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FROM PLANET STORIES: Mad! impossible world! Sun-blasted by day, cold-wracked by night--and life condensed by radiation into eight days! Sim eyed the Ship--if he only dared reach it and escape! ... but it was more than half an hour distant--perhaps the limit of life itself! From the author of Fahrenheit 451, The Martian Chronicles and The Illustrated Man. Originally published in the Fall 1946 issue of Planet Stories. It was later reprinted under the title Frost and Fire. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Classic great Bradbury read...
Would really like to see this novella expanded. The concept was interesting, and the end provided hope and terror. A relatively quick read with solid action and some touching moments. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

An okay read
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is about a fireman in the future who lives in a society that does not believe in individual thought. Guy Montag is a fireman who actually starts fires instead of extinguishing them. 451 degrees is the temperature that paper burns and that number is patched on Guy Montags sleeve and on his helmet to let everyone know he is fireman. This book starts off really slow, and I had a lot of trouble staying focused and wanting to keep reading. Once the book picks up and gets into some of the more interesting parts, you actually want to keep reading more. I feel that is one of the only flaws to this book but if you have the patience to get through the beginning then I definitely say read this book. It really makes you think about what is actually happening

BFont ... Read more

Product Description
Reviewers and critics have not always agreed on how well the science fiction label fit Ray Bradbury, but the immense popularity of works like The Martian Chronicles and The Illustrated Man leaves no doubt as to the enduring status of this important writer. This Critical Companion examines, in a Literary Heritage chapter, the situation of Bradbury's works within the science fiction genre and explores thematic concerns that set works like Fahrenheit 451 and Dandelion Wine apart from conventional popular SF writings. This introduction to Bradbury, written especially for students, traces Bradury's interesting life, examining his early literary efforts, his forays into Hollywood, and his recent writing projects. Eight of Bradbury's major works are discussed at length, each in its own chapter, including two works published within the last ten years: A Graveyard for Lunatics (1990) and Green Shadows, White Whale (1992). Clear, thoughtful analysis is also given for The Martian Chronicles, The Illustrated Man, Something Wicked This Way Comes, and Death Is a Lonely Business. ... Read more

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The mind of Ray Bradbury is a wonder-filled carnival of delight and terror that stretches from the verdant Irish countryside to the coldest reaches of outer space. Yet all his work is united by one common thread: a vivid and profound understanding of the vast seet of emotionsthat bring strength and mythic resonance to our frail species.Ray Bradbury characters may find themselves anywhere and anywhen. A horrified mother may give birth to a strange blue pyramid. A man may takeAbraham Linkoln out of the grave--and meet another who puts him back. An amazing Electrical Grandmother may come to live with a grieving family. An old parrort may have learned over long evenings to imitate the voice of Ernest Hemingway, and become the last link to the last link to the great man. A priest on Mars may confront his fondest dream: to meet the Messiah. Each of these magnificient creations has something to tell us about our own humanity--and all of their fates await you in this new trade edition of twenty-eight classic Bradbury stories and one luscious poem. Travel on an unpredictable and unforgettable literary journey--safe in the hands of the century's great men of imagination.

Customer Reviews (13)

Decent collection, but not Bradbury's best
I have read many sci-fi short stories, and by far Bradbury's are often my favorites. This collection though, I consider sub par. It is jumbled and some of the stories aren't even sci-fi are seem out of place. The collection has many great stories, but I don't recommend it to people new to Bradbury; if you haven't read "The Illustrated Man", I suggest it over this collection.

Not Bradbury at his Best
I would like to note, as have some other reviewers, that I am working from the 18 story collection. It saddens me to say this, but these stories are a far cry from some of Bradbury's other material, and hardly worth the time for modern readers. Bradbury has an unnerving tendancy in his short stories to be one-dimensional, hokey, and heavy-handed; all these characteristics are on display in this collection. Also, I am willing to forigive his portraits of women in some of his earlier work, but these stories date as late as the 1960s, and Bradbury has to learn to write women in ways that are not hysterical or conniving.

