The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury (Audiobook Review)

Audiobook Reviews from Audiobook-Heaven
Special Halloween Edition

Terrifying Title: The Halloween Tree
Wicked Writer: Ray Bradbury
Nightmarish Narrator: Bronson Pinchot
Creepy Copyright: 2011, Blackstone Audio
Dastardly Duration: 3 hours, 11 minutes
Gruesome Genres: horror, supernatural, historical
Filed in: Audiobook Reviews of Doom
Review copy provided by Bloody Blackstone Audio.

PETRIFYING PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: “spirit” Moundshroud. Riding a dark autumn wind from ancient Egypt to the land of the Celtic druids, from Mexico to a cathedral in Paris, they will witness the haunting beginnings of the holiday called Halloween.
Ray Bradbury’s evocative prose and imagery will send shivers of delight—and spine-chilling terror—through listeners young and old, long after the last candle has died in your jack-o’-lantern.
©1972 2000 by Ray Bradbury (P)2011 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

AWFUL AUDIOBOOK REVIEW: There is, perhaps, no more magical time for young boys than Halloween night. For this particular group of eight boys in a small, midwestern town, All Hallow’s Eve is about to take on a whole new meaning.
These boys know the routine: dress up as your favorite monster, and plunder the town for all the treats you can get. This Halloween is going to be a little bit different, however. Maybe it’s because they are another year older, or maybe some other force draws them, but this year they decide to approach the spookiest house in town, a rambling old mansion just on the edge of the town limits. Unfortunately for the boys, their bravery doesn’t get them very far at the front door, but it is what stands behind the house that captures their imaginations.
The sprawling back yard of the house has many trees, but only one, the biggest of them all, is decorated with candles and pumpkins of all shapes and sizes. It is the Halloween Tree. They are so entranced by this unexpected vision that they almost don’t notice what begins to rise up out of a pile of fallen leaves, but notice it they do. It is a skeleton, rising up as if from the very earth. The boys’ terror lasts only a moment, however, as they quickly realize that it is only a costume, but what lies beneath the costume may be even more terrifying. Moundshroud is the name: Carapace Clavicle Moundshroud, and he is about to take these boys on the journey of a lifetime.
We all know that Ray Bradbury is a master storyteller, and what better author to take us on a tour of the origins and customs of Halloween? Moundshroud takes the boys, and the reader, on a whirlwind tour through time and space, exploring the many cultures and traditions that came together, making Halloween one of the most imagination stirring events on the modern calendar. From the mummies of ancient Egypt and Greece, to the witch hunts throughout Europe, and to the more modern traditions of the America’s, Bradbury explores it all, almost from the very beginnings of recorded history.
This is only my second audiobook narrated by Bronson Pinchot and I like him a lot. Actually, I liked him a lot after the first one, but he did an excellent job on The Halloween Tree as well. If you’re a television fan from way back, like me, then you may remember Pinchot as Balki Bartokomous on the show Perfect Strangers. If you dig a little deeper, you may also remember him as the effeminate shop-keeper in Beverly Hills Cop. Those were my only memories of Pinchot as an actor, and so I was a little surprised the first time I heard him narrate an audiobook. Obviously, his voice sounds nothing like those parts he played. Once you get over the initial shock, however, I think you’ll like Pinchot just fine.
The Halloween Tree is a wonderfully spooky tale, and a pretty good history lesson as well, all seasoned by Bradbury’s unusual and stirring prose. I love the way he phrases things, like ”Night came out from under every tree and spread.” He just has a way of describing things that not many authors can manage. And where exactly is the line between historical fact and Bradbury’s fiction? Who cares! It’s Halloween after all, and if you can’t let your imagination run wild at Halloween then you seriously need to get in touch with your inner child. This is a fun book, and what do you know, it’s out just in time for Halloween!

CHECK OUT THESE OTHER OMINOUS AUDIOBOOK REVIEWS:
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury (Audiobook Review)
The Passion Of Frankenstein by Thomas E Fuller (Audiobook Review)
The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving (Audiobook Review)

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If you like this audiobook review, you can purchase the audiobook here:
Get “The Halloween Tree” by Ray Bradbury (Unabridged Audiobook) from Blackstone Audio.

This audiobook review is based on the unabridged audiobook.
Audiobook review by Steven Brandt
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