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Crumley Mysteries #2
A Graveyard for Lunatics: Another Tale of Two Cities
Halloween Night, 1954. A young, film-obsessed scriptwriter has just been hired at one of the great studios. An anonymous investigation leads from the giant Maximus Films backlot to an eerie graveyard separated from the studio by a single wall. There he makes a terrifying discovery that thrusts him into a maelstrom of intrigue and mystery—and into the dizzy exhilaration of the movie industry at the height of its glittering power.
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1990
194 people are currently reading
3096 people want to read
About the author
Ray Bradbury
2,581 books24.9k followersRay Douglas Bradbury was an American author and screenwriter. One of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers, he worked in a variety of genres, including fantasy, science fiction, horror, mystery, and realistic fiction.
Bradbury is best known for his novel Fahrenheit 451 (1953) and his short-story collections The Martian Chronicles (1950), The Illustrated Man (1951), and The October Country (1955). Other notable works include the coming of age novel Dandelion Wine (1957), the dark fantasy Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962) and the fictionalized memoir Green Shadows, White Whale (1992). He also wrote and consulted on screenplays and television scripts, including Moby Dick and It Came from Outer Space. Many of his works were adapted into television and film productions as well as comic books. Bradbury also wrote poetry which has been published in several collections, such as They Have Not Seen the Stars (2001).
The New York Times called Bradbury "An author whose fanciful imagination, poetic prose, and mature understanding of human character have won him an international reputation" and "the writer most responsible for bringing modern science fiction into the literary mainstream".
Bradbury is best known for his novel Fahrenheit 451 (1953) and his short-story collections The Martian Chronicles (1950), The Illustrated Man (1951), and The October Country (1955). Other notable works include the coming of age novel Dandelion Wine (1957), the dark fantasy Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962) and the fictionalized memoir Green Shadows, White Whale (1992). He also wrote and consulted on screenplays and television scripts, including Moby Dick and It Came from Outer Space. Many of his works were adapted into television and film productions as well as comic books. Bradbury also wrote poetry which has been published in several collections, such as They Have Not Seen the Stars (2001).
The New York Times called Bradbury "An author whose fanciful imagination, poetic prose, and mature understanding of human character have won him an international reputation" and "the writer most responsible for bringing modern science fiction into the literary mainstream".
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 241 reviews
February 13, 2020
A book like a feverdream....
Unfortunately not my cup of tea.
The story is set up in a Hollywood movie studio of the 1950s and the adjacent cemetery.
The narrator, a nameless screenwriter, gets involved in a high-speed sequence of mysterious, weird and scary events, while the reader never can be quite sure if the events are real or just hallucinations.
The story is spiked with an abundance of references to people, movies, literature and events of the Hollywood of 1950 and earlier (most of which I probably dit not recognize and/or understand).
The book is well written, there's a lot of action and probably also suspense, if .... the trope didn't bore me to death.
I found out, that I simply don't care about Hollywood and the people there.
Therefore 2 stars from me an on to the public bookshelf.
Unfortunately not my cup of tea.
The story is set up in a Hollywood movie studio of the 1950s and the adjacent cemetery.
The narrator, a nameless screenwriter, gets involved in a high-speed sequence of mysterious, weird and scary events, while the reader never can be quite sure if the events are real or just hallucinations.
The story is spiked with an abundance of references to people, movies, literature and events of the Hollywood of 1950 and earlier (most of which I probably dit not recognize and/or understand).
The book is well written, there's a lot of action and probably also suspense, if .... the trope didn't bore me to death.
I found out, that I simply don't care about Hollywood and the people there.
Therefore 2 stars from me an on to the public bookshelf.
March 29, 2021
"¿Por qué el cuerpo en el muro? ¿Por qué tanto pánico? ¿Por qué tanto silencio si no hay nada que ocultar? ¿Oíste las voces? ¿Cómo es posible que un muerto que no es un muerto , un cuerpo que no es un cuerpo, pueda sacuir tanto a la plana mayor?"
Ray Bradbury sabía escribir excelentes novelas y “Cementerio para lunáticos” es prueba fiel de ellos. El libro combina una serie de elementos que contribuyen a la acción de la trama, emplazada en “dos ciudades” como él llama a un estudio de cine separado por un gran muro del cementerio de la ciudad.
En él, se teje una historia acerca de un gran productor y fundador de los estudios fílmicos que muere en un accidente en el que los detalles no quedan muy claros y al parecer “vuelve” para “morir por segunda vez”.
Todo esto es contado por el personaje principal, un escritor de guiones de cine que no es otro que el mismo Bradbury disfrazado y auto homenajeándose.
Junto a él está su amigo Roy, creado de criaturas en arcilla para películas de terror.
Lo interesante de la novela pasa por esa combinación de factores que yo indicaba, ya que podemos leer una historia que incluye misterio, suspenso, humor negro, investigaciones casi detectivescas y una serie de aventuras llevadas a cabo por los personajes y además un guiño muy fuerte a la época de oro del cine de Hollywood de los años ’20, ’30 y '40; una especie de racconto de las grandes producciones fílmicas que llevaron a Hollywood a transformarse en la meca del cine.
El final del libro termina casi en una experiencia sobrenatural que atraviesa el personaje principal, una especie de relato fantástico que explica todos los misterios que suceden durante las páginas anteriores.
Tenemos a un personaje siniestro también, llamado “La Bestia” que atormenta a todos y que es muy difícil de encontrar y también un sinnúmero de situaciones que contribuyen a acrecentar el misterio que surge a partir de la reaparición de ese poderoso empresario, el señor Artburtnot.