While there are moments when Bradbury is able to recapture some of the awe and beauty of his earlier work, much of this is, sadly, sentimental hackery. Stories like "Any Friend of Nicholas Nickleby's is a Friend of Mine" and "The Man in the Rorscharch Shirt" are so obvious and dull as to be difficult to finish reading. "Tomorrow's Child" is so absolutely ridiculous and wrong-headed that is almost makes a person angry. I've read quite a bit of Bradbury, and this was the first book of his where I have had trouble reaching the end. "The Inspired Chicken Motel" is the one bright spot, I felt, where Bradbury manages to stumble into a father and son's shared sense of wonder, and their desire to believe in some kind cosmic meaning, revealed in an omen. Other than that, the stories are rote and uninspiring.

There is plenty of great Bradbury out there; I love Dandelion Wine, Fahrenheit 451, The Martian Chronicles, and Something Wicked This Way Comes. All those books are worth owning. But not everything Bradbury ever wrote is genius, and certainly not _I Sing the Body Electric!_

Ray Bradbury -- untalented, or merely incompetent?
In the fifth edition of "Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians", the article on Rachmaninov affirms that the popularity of his works is proof they aren't very good. By that reasoning, Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, and Brahms must be even worse composers.

But there is _some_ truth to the idea that popularity and "quality" are inversely related. Ray Bradbury, arguably the most popular 20th century writer of fantasy and science fiction, is a perfect example. Bradbury is a writer for people who have no imaginations of their own.

I read a lot of science fiction when I was young. (Fantasy had not become as popular as it is today.) By a wide margin, no writer struck me as consistently awful as Bradbury.

Why? None was quite so _obvious_ -- Bradbury telegraphed his punches in the titles of his stories! His treatment of any idea was often heavy-handed and sentimental. And he claimed priority for any work with even the least resemblance to one of his (qv, "The Foghorn" and "Beast from 20,000 Fathoms"). I don't know whether "Boys, Grow Giant Mushrooms in Your Basement!" predates Philip K. Dick's "The Father-Thing", but if it had, Bradbury surely would have sued.

It's about time (while Mr. Bradbury is still alive) to proclaim him the semi-competent mediocrity he is. There, I said it. He also needs a kick to the knees for his inane use ofWhitman's "I sing the body electric", a reference to human sensuality and sexuality, to title a story about an asexual, unsensual android.

I sing the body electric;
The armies of those I love engirth me, and I engirth them;
They will not let me off till I go with them, respond to them,
And discorrupt them, and charge them full with the charge of the Soul.

Was it doubted that those who corrupt their own bodies conceal themselves;
And if those who defile the living are as bad as they who defile the dead?
And if the body does not do as much as the Soul?
And if the body were not the Soul, what is the Soul?

I find it amazing Ray Harryhausen has put up with him for 70 years.

"I Sing The Additional Grip/Electric!"
(Please note that the edition I am reviewing is the older publication that contains only the original 18 works that make up I SING THE BODY ELECTRIC!.)

I usually adore Ray Bradbury short story collections, but I think it would be more honest of me to say that I "merely" very much enjoyed I SING THE BODY ELECTRIC!.While I wouldn't rank this as his best work, it contains a number of seductively powerful moments.It's a wonderful set of quite varied fiction, however not all of the stories gave me the same emotional charge that I get out of other selections of Bradbury's writing.It's still a compilation worth reading, of course, since even Bradbury on a mediocre day is still better than the vast majority of short story writers.

As with other Bradbury collections, it is difficult to characterize the feel of this.The stories cover a smorgasbord of topics; included are stories about Mars colonies, Irish peasants, supernatural chickens, electric grandmothers, and a host of other mind-bending fictions.You have to admire his creativity if nothing else.And he has a fantastic way of making even the most bizarre of artifacts seem as familiar as apple pie and the smell of freshly cut grass.His characters are painted with broad strokes, but they're so carefully crafted that you'll feel as though you've known them all your life.

Some of my favorite Bradbury stories are his most basic and uncomplicated ones, I SING THE BODY ELECTRIC! being no exception.THE KILIMANJARO DEVICE is a simple tribute to Ernest Hemmingway written with a deceptive elegance.The science fiction overtones of DOWNWIND FROM GETTYSBURG, THE LOST CITY OF MARS and the titular story mask some very real human emotions.In some stories, youth and old age are brought together, with childlike enthusiasm touching characters at all points during their lives.In other stories, depression and gloom are all-encompassing and inescapable.

On the other hand, there are a few stories that I just didn't care for.And I must admit that the poem at the end (CHRISTUS APOLLO) did very little for me.Still, it's testament to Bradbury's ability as a writer that the poorest stories can only fill me with mild indifference.Very little here blew me away in the manner of his DANDELION WINE book, but there is nothing that I would refuse to read again.

I enjoyed I SING THE BODY ELECTRIC! during my initial read.But I found myself appreciating the stories even more the second time around.Bradbury excels at painting the whole spectrum of humanity, from the most noble to its most pathetic.And he turns both extremes into very compelling stories.This is probably not his greatest collection, but it is definitely not one to be skipped.

Wonderful!
When I was about 14, I went through a several year phase of reading every science fiction book I could get my hands on.And now, fifteen years later, I decided to go back and try to read a few of the books I remembered.I especially remember enjoying books by Asimov, Bradbury, Dick, Wells and a few others.This was the first one I happened to read, and I was amazed.The first few stories were kind of 'iffy', but I was quickly pulled into each and every story.Ray Bradbury has a writing talent that few today can replicate.His mastery of words and his imagination are amazing.

I've read a few 'modern' sci-fi, and they've all failed to impress me.The true wonder of sci-fi is in books like this.Sure some of the ideas are out-dated, but who cares?It is science-fiction.Stephen King and the others I read didn't seem to capture the wonder that is in books like this.

I know that some prefer modern sci-fi, but for me, the 'oldies' are where the great science-fiction lies. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

The Martian Chronicles by Ray Baradbury
Since it was my summer reading assignment, I didn't expect that it will be so interesting. This book is great! ... Read more

Product Description
Special indeed are holiday stories with the right mix of high spirits and subtle mystery to please both adults and children. In Ray Bradbury's classic The Halloween Tree, eight boys set out on a Halloween night and are led into the depths of the past by a tall, mysterious character named Moundshroud. Bradbury's lyrical prose whooshes along with the pell-mell rhythms of children running at night, screaming and laughing, and the reader is carried along by its sheer exuberance. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Fun Treat for Sci-Fi Tricksters
Ray Bradbury won a hugo for the adaptation of his novel into a video. This radio play has all the same heart and excitement of that film.

A group of friends, all dressed up for Halloween rush to a friend's house only to find him ill and being taken to the hospital. As potential death looms for the young boy, his friends go on an a series of adventures exploring the history of Halloween and other cultural events related to our, very human, fear of death.

Though written for children, this story explores some of the darker sides of fear, and the importance of facing it, as seen throughout the ages.

An excellent production!
This is another triumph for Jerry Robbins and the Colonial Radio Theater. This is a third in a series of Ray Bradbury's books referred to as the "Green Town" stories. The other two are "Something Wicked This Way Comes" and "Dandelion Wine". I highly recommend all three but it is "The Halloween Tree" I'm reviewing right now.
This is a wonderful story for the family, but be forewarned it is a slightly morbid subject, but is handled in Bradbury & CRT's usual tasteful and entertaining manner. It is a wonderfully historical trip through time. J.T. Turner is fantastic as the narrator making you wonder if he isn't the author of the story himself relating it just for you. Jerry Robbins is the mysterious and slightly suspicious Mr. Moundshroud and does the part with an enthusiastic and marvelous creepy touch. Just the right balance of the bizarre and humorous.
Anastas Varinos(Pip), Matthew Scott-Robertson (Tom)and the other children sound like they've stepped right out of this Bradbury classic and really deliver 1st class performances. Mr. Jeffrey Gage gives us a soundtrack that sounds like it would be enjoyable on its own, and yet it never over powers the performances and, as all great soundtracks do, it lifts the story and moves it along at just the right pace.
If you are an audio drama buff or just a Bradbury buff add this to your collection. You'll find that Ray Bradbury's stories come alive when you step into this theater of the mind adaptation.

