suspect for many this is the best part of the book, but I wanted
to skim through most of it (I didn't though! I have a bad habit of skimming
when I get bored.)
Overall – 8/10, definitely worth a read!
“A stranger is shot in the street, you hardly move to help.
But if, half an hour before, you spent just ten minutes with the fellow and
knew a little about him and his family, you might just jump in front of his
killer and try to stop it. Really knowing is good. Not knowing, or refusing to
know is bad, or amoral, at least. You can’t act if you don’t know.”
"Like all boys, they never walked anywhere, but named a
goal and lit for it, scissors and elbows. Nobody won. Nobody wanted to win. It
was in their friendship they just wanted to run forever… no one losing, both
winning, thus saving their friendship for other times of loss. "
"Will runs because running is its own excuse. Jim runs
because something's up ahead of him. Yet strangely, they do run together…. So there they go, Jim running slower to stay with
Will, Will running faster to stay with Jim." ( I really like this section of the book,
when Will's dad is reflecting on the boys' friendship. It captures the strength
of the friendship in a profound way.)
