Long After Midnight

by Ray Bradbury

Hardcover, 1976

Status

Available

Publication

Alfred A. Knopf (1976), Edition: 1st, 271 pages

Description

Two drifters caught in the backwash of space wander from city to dead city, sifting the rubble for the fabled Blue Bottle of Mars-and find in it two different, equally entrancing, dooms... A young boy in Green Town, Illinois, does not marry-yet marries-his beloved eighth-grade teacher... In the hell of a Manhattan July night, Will Morgan is offered a possibly Mephistophelean proposal by which he might gain a perfect love and a magical immunity... A jealous husband who orders an exact replica of his unfaithful wife from an android manufacturing company (purpose: murder) runs afoul of the compassionate new "live robot" law... At forty-eight, seized with an overwhelming desire to settle an old score, a man journeys back into the past under the spell of his "utterly perfect, incredibly delightful idea," only to recoil in stunned disbelief when he confronts, at last, his former tormentor... Bradbury's imaginative field is boundless. In this book, his stories carry us from the cozy familiarity of the small-town America we lived in in Dandelion Wine to the frozen desert and double moon that have been part of our interior landscape since The Martian Chronicles. His characters range from the "ordinary"-a rookie cop, an unhappy wife on vacation in Mexico, an old parish priest hearing confession-to the quite extraordinary: the parrot to whom Ernest Hemingway confided the plot of his last, greatest, never-put-down-on-paper novel, and a woman who, in New York City in the summer of 1974, hangs out a sign reading "Melissa Toad, Witch." Fantastic or conventional, chillingly suspenseful or hauntingly nostalgic, each of these stories has that aura of the unexpected combined with the special ring of absolute rightness that is brilliantly, uniquely Bradbury. Track List for Long After Midnight: Disc 1 "The Blue Bottle"-Track 1 "One Timeless Spring"-Track 10 "The Parrot Who Met Papa"-Track 16 Disc 2 "The Burning Man"-Track 2 "A Piece of Wood"-Track 9 "The Messiah"-Track 13 "G.B.S.-Mark V"-Track 21 Disc 3 "The Utterly Perfect Murder"-Track 3 "Punishment Without Crime"-Track 11 "Getting Through Sunday Somehow"-Track 19 Disc 4 "Drink Entire: Against the Madness of Crowds"-Track 1 "Interval in Sunlight"-Track 11 Disc 5 "A Story of Love"-Track 9 "The Wish"-Track 17 Disc 6 "Forever and the Earth"-Track 2 "The Better Part of Wisdom"-Track 17 Disc 7 "Darling Adolf"-Track 4 "The Miracles of Jamie"-Track 17 Disc 8 "The October Game"-Track 1 "The Pumpernickel"-Track 8 "Long After Midnight"-Track 11 "Have I Got a Chocolate Bar for You "-Track 16… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member norabelle414
The Blue Bottle - some humans have travelled to Mars to search for a special blue bottle which is filled with whatever the beholder most wants it to be filled with.
One Timeless Spring - I really liked this one. A pre-teen boy is convinced that his parents are poisoning him and his teachers are
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brainwashing him. But then he kisses a girl and realizes that it's just puberty.
The Parrot Who Met Papa - Papa being [[Ernest Hemingway]]. Hemingway used to go to a bar in Cuba and talk to this parrot there. He told him all kinds of gossip about other celebrities (which could be used for blackmail) and the rumor is that he told a story to the parrot that was never written down. The parrot becomes a celebrity because it knows everything Hemingway said, and speaks in his voice. Now Hemingway is gone (dead, I think), and someone has kidnapped the parrot. A reporter travels to Cuba to figure out whodunit. But the real challenge is getting the parrot back, and what to do with it. (I *loved* this one)
The Burning Man - a woman and her nephew pick up a hitchhiker who is probably Satan.
A Piece of Wood - A soldier tells his superior officer that he has created a machine which will rust all metal (i.e. guns) within a set radius. Good thing the soldier is merely a harmless psych ward resident who has been wandering around. Right?
The Messiah - A particularly devout priest on Mars sees Jesus in his church. Or maybe it's a Martian who looks like Jesus.
G.B.S - Mark V - G.B.S. being [[George Bernard Shaw]], who at this point is a robot living on a space ship. He is basically in a prison cell and is extremely unpopular with everyone except one crew member, who shirks his duties (and social life) to hang out with G.B.S. Then there is a meteor that kills everyone except robot G.B.S. and his friend, and they have a grand old time.
The Utterly Perfect Murder - A 50-year-old man decides to travel across the country back to his home town and kill the man who was his frenemy when they were 8.
Punishment Without Crime - An old man learns that his young wife is cheating on him. He decides that instead of getting mad at her he will go to a company where he can pay to murder a robot that is designed to look and act exactly like his wife, and thus avoid actually hurting anyone or doing something illegal and getting in trouble
Getting though Sunday, Somehow - On a boring Sunday, a man is moping in a park in Dublin. He hears a woman playing the harp and it makes him un-mopey. He goes up to her and tells her how awesome her playing is for like 20 minutes, but somehow that makes her play badly. Then he leaves her alone.
Drink Entire: Against the Madness of Crowds - I did not understand this one at all. A man sees an interesting sign on the street and so he walks over to it and then he meets a witch who says she wants to give him everything he desires in exchange for his soul. Then she says just kidding, a person can't give away their soul, they can only lose it. Also she wants to marry him. Then the man goes to work and he thinks he's going to get laid off but he wishes his coworker would get laid off instead. Neither of them gets laid off. Then the man goes back to the witch and he will marry her, but she says she won't marry him because he doesn't have a soul anymore. Then many years later the man runs into his coworker, who now owns the company they worked for.