En conclusión, “Cementerio para lunáticos” es una ágil, dinámica y versátil novela cuya principal característica reside en mantener al lector atento a todo lo que sucede desde el principio hasta el final, sin que el gran Ray Bradbury nos suelte la mano durante el proceso de lectura. Muy recomendable.
Ray Bradbury sabía escribir excelentes novelas y “Cementerio para lunáticos” es prueba fiel de ellos. El libro combina una serie de elementos que contribuyen a la acción de la trama, emplazada en “dos ciudades” como él llama a un estudio de cine separado por un gran muro del cementerio de la ciudad.
En él, se teje una historia acerca de un gran productor y fundador de los estudios fílmicos que muere en un accidente en el que los detalles no quedan muy claros y al parecer “vuelve” para “morir por segunda vez”.
Todo esto es contado por el personaje principal, un escritor de guiones de cine que no es otro que el mismo Bradbury disfrazado y auto homenajeándose.
Junto a él está su amigo Roy, creado de criaturas en arcilla para películas de terror.
Lo interesante de la novela pasa por esa combinación de factores que yo indicaba, ya que podemos leer una historia que incluye misterio, suspenso, humor negro, investigaciones casi detectivescas y una serie de aventuras llevadas a cabo por los personajes y además un guiño muy fuerte a la época de oro del cine de Hollywood de los años ’20, ’30 y '40; una especie de racconto de las grandes producciones fílmicas que llevaron a Hollywood a transformarse en la meca del cine.
El final del libro termina casi en una experiencia sobrenatural que atraviesa el personaje principal, una especie de relato fantástico que explica todos los misterios que suceden durante las páginas anteriores.
Tenemos a un personaje siniestro también, llamado “La Bestia” que atormenta a todos y que es muy difícil de encontrar y también un sinnúmero de situaciones que contribuyen a acrecentar el misterio que surge a partir de la reaparición de ese poderoso empresario, el señor Artburtnot.
En conclusión, “Cementerio para lunáticos” es una ágil, dinámica y versátil novela cuya principal característica reside en mantener al lector atento a todo lo que sucede desde el principio hasta el final, sin que el gran Ray Bradbury nos suelte la mano durante el proceso de lectura. Muy recomendable.
August 24, 2013
I will make a new tradition to read a Bradbury book on his birthday, which at my age means I'll reread books I've already read, but that's a good tradition for a content old age. Watched a video of Bradbury talking about writing. It was perfectly timed to bump into it on his birthday and, a break from Annie Dillard's Writing Life. Dillard is brilliant, but damn! she goes on and on about how arduous writing is. Molding, crafting, snipping, killing your darlings, insisting the writer have no distractions which include windows and other people. And Bradbury said if you don't love writing, do something else. It is not hard. It is joy. So is this book. It's a crazy quilt of real stuff in Bradbury's writing life, with the names only slightly changed so you still know who the sendups are. He said in his talk how he came to write this book - a chance encounter traveling to England on the Elizabeth II. Hollywood in the 1950s: movie moguls, eccentric directors with monocles, a retired movie star who swims naked in the Venice surf, a film cutter who spends the wee hours in a room with writhing snippets of film on the floor, Lenin's make-up man, fanatic fans, an actor who has played Jesus Christ for so long he enjoys evenings on the cross on the Calvary set, watching the city lights. The studio commissary with the studio head's table elevated above the level of commoners. Roman legions running through the set for Green Town, Illinois on their way to ancient Rome down the block. The man who would be Ray Harryhausen and Studio 13 full of monsters, beasties and little tiny dinosaur lands. Our narrator, a quaking screenwriter with gifts who has a close encounter with the graveyard next door at midnight one thundering Halloween night.
September 8, 2024
I could not finish this book..too chaotic and crazy.
June 27, 2017
Acabo de terminarlo, y tengo esa tristeza de cada vez que me despido de Bradbury. ¡Qué ser humano hermoso! Qué bello que es poder leerlo, y a través de su obra tener la certeza de que existió y de seguro existen otras personas con esa inocencia, esa pureza y esa creatividad que no es de este mundo. Por lo que leí en otras reseñas, a algunos lectores les aburrió o decepcionó. A mi en particular, esta historia verdaderamente me atrapó; tal vez no tanto como otros de sus libros, pero lo suficiente para esperar con ansías cualquier momento por reducido que fuese para volver a zambullirme en sus páginas. Creo que el clímax de misterio está muy bien logrado y es muy dinámico, no llega a volverse pesado o aburrido. Sus amigos son cuál de todos mas bellos, Roy en particular me pareció encantador y todo su mundo fascinante. Da un atisbo interesante de los estudios de películas y la vida de quienes trabajan en ellos. El final me fue de lo más inesperado (aunque tal vez sea que solo tengo escasos dotes de detective) y muy emocionante: me saltaron unas lágrimas en los últimos capitulos.
Por favor, ¡No dejen de leer a Ray Bradbury jamás!
Por favor, ¡No dejen de leer a Ray Bradbury jamás!
August 30, 2020
This is one of the weirdest books I’ve ever read. It made NO SENSE.
The plot takes a while to unearth, but there is one to be found if you look hard enough. Characters pop up out of nowhere, shout a bunch of random words that are technically English, and then disappear again.
There is a fictional movie studio next to a graveyard. Our narrator finds a body perched on top of a ladder in the graveyard one Halloween night and freaks out. But was it a real body? Then other people start disappearing and possibly dying, but you never know who is “dead” and who is dead dead.
It references a lot of old films and old actors (1950 and earlier). I was proud of myself for knowing a few of them.
