Audiobook: The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury

“When you reach the stars, boy, yes, and live there forever, all the fears will go, and Death himself will die.” 
~ Ray Bradbury, The Halloween Tree

Read by Bronson Pinchot

Duration: 3 hours 11 minutes

On a Halloween night, eight boys are led on an incredible journey into the past by the mysterious “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.

Overdrive

My Thoughts:  I know it's not Halloween but I couldn't wait to listen to this book. I remember watching the animated film when I was younger and my eight-year-old mind thought it was a great movie. I didn't know that the film was based on Ray Bradbury's book so I thought I should read and recall why I enjoyed the film so much. This audio production turned out to be fun though it did get confusing at some parts.

I highly enjoyed listening to the different places that boys traveled to. They went to places like Egypt, Europe, and Mexico. All of the places the boys went to gave them information on how Halloween was celebrated. It gave brief facts on this holiday in a entertaining way. It explained how Halloween was not just a holiday for companies to make money from candy. It went into detail how every country had its own special meaning for the holiday. I especially liked how the holiday was not viewed as something evil or satanic. Halloween was a time to respect the spirits.

As much as I enjoyed the facts from the book, I found myself questioning the plot. There were times that I was too caught up with the history aspect of the book that I felt that I was missing crucial information on the characters. It was easy to forget the main reason why the boys started traveling through the times. They went in search for their friend Pipkin who was wisked away from them. Pipkin would appear as different things throughout the story to represent the places that the boys were visiting. Pipkin was easily forgotten. It was not until the end was one reminded the purpose of the plot. However, it was still a fun story to listen to.

The narrator of this production was perfect! Bronson Pinchot had a deep storytelling voice. His voice reminded me of the narrator at the beginning of Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas. He was able to make the story sound eerie and mysterious. He especially did a wonderful job in portraying Moundshroud's character. He made the story more appealing.

At the end, this was a fun audio to listen to. I highly enjoyed learning how Halloween was celebrated in different regions of the world. I would have liked more focus on Pipkin but it was still a great story. Also, this production had a great narrator. I rate this: