The October Country Book

Ray Bradbury's seminal work, The October Country, is one of the most important collections of horror stories of the 20th century. Published in 1955 and composed of 19 stories written for pulp magazines at the very start of his career, these unforgettable, timeless stories have influenced a generation of contemporary writers of fear. This classic collection is actually a revamped version of the author's very first book, Dark Carnival (a much sought-after collector's item--Bradbury withdrew several stories from the original 1947 collection that even he thought too grisly). October Country contains such haunting tales as "The Lake", in which a boy faces death for the first time after losing a playmate who has drowned, and "The Small Assassin", in which a man realizes his baby is literally a born killer. "The Crowd" chillingly explains why the same people always seem to gather at automobile accidents. Although he went on to build a worldwide reputation as a master of fantasy and science fiction, if Bradbury had continued to write weird tales like this, he might instead have become one of the world's greatest horror writers. --Stanley WiaterRead More