Enjoy! ... Read more

Product Description
Ray Bradbury is a modern cultural treasure. His disarming simplicity of style underlies a towering body of work unmatched in metaphorical power by any other American storyteller. And here, presented in a new trade edition, are thirty-two of his most famous tales--prime examples of the poignant and mysterious poetry which Bradbury uniquely uncovers in the depths of the human soul, the otherwordly portraits of outrÉ fascination which spring from the canvas of one of the century's great men of imagination. From a lonely coastal lighthouse to a sixty-million-year-old safary, from the pouring rain of Venus to the ominous silence of a murder scene, Ray Bradbury is our sure-handed guide not only to surprising and outrageous manifestations of the future, but also to the wonders of the present that we could never have imagined on our own.Ray Bradbury is a modern cultural treasure. His disarming simplicity of style underlies a towering body of work unmatched in metaphorical power by any other American storyteller. And here, presented in a new trade edition, are thirty-two of his most famous tales--prime examples of the poignant and mysterious poetry which Bradbury uniquely uncovers in the depths of the human soul, the otherwordly portraits of outre fascination which spring from the canvas of one of the centurys great men of imagination. From a lonely coastal lighthouse to a sixty-million-year-old safari, from the pouring rain of Venus to the ominous silence of a murder scene, Ray Bradbury is our sure-handed guide not only to surprising and outrageous manifestations of the future, but also to the wonders of the present that we could never have imagined on our own. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (14)

Golden Apples
I like just about everything that Ray Bradbury has written, and this is a collection of his short stories. I highly recommend it for anyone who likes Ray Bradbury or science fiction/fantasy. The book was in excellent condition and shipped promptly. Amazon Verified Product.

The Highlights are the True Science-Fiction Tales
Ray Bradbury's skill as a storyteller permits him to paint beautiful pictures of the otherwise mundane.A lot of his tales sound rather ordinary by their descriptions, and rarely like science-fiction; his gift is to enchant you anyway, whether by offering a fresh perspective or just using his beautiful command of language as his artist's palette.

Golden Apples isn't the best example of this, though.With a few exceptions, the best stories in this collection are those which could never happen, and which truly are science-fiction (or at least fantasy), and the forgettable ones have the least going on.In addition to perhaps the greatest known Bradbury short ever ("A Sound of Thunder," about time-traveling big game hunters who alter the future), the best tales depict an ageless boy wandering the earth in search of new parents; a dinosaur emerging from the ocean's depths to heed the call of a fog horn it mistakes as kin; a ghost inhabiting a real girl's body to experience falling in love; and, in Tell-Tale Heart-like fashion, a man goes insane while covering his post-murder tracks.

Of the non-science-fiction stories, the predominant themes are nuclear apocalypse, media and technology's intrusion in our lives, and ethnic pride and race relations.Some work ("The Big Black and White Game," "The Murderer"), and some don't ("Sun and Shadow," "Embroidery").It struck me that those tales offering the most social commentary entertained the least.

Strong Collection, but Not Extraordinary
I've read mostly all of Bradbury's lengthier fiction repretoire, and have only begun dipping into his collections of short stories. As a writer during the "Golden Age" of science fiction, Bradbury is unsurpassed: All at once, he manages to show the reader a future of hope, of surprise and of brightness. His writing style is simple and terse, and it takes some time to get used to the cadance with which he writes.

One of the aspects I've always appreciated about Bradbury's writing is that his stories extend beyond the "science fiction" genre. Encapsulated within the SF exterior, Bradbury manages to capture portraits of humanity - throughout all of his stories, it is apparent that he prescribes to the idea that the more things change, the more they stay the same. Thus, while he writes about space travel and other fantastical subjects, he retains a sense of humanity which transcends the differences in environment.

Without a doubt, my favorite story in this anthology is "R is for Rocket." This story alone is worth buying the book for...I am enraptured with the way Bradbury tells of the carefree summers the boys enjoy, and then juxtapose it to the pressure of a career in space exploration.

Generally, I find Bradbury's fantasy to be somewhat boring (though this can also be attributed to my lack of enthusiasm for fantasy as a whole). Don't let this faze you - this is a very strong collection, and excellent introduction, to Bradbury's short story abilities. About 90% of the stories in this book are really excellent..But the other 10% almost seem like simple writing exercises and are no way indicative of Bradbury's true talants as a writer.

Another Bradbury Treat
I'll admit I haven't finished this book but what I've read has taken my breath away.The writing is classic Bradbury, poetic and enticing. The stories themselves surprised me a little since I don't think I'd yet read a Bradbury story that wasn't science fiction or fantasy."The Fruit at the bottom of the bowel" is one of these and is fantastic.Of course, it seems to me that Bradbury's preoccupation has always been with people rather than magic or technology.Thus it makes sense that his "realistic" fiction would be just as effective as his other.In any case, Bradbury is a masterful storyteller and anyone would deprive themselves if they didn't read his work, including this collection.

great book!!!
i read this book so many times by now and i still fall in love with it every time i read a story in it!!!
he is really one of the best writers, and this is one of his best books!!
buy it and see for youself. ... Read more

Product Description
Get your "A" in gear!