I guessed part of the ending, but it was nice to have someone come out of the shadows and explain the whole mystery at the end.
The prose is excellent for the most part. There are a lot of metaphors, which threw me off at first until I got used to them. Most of the book is so random. The actual plot could be condensed into a novella.
Some mild language | Some implied off-screen sex | Some occasional violence
The plot takes a while to unearth, but there is one to be found if you look hard enough. Characters pop up out of nowhere, shout a bunch of random words that are technically English, and then disappear again.
There is a fictional movie studio next to a graveyard. Our narrator finds a body perched on top of a ladder in the graveyard one Halloween night and freaks out. But was it a real body? Then other people start disappearing and possibly dying, but you never know who is “dead” and who is dead dead.
It references a lot of old films and old actors (1950 and earlier). I was proud of myself for knowing a few of them.
I guessed part of the ending, but it was nice to have someone come out of the shadows and explain the whole mystery at the end.
The prose is excellent for the most part. There are a lot of metaphors, which threw me off at first until I got used to them. Most of the book is so random. The actual plot could be condensed into a novella.
Some mild language | Some implied off-screen sex | Some occasional violence
January 9, 2017
Бредбъри много често споменава празника Вси Светии в творбите си. В тази, действието също започва в навечерието на Хелоуин през 1954г.
Младият сценарист наскоро е започнал работа в местното филмово студио Максимус Филмс. Неговият приятел от детинство Рой, работи за същото студио като майстор на декори и именно той препоръчва главния герой да се присъедини към екипа му и да разгърне писателския си потенциал.
Сценаристът получава тайнствена покана по случай празника, но мястото е необичайно- в съседния гробищен парк Грийн Глейдз. Оказва се, че е бил единствения поканен и докато се лута, търсейки останалите, се натъква на тяло, което виси високо на стената. Тялото, обаче, се оказва не на кой да е, а на отдавна починалия шеф на филмовото студио- Джеймс Чарлз Арбътнот. Шокиран от откритието си, сценаристът решава да избяга и прекарва нощта, потопен в стари спомени от срещите си с Арбътнот, както и последвалата катастрофа, в която умира.
На сутринта, разказва странната случка на неговия приятел Рой и двамата започват да се ровят и да търсят обяснение на случилото се. Сред студията на Максимус Филмс, в един ковчег, откриват копие на Арбътнот- лека кукла с тежести. Но на кой и защо му е било необходимо да прави такъв реалистичен макет?
Междувременно, Рой също получава анонимна покана за среща в местен ресторант. Двамата приятели отиват заедно с надеждата да намерят отговорите, които търсят. Те, обаче, откриват нещо много повече- поредица от „случайни” срещи и събития, които ги вкарват в мистериозни преживявания...с фатални последствия.
Книгата е изпълнена с множество обрати и динамика. Отново се срещаме с детектив Кръмли, Констанс и Хенри от „ Смъртта е занимание самотно”, с които писателят се впуска в нови приключения; главният герой се трансформира от писател в сценарист, а Пег вече е негова съпруга.
Въпреки, че криминалната поредица се състои от 3 книги, първата от които е „ Смъртта е занимание самотно”, втората- „ Гробище за лунатици”, а третата- „ Хайде всички да убием Констанс”, всяка една от тези книги е със самостоятелна история и може да се чете отделно от другите. Единственото общо са героите, които се появяват и надграждат във всяка следваща книга. Честно казано, от поредицата, на мен най- много ми хареса „Гробище за лунатици”
Определено не смятам, че криминалетата са стихията на Бредбъри, но той остава верен на своя завладяващ стил на писане, вплитайки фантастични елементи.
Младият сценарист наскоро е започнал работа в местното филмово студио Максимус Филмс. Неговият приятел от детинство Рой, работи за същото студио като майстор на декори и именно той препоръчва главния герой да се присъедини към екипа му и да разгърне писателския си потенциал.
Сценаристът получава тайнствена покана по случай празника, но мястото е необичайно- в съседния гробищен парк Грийн Глейдз. Оказва се, че е бил единствения поканен и докато се лута, търсейки останалите, се натъква на тяло, което виси високо на стената. Тялото, обаче, се оказва не на кой да е, а на отдавна починалия шеф на филмовото студио- Джеймс Чарлз Арбътнот. Шокиран от откритието си, сценаристът решава да избяга и прекарва нощта, потопен в стари спомени от срещите си с Арбътнот, както и последвалата катастрофа, в която умира.
На сутринта, разказва странната случка на неговия приятел Рой и двамата започват да се ровят и да търсят обяснение на случилото се. Сред студията на Максимус Филмс, в един ковчег, откриват копие на Арбътнот- лека кукла с тежести. Но на кой и защо му е било необходимо да прави такъв реалистичен макет?
Междувременно, Рой също получава анонимна покана за среща в местен ресторант. Двамата приятели отиват заедно с надеждата да намерят отговорите, които търсят. Те, обаче, откриват нещо много повече- поредица от „случайни” срещи и събития, които ги вкарват в мистериозни преживявания...с фатални последствия.
Книгата е изпълнена с множество обрати и динамика. Отново се срещаме с детектив Кръмли, Констанс и Хенри от „ Смъртта е занимание самотно”, с които писателят се впуска в нови приключения; главният герой се трансформира от писател в сценарист, а Пег вече е негова съпруга.
