The Halloween Tree (2005)

Edited by Jon Eller.

This book was released in 2005. The publisher's page for this book is here.

The Halloween Tree is a limited edition hardcover collecting various materials relevant to the development of the novel and TV film of the same name. An even more limited edition, the Lettered Edition, contains additional bonus materials.

As with many of the Bradbury titles published by Gauntlett, this book reveals the complexity of Bradbury's publishing history. And as with much of Jon Eller's recent work on Bradbury, it reveals that Bradbury is at heart a re-writer, ever eager to develop his stories further, even after they have seen print.

Contents

The volume contains several variant texts of Bradbury's novel, showing how it evolved from his initial concept through to the first published version. It reveals some of the compromises arising from the publishers' decision to promote the novel as a children's book. It also includes various scripts, showing in great detail how Bradbury's original idea - a cartoon film for Halloween - turned into a novel and them back into a film.

Throughout there are detailed notes and essays accounting for every minor twist and turn on the path to the finished novel and film.

In March 2007, Jon Eller gave an account of his work editing Bradbury in a lecture at Indiana University. A video of the lecture (lasting just under an hour) is available here.

The Halloween Tree

First published by Gauntlet Press in 2005..

Picture shows Gauntet hardcover edition (2005); cover art by Ray Bradbury.