They're today's most popular study guides-with everything you need to succeed in school. Written by Harvard students for students, since its inception SparkNotes™ has developed a loyal community of dedicated users and become a major education brand. Consumer demand has been so strong that the guides have expanded to over 150 titles.SparkNotes'™ motto is Smarter, Better, Faster because:

· They feature the most current ideas and themes, written by experts.
· They're easier to understand, because the same people who use them have also written them.
· The clear writing style and edited content enables students to read through the material quickly, saving valuable time.

And with everything covered--context; plot overview; character lists; themes, motifs, and symbols; summary and analysis, key facts; study questions and essay topics; and reviews and resources--you don't have to go anywhere else!



... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A concise study guide for Bradbury's dystopian novel
The SparkNotes were created by Harvard students, which means that these little black and blue books tend to be more streamlined than their yellow and black Cliffs Notes counterparts.In the case of Ray Bradbury's classic dystopian fable "Fahrenheit 451," the tradeoffs are fairly specific.You will not get a look at either the novel as an example of dystopian fiction or in the context of Bradbury's writing in the prolific period after World War II, but you will get a series of important quotations from the novel explained and a series of multiple-choice questions that will help test your knowledge.Even though this study guide was written by students for students, SparkNotes manages to avoid doing the work for the students. The summary sections are rather concise and both the analysis provided of various sections of the novel (each of the three parts of "Fahrenheit 451" is broken into at least two parts) as well as the sections establish key themes, motifs, and symbols, provide introductions to these key concepts rather than laying out entire analytical arguments.If you are a student you will find that this study guide points you in several profitable directions but still leaves doing the actual analysis and argumentation up to you.

You will find analyses of the four main characters (Guy Montag, Mildred Montage, Captain Beatty, and Professor Faber) as well as a list offering a brief description of all the important characters, and then two major analytical sections.The first looks at the themes (censorship and knowledge versus ignorance), motifs (paradoxes, animal and natural imagery, religion), and key symbols (blood, "the hearth and the salamander," "the sieve and the sand," the phoenix, and mirrors).The second, as mentioned above, provides a summary and analysis of the three parts of the novels.In the back of this study guide you will find five important quotations explained, key facts, study questions and essay topics, and review and resource materials.Since I prefer to set up the idea of a dystopian novel as well as the evolution of this idea in Bradbury's writings myself for my students I do not especially mind that these elements are touched upon only briefly in the opening section looking at the context of "Fahrenheit 451."SparkNotes provides a concise study guide for Bradbury's classical science fiction novel, which is exactly what it promises to provide. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1375)

Fahrenheit 451
America's Galactic Foreign Legion: Book 1: Feeling Lucky (Volume 1)

It is hard to lose when you re-read a clasic.

Classic, Disturbing Tale
This disturbing classic by Ray Bradbury (born 1920) grabs the reader with its chilling tone.Guy Montag is a fireman in a society where fire fighters don't extinguish flames but set fire to books which because books are considered to be a threat by the powers that be.After meeting a free-thinking neighbor and seeing his sick wife mistreated, Montag begins to question his values and the values of a society that burns books.In time he becomes a rebel, flees from the authorities, and meets a group of vagabonds that memorize the books and then burn them (to destroy the evidence).Finally war breaks out, and despite much destruction there is hope that a new society will be rebult from the ashes.

Bradbury hits a number of themes in this compelling novel, penned in 1951.Censorship is one, but so is a sense of increasing automation, the dumbing down of society, disdain for independent thinking, and probably McCarthyism.The dialog is snappy with many slang expressions that perhaps were more relevant in 1951 than today.The result, of course, is a somewhat eerie but gripping classic.Readers might find enjoy THE PEDESTRIAN and THE FLYING MACHINE, two Bradbury short stories that present similar themes.