Въпреки, че криминалната поредица се състои от 3 книги, първата от които е „ Смъртта е занимание самотно”, втората- „ Гробище за лунатици”, а третата- „ Хайде всички да убием Констанс”, всяка една от тези книги е със самостоятелна история и може да се чете отделно от другите. Единственото общо са героите, които се появяват и надграждат във всяка следваща книга. Честно казано, от поредицата, на мен най- много ми хареса „Гробище за лунатици”
Определено не смятам, че криминалетата са стихията на Бредбъри, но той остава верен на своя завладяващ стил на писане, вплитайки фантастични елементи.
January 16, 2013
I gave this book three stars because, while I did not like the story so much, Ray Bradbury is such a genius that I can dislike a story he created and still see the wit and genius in it.
Oh, Ray Bradbury, how I love you! I will not speak of Brandbury in the past tense-his genius lives on.
As I sai, I really did not like the story so much. I figured out the identity of the Beast quite early in the story, although I did not figure out any of the rest of the pieces to complete the puzzle.
My favorite two parts of the story:
The maitre d' of the Brown Derby lifted his left eyebrow as we arrived. A former dog lover, he now only loved cats. We smelled funny.
"Of course you have no reservations?" he observed, languidly.
"About this place?" said Roy. "Plenty."
Ah! The wit! And my second favorite passage:
"Insane people give me hope...The insane have decided to stay on," Crumly said. "They love life so much that, rather than destroy it, they go behind a self-made wall to hide. Pretend not to hear, but they do hear. Pretend not to see, but see. Insanity says:I hate living but love life. Hate the rules but do likeme. So, rather than drop in graves, i hide out. Not in liquor, nor in bed under sheets, nor in a needle's prick or snuffs of white powder, but in madness. On my own shelf, in my own rafters, under my own silent roof. So, yeah, insane people give me hope. Courage to go on being sane and alive, always with the cure at hand, should I ever tire and need it: madness...If you got to choose between a billion years of darkness, no sun ever again, wouldn't you choose catatonia? You could still enjoy green grass and air that smells like cut watermelons. Still touch your knee, when no one was looking. And all the while, you pretend not to care. But you care so mich that you build a crystal coffin and seal it on yourself."
Ah! The insight!!
Oh, Ray Bradbury, how I love you! I will not speak of Brandbury in the past tense-his genius lives on.
As I sai, I really did not like the story so much. I figured out the identity of the Beast quite early in the story, although I did not figure out any of the rest of the pieces to complete the puzzle.
My favorite two parts of the story:
The maitre d' of the Brown Derby lifted his left eyebrow as we arrived. A former dog lover, he now only loved cats. We smelled funny.
"Of course you have no reservations?" he observed, languidly.
"About this place?" said Roy. "Plenty."
Ah! The wit! And my second favorite passage:
"Insane people give me hope...The insane have decided to stay on," Crumly said. "They love life so much that, rather than destroy it, they go behind a self-made wall to hide. Pretend not to hear, but they do hear. Pretend not to see, but see. Insanity says:I hate living but love life. Hate the rules but do likeme. So, rather than drop in graves, i hide out. Not in liquor, nor in bed under sheets, nor in a needle's prick or snuffs of white powder, but in madness. On my own shelf, in my own rafters, under my own silent roof. So, yeah, insane people give me hope. Courage to go on being sane and alive, always with the cure at hand, should I ever tire and need it: madness...If you got to choose between a billion years of darkness, no sun ever again, wouldn't you choose catatonia? You could still enjoy green grass and air that smells like cut watermelons. Still touch your knee, when no one was looking. And all the while, you pretend not to care. But you care so mich that you build a crystal coffin and seal it on yourself."
Ah! The insight!!
February 22, 2017
E fu così che l'adepta, ancora piangente per la recente scomparsa del suo idolo, dovette dare due ad un suo libro.
Dove sono i capolavori del calibro di Fahrenheit 451 e Cronache marziane?
Bradbury, perché mi hai fatto questo?!
Dove sono i capolavori del calibro di Fahrenheit 451 e Cronache marziane?
Bradbury, perché mi hai fatto questo?!
February 14, 2021
Някъде към 3, 50.
Историята на моменти ми се стори леко хаотична, но пък няма как да се отрече, че Бредбъри може да направи интересен за четене един напълно обикновен трилър.
Историята на моменти ми се стори леко хаотична, но пък няма как да се отрече, че Бредбъри може да направи интересен за четене един напълно обикновен трилър.
March 19, 2012
Голливуд должен быть разрушен. Но только после того, как этот роман будет экранизирован.
Пригласить постановщиком лучше всего Фрица Ланга, а в помощники ему взять Билли Уайлдера. Рэй Харрихаузен будет делать спецэффекты и застенчиво играть Холдстрома. Борис Карлофф и Эрих фон Штрогейм появятся в эпизодических ролях, Джин Келли станцует на крыше Оперы Гарнье, Чаплин сыграет Иисуса, Сильвия Сидни — Констанцию, а Лон Чейни — все главные роли, кроме, конечно, САМОЙ главной. САМУЮ главную сделает сам Брэдбери. Он же будет читать закадровый текст, дурашливо хохотать в самых страшных местах и плакать каждый раз, когда на экране будет закат.
Это будет гениальное кино, после создания которого Голливуд, место действия этого романа, место жизни и смерти, Цирк и Голгофа, должен быть разрушен навсегда, чтобы жить вечно.
Детство не возвращается, потому что не кончается никогда. Кинг-Конг не погибает, потому что пленку можно снова поставить в проектор. Рукописи и фильмы не горят. А если даже горят, если даже сгорают, то через несколько десятилетий Богу все равно приходит прихоть пересмотреть «Страсти Жанны д'Арк» и он подкидывает полную копию на чердак сумасшедшего дома — куда ж ещё?!