Interval in Sunlight - This was really hard to listen to (I had to stop several times because I was too upset), and it did not have the ending that I needed to feel okay about it. A woman and her horrible awful abusive asshole husband are on vacation in Mexico. And he is terrible. He controls her with money (she has to pay him every time she "ruins" something, such as getting him a soda that is not cold enough) and by tearing down her self esteem at every moment. She tries to get free in several different ways, but she can't.
A Story of Love - A 13-year-old boy is in love with his teacher
The Wish - A man wishes on the first snow of the year that his father would come back to life. His wish comes true, but it isn't quite what he wanted. But then it is.
Forever and the Earth - 200 years in the future, a book publisher decides that the only author who could do justice to the majesty of the Space Age is [[Tom Wolfe]]. So he sends someone back in time to get Wolfe an hour before he dies, cure him, and bring him to the 23rd century. It is done, and the publisher sends Wolfe to Mars where he writes and writes and writes. And then they send him back to the 1900s to die so that they don't cause a paradox.
The Better Part of Wisdom - A dying uncle visits his grown nephew. He's oblivious/in denial about his nephew's homosexuality, but comes to terms with it after recalling how he felt when he was young and in love.
Darling Adolf - A really weird story about two Jewish men in the 70s who are directing/producing a movie about Hitler. After some choice comments by the lead actor about hosting and filming a real Nazi rally at Nuremberg to get Nazi supporters to be free extras, the producer & director are convinced that the actor wants to use his role in the movie to actually take over the world.
The Miracles of Jamie - Jamie really wants to do well on his test, and then he does. Jamie really wants a girl to like him, and then she does. Clearly, Jamie must be able to perform miracles. But then one day Jamie really wants something that he doesn't have control over.
The October Game - A creepy horror story about a really, really bad father who hates his wife and is throwing a Halloween party for his young daughter.
The Pumpernickel - A loaf of pumpernickel bread in a deli reminds a man of a summer he had with some friends when he was young. He wants to send the bread to them to remind them as well, but then he remembers that after that summer, they all forgot about him. So he eats the bread instead.
Long After Midnight - Some EMTs collect the body of a beautiful teenage girl who has hanged herself from a tree. They speculate on what she must have been like and what could have happened to cause her to do something so drastic. Then they take a closer look at her, and realize that all is not what it seems.
Have I Got a Chocolate Bar for You - A chocoholic goes to confession, which is very exciting for the priest who is tired of fornicators and masturbators. He eventually helps the young glutton, simply by talking with him every day for the whole summer. Then the man leaves to travel the world. Many years later he returns to thank the priest, and leaves him a gift brought from Vatican City.
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LibraryThing member Crowyhead
Ray Bradbury is one of my all-time favorite short story writers. These stories range from science fiction, to fantasy, to horror or mystery. He's thought of primarily as a science fiction writer, but you will find that his stories run the gamut.
LibraryThing member TheCrow2
This is for everyone who thinks Bradbury is 'just' a SF writer and it cannot be serious literature. Ray Bradbury's a marvellous writer, a pure genius....
LibraryThing member andyray
a wonderful anthology!! a well earned five stars!! "The Blue Bottle" kicks it off, about a Martian-made blue bottle that, once opened, gives the opener whatever he mostly wants. This Hemingway fan was exhilerated by "The Parrot who Met Papa," and the stories "The Miracles of Jamie" and "The
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Messiah" deal with my favorite pre-puberescent fantasy -- that I was the second coming of Christ.
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LibraryThing member GlennBell
A collection of short stories. Some are better than others. Some are science fiction and others are of general interest. Ray Bradbury wrote some clever short stories and several that seem to have little value. I recommend it based on the fact that some of the stories are entertaining and thought
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provoking.
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LibraryThing member AshRyan
This collection of 22 short stories showcases the range and diversity of Bradbury's writing. There are, of course, science fiction stories set on Mars or aboard rocket ships---such as the opener, "The Blue Bottle"; "The Messiah" about priests on Mars and a Martian who appears to humans in the shape
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they want to see, similar to a few of the stories in The Martian Chronicles and elsewhere; and "G.B.S.--Mark V", about a robot George Bernard Shaw. There are also scary stories, such as "The Burning Man" and the shockingly horrific "The October Game", perfect for Halloween. Then there are humorous stories, such as "The Parrot Who Met Papa" about the kidnapping of a bird which has memorized Hemingway's final unpublished novel, and the closing story "Have I Got A Chocolate Bar For You!" And there are moving stories, such as "The Miracles of Jamie" about a young boy who imagines that he is Christ reincarnated as a means of coping with his mother's terminal illness, and the aforementioned "Chocolate Bar". And there are several other stories, some of which are difficult to even classify. But they all have in common Bradbury's trademark charm and magic.

