2. Something Wicked This Way Comes - Ray Bradbury
Probably more suited for adolescents than kids, Something Wicked This Way Comes has been terrifying young readers and older readers since its publication in 1962. It concerns the adventures of Jim and William, two 14 year old boys. One October day, there is something in the air of their hometown. They learn that a travelling carnival is coming to town. The boys are excited but Will's father Charles is apprehensive. The carnival arrives at 3am and the boys watch the tents being erected. First thing the next day they go to investigate. They have to help one of their teachers who is dazed after being in the mirror maze. Jim has a similar experience in the maze but Is still eager to visit the carnival in the evening. They find the lightning rod salesman's bag and decide to figure out what happened to him. A huge carnie comes across them snooping. He tells them the carousel is broken. Another man comes along who introduces himself as Mr Dark. He is covered in tattoos and he introduces the big man as Mr Cooger. He tells the boys to come back tomorrow. Despite the existence of deeply freaky carnies, Jim and Will cannot tear their eyes off Mr Cooger the next day as he mounts the carousel, it goes backwards and he disembarks as a 12 year old boy. He goes to Ms Foley's house (she is the boys teacher) and pretends to be her nephew who got lost at the carnival. Cooger goes back on the carousel and returns to his old self. For some reason Jim wants to join him and in a panic Will flicks a switch on the ride that speeds it up. Cooger falls off it aged over 100 years old. They go to the police but nothing comes of it. Later that night, a witch in a balloon comes to the boys but they literally burst her bubble. The carnival crew really start to mess with the boys' heads and hold a parade in search of them. They question Will's father but he has the sense to keep schtumm about the boys. Doing some research, Mr Halloway has discovered that laughter is the best way to get rid of the carnies, they attack him that night and just before they manage to kill him, he starts laughing hysterically and his tormentors disappear. Is this remedy the key to getting rid of the sinister carnival and its creepy workers? A widely acknowledged classic by Ray Bradbury, Something Wicked This Way Comes is wildly inventive and imaginative, and perfectly describes childhood innocence in the face of devilish forces. It is profoundly scary and it is one of Bradbury's most towering achievements. The cast of weird and evil carnies will chill the bones of adult readers just as much as it will freak out younger readers. The prose is so good that it is accessible to all ages of readers and the whole premise is the stuff of absolute nightmares. The characters are realistic and you care about what happens to the good guys (the bad guys are just utterly terrifying). One criticism: Bradbury uses a lot of flowery metaphors that are meaningless and clutter up the prose. Just a side note to end on - the film adaptation is terrific.