Не читайте «Кладбище для безумцев» как роман. Это, безусловно, эпическая поэма. Все поклонники «Вина из одуванчиков» помнят ритм и образность такой поэзии. Её можно пить до головокружения, до щемящего восторга, до полного погружения в литературную нирвану, из глубины которой одним только взглядом можно сделать мир совершенным.
Я, кстати, всегда был уверен, что Фриц Ланг сидел на премьере «Звёздных войн» в Граумановском кинотеатре 25 мая 1977 года. Джордж Лукас, по наитию оборачиваясь, видел отблеск световых мечей в монокле, но так никому об этом и не рассказал. И Брэдбери в романе о своём 1954 годе не упомянул об этой истории ни словом, но каждая буква книги, каждый её восклицательный знак свидетельствуют, что так и было.
Пригласить постановщиком лучше всего Фрица Ланга, а в помощники ему взять Билли Уайлдера. Рэй Харрихаузен будет делать спецэффекты и застенчиво играть Холдстрома. Борис Карлофф и Эрих фон Штрогейм появятся в эпизодических ролях, Джин Келли станцует на крыше Оперы Гарнье, Чаплин сыграет Иисуса, Сильвия Сидни — Констанцию, а Лон Чейни — все главные роли, кроме, конечно, САМОЙ главной. САМУЮ главную сделает сам Брэдбери. Он же будет читать закадровый текст, дурашливо хохотать в самых страшных местах и плакать каждый раз, когда на экране будет закат.
Это будет гениальное кино, после создания которого Голливуд, место действия этого романа, место жизни и смерти, Цирк и Голгофа, должен быть разрушен навсегда, чтобы жить вечно.
Детство не возвращается, потому что не кончается никогда. Кинг-Конг не погибает, потому что пленку можно снова поставить в проектор. Рукописи и фильмы не горят. А если даже горят, если даже сгорают, то через несколько десятилетий Богу все равно приходит прихоть пересмотреть «Страсти Жанны д'Арк» и он подкидывает полную копию на чердак сумасшедшего дома — куда ж ещё?!
Не читайте «Кладбище для безумцев» как роман. Это, безусловно, эпическая поэма. Все поклонники «Вина из одуванчиков» помнят ритм и образность такой поэзии. Её можно пить до головокружения, до щемящего восторга, до полного погружения в литературную нирвану, из глубины которой одним только взглядом можно сделать мир совершенным.
Я, кстати, всегда был уверен, что Фриц Ланг сидел на премьере «Звёздных войн» в Граумановском кинотеатре 25 мая 1977 года. Джордж Лукас, по наитию оборачиваясь, видел отблеск световых мечей в монокле, но так никому об этом и не рассказал. И Брэдбери в романе о своём 1954 годе не упомянул об этой истории ни словом, но каждая буква книги, каждый её восклицательный знак свидетельствуют, что так и было.
November 25, 2021
Welch wahnsinnige Nacherzählung von Dickens "A Tale of Two Cities". Man muss das Original jedoch nicht kennen, um dieses Buch geniessen zu können. Was man jedoch mögen sollte, sind verrückte Geschichten, chaotische Handlungsstränge und Bücher, die man teilweise nicht versteht. Denn auch ich hatte im Grossen und Ganzen keine Ahnung, was hier abgeht.
Und genau darin liegt der Spass bei diesem Werk Bradburys. Eben genau darin, dass man nicht weiss, was vor sich geht. Das ergeht unserem Drehbuchautoren nämlich gar nicht anders. Aber keine Sorge, am Schluss wird alles aufgeklärt.
Bradbury dekonstruiert hier Hollywood. Reisst es nieder, baut es wieder auf, nur um es erneut zu zerstören. Wir befinden uns in einer Traumwelt einer Traumwelt. Gehen dem schönen Scheinen auf den Leim, reissen uns los, nur um in dunkle Abgründe zu fallen. Das oben genannte Chaos ist gewollt, denn Bradbury ist ein kluger, umsichtiger Autor, der ganz genau weiss, was er tut.
Mochte ich den ersten Band der Crumbley-Reihe bereits sehr, so habe ich dieses Buch hier geliebt. Jede Seite, jede Begebenheit. Ich hatte riesigen Spass, habe mich auch gegruselt und bin erschaudert. Habe mich gewundert, mich gefragt. Hier konnte ich voll und ganz in die Geschichte eintauchen und Hollywood mal von unten betrachten.
Grossartige Literatur eines umso grossartigeren Autoren.
Und genau darin liegt der Spass bei diesem Werk Bradburys. Eben genau darin, dass man nicht weiss, was vor sich geht. Das ergeht unserem Drehbuchautoren nämlich gar nicht anders. Aber keine Sorge, am Schluss wird alles aufgeklärt.
Bradbury dekonstruiert hier Hollywood. Reisst es nieder, baut es wieder auf, nur um es erneut zu zerstören. Wir befinden uns in einer Traumwelt einer Traumwelt. Gehen dem schönen Scheinen auf den Leim, reissen uns los, nur um in dunkle Abgründe zu fallen. Das oben genannte Chaos ist gewollt, denn Bradbury ist ein kluger, umsichtiger Autor, der ganz genau weiss, was er tut.
Mochte ich den ersten Band der Crumbley-Reihe bereits sehr, so habe ich dieses Buch hier geliebt. Jede Seite, jede Begebenheit. Ich hatte riesigen Spass, habe mich auch gegruselt und bin erschaudert. Habe mich gewundert, mich gefragt. Hier konnte ich voll und ganz in die Geschichte eintauchen und Hollywood mal von unten betrachten.