Great book, especially the 50th Anniversary Edition
The story is simple, but powerful.As other reviewers have noted, some of the details that Bradbury imagined in 1950 (when he wrote it, not the publication date of 1953) have come true (large TVs on the walls, a move towards simplistic sensationalism, the deep distrust of education and educated people, etc.)I found the writing to be serviceable, sometimes brilliant.Occasionally the metaphors get too long winded and overly descriptive.

The 50th Anniversary Edition, published by Ballantine Books/Del Rey is wonderful.Not only do we get the full unedited text (ironically, this book about censorship has been censored frequently over the years), but we also get the afterword and coda (added in the late 70s, early 80s) and an illuminating 10 page interview with Bradbury himself.In the interview he describes his writing process, how he thinks the book holds up today, and whether or not he'd write a sequel.It's a great addition to the book.

The message is clear
The message in the book is similar to that in "1984" and in the writings of Ayn Rand. At times the message seemed to be so "in your face" and I'm certain that Mr. Bradbury would have been more subtle had he written it 10 or 15 years later.

There must be something in books
Books are dangerous. They're full of ideas that make people think about the world, feel passion, and perhaps act out. That's not good for society; it causes conflict, uprising, and interference with the status quo. People who read and think scare people who don't, so most citizens have happily given up the right to decide what to think about and now let the government fill their brains with constant loud mindless entertainment. This managed input has equalized society; nobody feels inferior to anyone else and there's no conflict anymore. Dull minds, constant entertainment, and conformity make society run smoothly.

Guy Montag works as a fireman. He burns books at night while his wife sits in her parlor and listens to inane media shows at high volume. But Clarice, the teenager next door, is different. Her family sits around and talks. They discuss things and they laugh with each other. Guy wonders what they talk about as he watches his wife talk to the strangers on TV and pop sleeping pills...

Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 presents a possible frightening future in which intellectual pursuits and nonconformity are deemed dangerous and subversive. It's been more than half a century since Fahrenheit 451 was published and we've seen censorship laws actually become looser over the years and the advent of the internet has brought on the current "information age." But that doesn't make Fahrenheit 451 irrelevant because it's about much more than literary censorship. It's about freedom of speech and individual rights. It's about thinking for ourselves and what might happen if we let the government tell us what we can see, hear, or own.

Fahrenheit 451 resonates with me on so many levels. First of all, it's just superbly written. I love Bradbury's intense style which translates especially well on Blackstone Audio's version read by Christopher Hurt (sample). Here he describes the show that Mrs Montag watches all day:

A great thunderstorm of sound gushed from the walls. Music bombarded him at such an immense volume that his bones were almost shaken from their tendons; he felt his jaw vibrate, his eyes wobble in his head. He was a victim of concussion. When it was all over he felt like a man who had been thrown from a cliff, whirled in a centrifuge and spat out over a waterfall that fell and fell into emptiness and emptiness and never -- quite -- touched -- bottom -- never -- never -- quite -- no not quite -- touched -- bottom ... and you fell so fast you didn't touch the sides either... never... quite... touched... anything.

The thunder faded. The music died.

"There," said Mildred. And it was indeed remarkable. Something had happened. Even though the people in the walls of the room had barely moved, and nothing had really been settled, you had the impression that someone had turned on a washing-machine or sucked you up in a gigantic vacuum. You drowned in music and pure cacophony. He came out of the room sweating and on the point of collapse. Behind him, Mildred sat in her chair and the voices went on again...

Second, I share Bradbury's ardent passion for knowledge and learning. The thought of lost information, burned books, mindless entertainment, meaningless small-talk, conformity, and intellectual malaise makes my stomach twist. I don't believe that we're in danger of the anti-intellectualism that Bradbury posits, but still his ideas get me riled up.

Third, I'll admit that I'm a rebel at heart. While I recognize that obeying laws and paying taxes are a necessary part of living in a well-functioning society, I feel mostly distrustful and suspicious when the government increases taxes, takes over more functions in society, tells us what to believe, and tries to revoke constitutional freedoms. In this context, Bradbury's possible future doesn't seem so impossible anymore.

I'm pleased that my school district assigns Fahrenheit 451 in its middle-school curriculum, though I find it a bit ironic that some publishers have edited the language to make it more "suitable" for teenagers. ... Read more

Product Description

In 1953, the brilliant but terrifying titan of cinema John Huston summons the young writer Ray Bradbury to Ireland. The apprehensive scribe's quest is to capture on paper the fiercest of all literary beasts -- Moby Dick -- in the form of a workable screenplay so the great director can begin filming.