Most of Bradbury's short story collections contain one or two that fall flat, but this one, while it doesn't have any that really stand out, doesn't really have an clunkers as far as I can remember. It's just a solid set of work, not his best, but definitely worth reading.
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LibraryThing member Evans-Light
Will add reviews for each story as I make my way through, not necessarily in order:

DRINK ENTIRE: AGAINST THE MADNESS OF CROWDS

One of the stranger shorts I've read by Bradbury. His poetic language has gone so mad in this one it's barely controlled, in danger of going off the rails. It doesn't, but
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not by much. There is a moral to this story of a witch and a broken middle-aged soul in NYC, I am sure, but it is late and the message eludes me. Carpe Diem, perhaps? Enjoyable, but not essential.

THE OCTOBER GAME

Somehow this story has evaded me up until now. If you've never read it before, by all means stop reading this review and go track it down immediately. It's short, cruel and wonderful. Bradbury at his darkest. How I wish he would've spent a little more time writing while in this frme of mind. One of the best closing lines in a short story, ever, period.
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LibraryThing member pussreboots
I'm thoroughly enjoying these short stories. They're the perfect length, each about 10 to 15 pages, just enough to build up the story and knock it over with a classic Bradbury twist. My favorite stories for far are "The Burning Man", which asks the reader to reexamine his or her own prejudices in
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the setting of a typical lone road hitchhiker horror story, and "The Perfect Murder" which shows that time is the ultimate judge and jury. I plan to finish reading the remaining stories and mail the book on Saturday.
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LibraryThing member RBeffa
The subtitle of this collection is "22 hauntings and celebrations." I suppose it is, but not much to celebrate. I would say it is about wishes also. Getting what you wished for isn't always good we are reminded (but sometimes it is.) These 22 stories were written between 1946 and 1976. The
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collection was first published in 1976 and 11 of the stories were published between 1971 and 1976. With only 2 stories from the early 60's and the rest from 1946-1954, there is a real time split in the collection between early stuff and contemporary (at publication). The stories are a broad mix of a lot of mainstream fiction, some zany stuff, horror/supernatural, science-fiction and surreal/fantasy. The zany stuff was entertaining at times, the angst-ridden modern material was really tiresome and it didn't seem like Bradbury.

Like many writers, Bradbury had a period early in his career where he produced a lot of really good work. Later Bradbury almost always suffers in comparison to his early great works. The later material in here, with a few exceptions seems much weaker, certainly different. Some of the early material isn't his best work either. Nevertheless of the 22 stories here perhaps 5 or so are very good stories (and come from across the years), and even the majority of lesser stories are OK, which leaves this reader with a mostly satisfied feeling at the end, but wishing it was better.

So, there is good and bad Bradbury in here, but mostly unmemorable. There were two "Green Town" stories that I had just read in "Summer Morning, Summer Night" as well as other Green Town stories including an early one from 1946, "One Timeless Spring" that I had not read before and that handles young Doug's first kiss pretty well, although I thought the first part of the story rather awful/weak. There is also an absolutely crazy Adolph Hitler story in here. My favorite stories or ones that I thought notable, included: "The Burning Man" (1976) which managed to create a pretty spooky bit of horror in a few pages without anything horrible actually happening on the page. "Long After Midnight" (1963) in some ways is the best story in the collection; it sure hits hard. "The October Game" (1948), a genuine horror story that I've read before. I must also give a nod to "The Better Part of Wisdom" (1976) for a sensitive, progressive handling of a homosexual relationship. I don't think it a great story, but a noteworthy one. There is also a story here, "The Messiah" (1973), which to me is a good add-on to "The Martian Chronicles" and I liked it.
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LibraryThing member unclebob53703
For me this was his last really great collection of stories, where I loved every one. Misplaced my original copy and had to buy a replacement, then found this special edition published by PS and signed by him.
LibraryThing member mrgan
A fabulous celebration of imagination, shady spots of the soul, and writing itself. Bradbury's confidence is intoxicating - how he pulls of his trapeze act of shouting the story as if in a fit and yet staying superbly readable, I'll never know.

Don't expect sci-fi or fantasy; it's anything but.
LibraryThing member Charrlygirl
The October Game was my favorite story in Long After Midnight. It's one of those tales where the last line punches you right in the gut.

Unfortunately, many of the rest of the stories didn't resonate with me. Perhaps I read this collection too close to The Martian Chronicles? I couldn't help but
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compare the two and The Chronicles always came out ahead.

I'm still happy that I read this collection, as my goal is to read all of Ray Bradbury's work. I guess not all of his stories are going to knock the ball out of the park, but a mediocre Bradbury story is still better than a good one from most other authors.

Recommended for fans of science fiction, dark fiction and short stories.
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Awards

Audie Award (Finalist — 2011)
World Fantasy Award (Nominee — Collection / Anthology — 1977)

Language

Original language

English

Barcode

9131
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