Grossartige Literatur eines umso grossartigeren Autoren.
July 4, 2019
Якби не третій том, який починається атмосферніше, я б цей і недочитував. Сюжетна лінія закручена, але всенький роман хотілося кричати "Не вірю!" Герої неправдоподібні, атмосфера кіностудії більше нагадує сюрреалізм, чудовисько - це суміш "Привида опери" з дешевими жахастиками тощо.
У мене склалося враження, що Бредбері писав роман суто для себе. Взявши за основу реальний досвід роботи на студії, він вирішив - для себе і своїх приятелів по студії - написати твір, як виглядали б ті самі події, якщо додати їм фантастичності та містичності... Вочевидь, це цікаво читати тим, особисто був там. Але для інших читачів забагато абсурду, як на мене
У мене склалося враження, що Бредбері писав роман суто для себе. Взявши за основу реальний досвід роботи на студії, він вирішив - для себе і своїх приятелів по студії - написати твір, як виглядали б ті самі події, якщо додати їм фантастичності та містичності... Вочевидь, це цікаво читати тим, особисто був там. Але для інших читачів забагато абсурду, як на мене
February 18, 2018
RB is my love, but really this one was only okay. I read a review once of Bradbury's body of work that said that eventually, you feel like you know all his tricks. (To be fair, the man published over 600 short stories plus an obscene amount of novels, so, yeah, after a while, you get the gist.) I hope that isn't happening to me.
Too many exclamation marks. Too slow until the very end. Could never quite get immersed in it. But he writes with more love and enthusiasm than almost any other writer I've ever read--you can feel how much he loves stories and movies and Hollywood throughout. A charming almost-boyish enthusiasm for life. Way more Phantom of the Opera influence than I expected.
Too many exclamation marks. Too slow until the very end. Could never quite get immersed in it. But he writes with more love and enthusiasm than almost any other writer I've ever read--you can feel how much he loves stories and movies and Hollywood throughout. A charming almost-boyish enthusiasm for life. Way more Phantom of the Opera influence than I expected.
September 5, 2025
2.5/5
This felt like a thinly veiled fictionalization of Bradbury's experiences working in Hollywood as a writer. The mystery felt like an afterthought.
This felt like a thinly veiled fictionalization of Bradbury's experiences working in Hollywood as a writer. The mystery felt like an afterthought.
October 29, 2024
Не найкращий твір Бредбері, якийсь надто хаотичний. Але тим не менш дуже кінематографічний. Розвʼязка здивувала. Дуже б хотіла побачити екранізацію цього твору.
Український переклад не додає балів. Надто багато діалектів і простеньких фразочок, що перетворює неповторний стиль інтелектуала Рея Бредбері в «базарну» балаканину…
Не раджу для знайомства з творчістю автора. Але якщо вже все перечитали у Бредбері, то чому б й ні:)
Український переклад не додає балів. Надто багато діалектів і простеньких фразочок, що перетворює неповторний стиль інтелектуала Рея Бредбері в «базарну» балаканину…
Не раджу для знайомства з творчістю автора. Але якщо вже все перечитали у Бредбері, то чому б й ні:)
April 29, 2020
I'm going to be completely honest with you. For most of this book, I had no idea what was going on. Previously I had only read one book by Ray Bradbury, and you can probably guess which book that is. I have a desire to read more by this author, and when the opportunity to read A Graveyard for Lunatics came about, I grabbed it. This is the second book in the Crumley Mystery series and even though I hadn't read the first book, I decided to jump in and hopefully land on my feet. I didn't. I landed on my bum. So let me just say, if you haven't read the first book, you should probably start there.
I listened to A Graveyard for Lunatics as an audiobook, and I have no regrets there. Andrew Garman did a fantastic job on the narration. The characters in this book are interesting and a bit bizarre at times. The story line was interesting. But if you asked me to describe this book in my own words, I couldn't. A lot was going on, and I'm not sure if I could wrap my head around all of it, at least not until the end when everything came together.
I'm certainly glad I did listen to this book. I may even go back and listen to/read the first book of this series sometime in the future. Bradbury has a lot of books/short stories to chose from, so if anybody has a recommendation, I'd be happy to hear it. I want to expand my reading horizon in the Bradbury universe.
*I received a copy of this audiobook from the publisher for review purposes only. All opinions are my own.
I listened to A Graveyard for Lunatics as an audiobook, and I have no regrets there. Andrew Garman did a fantastic job on the narration. The characters in this book are interesting and a bit bizarre at times. The story line was interesting. But if you asked me to describe this book in my own words, I couldn't. A lot was going on, and I'm not sure if I could wrap my head around all of it, at least not until the end when everything came together.
I'm certainly glad I did listen to this book. I may even go back and listen to/read the first book of this series sometime in the future. Bradbury has a lot of books/short stories to chose from, so if anybody has a recommendation, I'd be happy to hear it. I want to expand my reading horizon in the Bradbury universe.
*I received a copy of this audiobook from the publisher for review purposes only. All opinions are my own.
November 3, 2008
I lived in Venice Beach California at the time I read this book, and the coolest thing about it, was some of the book took place not far from where I lived. I was working on writing my first screenplay when my roommate walked into my office and put that book on the bookshelf. He said a friend gave it to him. I wasn't a really big reader back then, but we didn't have cable or satellite in our apartment. So after a few hours of boredom I picked it up. I mean, how bad could it be, it's freakin' Ray Bradbury! I have to admit, it was nothing like I thought it would be, it was better, and not a stitch of science fiction. I honestly didn't know what the book was about before reading it.