Customer Reviews (9)

Not enough for a book
It happens that Ray Bradbury spent a few months in Ireland while he was writing the script for a Moby Dick movie and he decided to write a book about his experience in the land of St. Patrick. The problem is that nothing worth of a whole book happened there. Just an eternal rain, some anecdotes with locals and many critics to the Irish.

Not his best
Ray Bradbury was a science fiction icon, but there's a reason he didn't write "The Playboy of the Western World" or "Finnegan's Wake."The dialogue is all you get from this book.The rest of the book is a thin vehicle to get you from one conversation to the next.There are few descriptions and few insights.The dialogue itself is very humorous at parts, and in others it's obvious that this is Bradbury writing how the conversations should have gone, not how they really went.I've thoroughly enjoyed other works by Bradbury, but this wasn't one of them.

The best of both worlds, fact and fiction
Ray Bradbury wrote the screenplay for John Huston's Moby Dick.It is a hysterical account of his exploits in Ireland where he wrote the piece.It is also a work of fiction because he combined some of his previous short story writings about Ireland into the book.Bradubury masterly weaves both fact and fiction into a enjoyable tour-de-force.If you are an avid Bradbury fan, you will remember some of his earlier work and recognize the stories.If not, then I envy you because you will not be able to distinguish fact from fiction.Bradbury does both a wonderfull job of catching Irelands essence and terrible poverty of which he covers lightly.He also hints at the terrible genious of John Huston without going into the gory details.This book is a very fast read and is wonderfull.It is certainly deserving of the national book award it recieved.

Not the best Bradbury, but still worth while.
This didn't grip the same way Fahrenheit 451 or The Martian Chronicles or Something Wicked This Way Comes did. There are many entertaining and quite often fun stories and of course it is beautifully written. Bradbury is one of the best prose stylists and short story writers in American Lit, after all. It's not one of his classics but it's worth a consideration.

Great prose.
Green Shadows, White Whale is a tale about Ray Bradbury's travels in Ireland while helping John Huston write the screenplay for Moby Dick. The writing is absolutely wonderful. I have read many books in my life but Ihave rarely read one so beautifully written and well composed. There wereparagraphs and passages that I read over two and three times simply becausethey were so tasty. The story is broken up into chapters which compriselittle subplots of their own. This makes for easy reading because you canread a chapter or two at a time and still enjoy the entire book. Read thisbook. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1375)

Fahrenheit 451
America's Galactic Foreign Legion: Book 1: Feeling Lucky (Volume 1)

It is hard to lose when you re-read a clasic.

Classic, Disturbing Tale
This disturbing classic by Ray Bradbury (born 1920) grabs the reader with its chilling tone.Guy Montag is a fireman in a society where fire fighters don't extinguish flames but set fire to books which because books are considered to be a threat by the powers that be.After meeting a free-thinking neighbor and seeing his sick wife mistreated, Montag begins to question his values and the values of a society that burns books.In time he becomes a rebel, flees from the authorities, and meets a group of vagabonds that memorize the books and then burn them (to destroy the evidence).Finally war breaks out, and despite much destruction there is hope that a new society will be rebult from the ashes.

Bradbury hits a number of themes in this compelling novel, penned in 1951.Censorship is one, but so is a sense of increasing automation, the dumbing down of society, disdain for independent thinking, and probably McCarthyism.The dialog is snappy with many slang expressions that perhaps were more relevant in 1951 than today.The result, of course, is a somewhat eerie but gripping classic.Readers might find enjoy THE PEDESTRIAN and THE FLYING MACHINE, two Bradbury short stories that present similar themes.

Great book, especially the 50th Anniversary Edition
The story is simple, but powerful.As other reviewers have noted, some of the details that Bradbury imagined in 1950 (when he wrote it, not the publication date of 1953) have come true (large TVs on the walls, a move towards simplistic sensationalism, the deep distrust of education and educated people, etc.)I found the writing to be serviceable, sometimes brilliant.Occasionally the metaphors get too long winded and overly descriptive.