Maybe it's because I love movies, and I was in the middle of writing a script myself, but I totally gobbled up this book. Lots of twists and turns, and the coolest thing is a lot of the places that events in the book took place are actual places in Hollywood. It made it seem more real, and that was probably the coolest thing about it. You don't have to live in California, or even had to visit it though, because Mr. Bradbury's writing style in this is super, and puts your mind right there.
Maybe it's because I love movies, and I was in the middle of writing a script myself, but I totally gobbled up this book. Lots of twists and turns, and the coolest thing is a lot of the places that events in the book took place are actual places in Hollywood. It made it seem more real, and that was probably the coolest thing about it. You don't have to live in California, or even had to visit it though, because Mr. Bradbury's writing style in this is super, and puts your mind right there.
July 14, 2012
Great novel that really captures the spirit of old Hollywood. I loved the studio drama and the writing was classic Bradbury. I thought that it failed a little as a Mystery story because I was way ahead of the protagonist.
Read Death is a Lonely Business before you start this novel though, you will be thankful for the Character development that he builds on from the previous book.
Read Death is a Lonely Business before you start this novel though, you will be thankful for the Character development that he builds on from the previous book.
March 9, 2019
Just Ok...
I love Ray Bradbury but this story dragged on for me and there were parts where I did t quite understand the intentions. However if your a diehard fan you’ll enjoy this mystery.
I love Ray Bradbury but this story dragged on for me and there were parts where I did t quite understand the intentions. However if your a diehard fan you’ll enjoy this mystery.
February 6, 2017
Не мислех че така добре ще ми се услади. Може би това е проблема, мисленето.Ако не бях си мислел че няма да ми хареса, сигурно нямаше да ми хареса. Но след като съм си мислел това... не знам вече какво да си мисля. Странно, но този стил на писане, колкото и различен в началото да ти се струва, в края ти става съвсем естествен и нормален. И когато захванеш друга книга-очакваш тя да е написана пак по този начин. Ето това е което отличава добрият писател, кара те да "виждаш" и "усещаш" както самият той "вижда" и "усеща." А мислите са ирелевантни. Може би точно това е проблема -мисленето.
October 6, 2025
This is the third Bradbury book I've read, and I'm starting to get accustomed to his writing style. This one's a little all over the place, with quirky characters who don't really talk like real people do, and a confusing plot (although I did manage to predict one plot twist concerning the Beast's identity about two-thirds of the way through). I enjoyed the noir-esque story set in old Hollywood, and the atmosphere of all the different sets and sound stages, I just wish the writing were a little bit clearer.
April 30, 2020
1950 li yılların Hollywood'u ve hemen yanındaki mezarlık. İnsanın hayalleri ve hayallerin ölümü. Ölülerin hayata müdahalesi ve yaşayanların büyülü dünyasının bunu kabul etmesi. Bence müthiş bir kurgu olmuş. Hele de isanın son akşam yemeğinden sonraki akşam yemeği ile olayların metaforik bağlantısı öyle güzel uyumlanmış ki okumaya doyamadım. Anlatıcının da olaylara müdahale yerine olanı resmetmesi bana çok da uygun geldi.
May 2, 2021
Not Bradbury's best , though there were sparkly gems present, products of Bradbury's ability of being like a spider and weaving webs of beautiful prose. Somewhat convoluted, I found it difficult to follow the plot much of the time. This is an obvious love letter from Bradbury to his association with Hollywood over the years.
July 30, 2017
Es un libro el cual me llega a tener una relación difícil porque Ray Bradbury es un autor que aún no me llega a enganchar con las lecturas que he hecho con Fahrenheit 451 y Las Crónicas Marcianas, con este libro esperaba algo mucho peor por sobre todo porque es un libro de terror, un género que no es de mi gusto, tal vez fue cierto con este libro que no me parece la gran cosa. Pero a medida de que leía esta obra apenas me pareció entretenida porque la ambientación alternativa que Bradbury le da a Hollywood me pareció particular porque es todo un cementerio, lleno de monstruos de todo tipo, aparte que en la obra el protagonista que es un guionista es llevado a trabajar en una película y claramente cuyo lugar se ve interesante es como si uno estuviera rodando una película de Tim Burton, más el misterio que debe resolver como toda una película de misterio que a mí como como me gusta mucho el cine resulta algo grandioso, más las referencias a muchas películas antiguas que resulta ser un deleite. Creo que tal vez sea una buena obra para cualquier fanático del terror o de Brabury, también para cualquier cinéfilo tal como dije antes en una obra con referencias a películas antiguas cuyo ambiente oscuro y terrorífico no les quede indiferente. Aunque para mí principalmente con Ray Bradury aún sigue bebiéndome mucho como para engancharme del todo.
October 2, 2017
Benim mi kötü bir anıma denk geldi yoksa kitap sahiden mi kötüydü bilemedim. Fakat bitmek bilmedi. Bütün olay kitabın sonunda olunca geri kalan sayfalar can sıkıcı olabiliyor. Okunmazsa bir şey kaybedilmez diyorum:)
January 22, 2023
3½ stars actually.
June 5, 2024
Wasn’t hooked til the second half but quite entertaining after that- like solving a puzzle
October 21, 2024
The story of the book is not bad at all but the delivery isn’t there. From the beginning to the end of the book I didn’t care about any of the characters and never really liked/disliked any of them.
I actually liked the final plot twist but that’s everything I liked from this book.
I actually liked the final plot twist but that’s everything I liked from this book.
October 19, 2013
Hm. Well this is weird because Bradbury is a genius and I loved all of the books and short stories by him I've read to date, so it feels weird to say this, but... the book just wasn't very good. Ray Bradbury wrote a book that was not very good. Weird.
The positive things I can say about it are that, as always, Ray Bradbury is great with creating memorable characters, and he's very very good with dialogue. This book is no exception. I was especially a huge fan of J.C. (an eccentric Jesus look-alike actor who has been pretending to be Jesus for so long that he has *become* Jesus), and Fritz Wong (an eccentric, nocturnal, monocled director from Nazi Germany whose favorite way to greet/thank someone is to brazenly insult them).
But how does a Ray Bradbury story go wrong? Well, for starters, Bradbury is excellent with metaphor and imagery, but even a master like Bradbury lays it on a little too thick at times. There are various points in the story where Ray waxes poetic about some aspect of the movie business he's enamored with, and rather than it being great, you get this awkward feeling that he's getting carried away with this metaphor that just seems to go on and on, and you wonder when he's going to snap out of it and get back to the story.
But the thing that really damns the story is that it's just not that well put together. It's essentially a mystery story, but in a mystery story you want your mystery to be compelling as soon as it's introduced, and the mystery that kicks off this story is pretty impotent. The protagonist receives a mysterious note asking him to come to the graveyard at midnight. So he goes there, and he finds a body that looks exactly like the former studio head who died years ago. Turns out the body is fake, though. It's a stuffed dummy that someone made look like the former studio head, and then they put it here in the graveyard. Huh. That's a pretty weird thing for someone to do. Wonder why they made this dummy and put it here.
And that's literally the mystery that kicks off the story. Someone left a stuffed dummy lying around. Not very compelling to say the least. The characters are super intrigued by it and are certain that someone is up to no good with that dummy (???), but you just don't share their intrigue, because the mystery is hard to be intrigued by.
Of course the mystery DOES get more complex once Bradbury introduces "The Beast"---a hideously disfigured man, seemingly of mind-boggling wealth, and shrouded in mystery. Almost nobody knows he exists, and the ones who do know he exists refuse to talk about him, and the ones who do talk about him end up dead. That's a little more interesting. Too bad it's blatantly obvious who he is and what is going on before you reach even the middle of the book. A lot of times with mystery stories, the writer is clever enough to leave a lot of different possibilities open, letting you draw many different conclusions, most of them wrong. Bradbury muddies the waters about certain details of the mystery, but the biggest mystery of the entire story is as obvious as the nose on your face.
So the end result is that you end up reading this story where the narrative gesticulates like mysterious and thrilling things are happening and the characters are all intrigued and unnerved by the goings on, but their behavior comes off as affected and farcical, because as the reader you already know what's going on (it's pretty obvious) and you just wish they'd drop the pretenses and get on with it already.
Bradbury is amazing, but this one's proof that even a genius can strike out on occasion.
The positive things I can say about it are that, as always, Ray Bradbury is great with creating memorable characters, and he's very very good with dialogue. This book is no exception. I was especially a huge fan of J.C. (an eccentric Jesus look-alike actor who has been pretending to be Jesus for so long that he has *become* Jesus), and Fritz Wong (an eccentric, nocturnal, monocled director from Nazi Germany whose favorite way to greet/thank someone is to brazenly insult them).
But how does a Ray Bradbury story go wrong? Well, for starters, Bradbury is excellent with metaphor and imagery, but even a master like Bradbury lays it on a little too thick at times. There are various points in the story where Ray waxes poetic about some aspect of the movie business he's enamored with, and rather than it being great, you get this awkward feeling that he's getting carried away with this metaphor that just seems to go on and on, and you wonder when he's going to snap out of it and get back to the story.
But the thing that really damns the story is that it's just not that well put together. It's essentially a mystery story, but in a mystery story you want your mystery to be compelling as soon as it's introduced, and the mystery that kicks off this story is pretty impotent. The protagonist receives a mysterious note asking him to come to the graveyard at midnight. So he goes there, and he finds a body that looks exactly like the former studio head who died years ago. Turns out the body is fake, though. It's a stuffed dummy that someone made look like the former studio head, and then they put it here in the graveyard. Huh. That's a pretty weird thing for someone to do. Wonder why they made this dummy and put it here.
And that's literally the mystery that kicks off the story. Someone left a stuffed dummy lying around. Not very compelling to say the least. The characters are super intrigued by it and are certain that someone is up to no good with that dummy (???), but you just don't share their intrigue, because the mystery is hard to be intrigued by.
Of course the mystery DOES get more complex once Bradbury introduces "The Beast"---a hideously disfigured man, seemingly of mind-boggling wealth, and shrouded in mystery. Almost nobody knows he exists, and the ones who do know he exists refuse to talk about him, and the ones who do talk about him end up dead. That's a little more interesting. Too bad it's blatantly obvious who he is and what is going on before you reach even the middle of the book. A lot of times with mystery stories, the writer is clever enough to leave a lot of different possibilities open, letting you draw many different conclusions, most of them wrong. Bradbury muddies the waters about certain details of the mystery, but the biggest mystery of the entire story is as obvious as the nose on your face.
So the end result is that you end up reading this story where the narrative gesticulates like mysterious and thrilling things are happening and the characters are all intrigued and unnerved by the goings on, but their behavior comes off as affected and farcical, because as the reader you already know what's going on (it's pretty obvious) and you just wish they'd drop the pretenses and get on with it already.
Bradbury is amazing, but this one's proof that even a genius can strike out on occasion.
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