The 50th Anniversary Edition, published by Ballantine Books/Del Rey is wonderful.Not only do we get the full unedited text (ironically, this book about censorship has been censored frequently over the years), but we also get the afterword and coda (added in the late 70s, early 80s) and an illuminating 10 page interview with Bradbury himself.In the interview he describes his writing process, how he thinks the book holds up today, and whether or not he'd write a sequel.It's a great addition to the book.

The message is clear
The message in the book is similar to that in "1984" and in the writings of Ayn Rand. At times the message seemed to be so "in your face" and I'm certain that Mr. Bradbury would have been more subtle had he written it 10 or 15 years later.

There must be something in books
Books are dangerous. They're full of ideas that make people think about the world, feel passion, and perhaps act out. That's not good for society; it causes conflict, uprising, and interference with the status quo. People who read and think scare people who don't, so most citizens have happily given up the right to decide what to think about and now let the government fill their brains with constant loud mindless entertainment. This managed input has equalized society; nobody feels inferior to anyone else and there's no conflict anymore. Dull minds, constant entertainment, and conformity make society run smoothly.

Guy Montag works as a fireman. He burns books at night while his wife sits in her parlor and listens to inane media shows at high volume. But Clarice, the teenager next door, is different. Her family sits around and talks. They discuss things and they laugh with each other. Guy wonders what they talk about as he watches his wife talk to the strangers on TV and pop sleeping pills...

Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 presents a possible frightening future in which intellectual pursuits and nonconformity are deemed dangerous and subversive. It's been more than half a century since Fahrenheit 451 was published and we've seen censorship laws actually become looser over the years and the advent of the internet has brought on the current "information age." But that doesn't make Fahrenheit 451 irrelevant because it's about much more than literary censorship. It's about freedom of speech and individual rights. It's about thinking for ourselves and what might happen if we let the government tell us what we can see, hear, or own.

Fahrenheit 451 resonates with me on so many levels. First of all, it's just superbly written. I love Bradbury's intense style which translates especially well on Blackstone Audio's version read by Christopher Hurt (sample). Here he describes the show that Mrs Montag watches all day:

A great thunderstorm of sound gushed from the walls. Music bombarded him at such an immense volume that his bones were almost shaken from their tendons; he felt his jaw vibrate, his eyes wobble in his head. He was a victim of concussion. When it was all over he felt like a man who had been thrown from a cliff, whirled in a centrifuge and spat out over a waterfall that fell and fell into emptiness and emptiness and never -- quite -- touched -- bottom -- never -- never -- quite -- no not quite -- touched -- bottom ... and you fell so fast you didn't touch the sides either... never... quite... touched... anything.

The thunder faded. The music died.

"There," said Mildred. And it was indeed remarkable. Something had happened. Even though the people in the walls of the room had barely moved, and nothing had really been settled, you had the impression that someone had turned on a washing-machine or sucked you up in a gigantic vacuum. You drowned in music and pure cacophony. He came out of the room sweating and on the point of collapse. Behind him, Mildred sat in her chair and the voices went on again...

Second, I share Bradbury's ardent passion for knowledge and learning. The thought of lost information, burned books, mindless entertainment, meaningless small-talk, conformity, and intellectual malaise makes my stomach twist. I don't believe that we're in danger of the anti-intellectualism that Bradbury posits, but still his ideas get me riled up.

Third, I'll admit that I'm a rebel at heart. While I recognize that obeying laws and paying taxes are a necessary part of living in a well-functioning society, I feel mostly distrustful and suspicious when the government increases taxes, takes over more functions in society, tells us what to believe, and tries to revoke constitutional freedoms. In this context, Bradbury's possible future doesn't seem so impossible anymore.

I'm pleased that my school district assigns Fahrenheit 451 in its middle-school curriculum, though I find it a bit ironic that some publishers have edited the language to make it more "suitable" for teenagers. ... Read more

Product Description
A collection of tales in honor of the science fiction master features the work of Isaac Asimov, Ed Gorman, Richard Matheson, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, Orson Scott Card, and others, as well as Bradbury himself. Reprint. AB. K. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Mars is Hollywood
One Ray Bradbury story and a reminiscence, a few parodies, and a large number of "in the same vein as."Best: "Obsession," in which Uncle Einar goes on what amounts to Geraldo; "the Muse," which is a humorous encounter between the author and Ray Bradbury's muse Polyhymnia; "Feed the Baby of Love" by Orson Scott Card, in which an ex-recording star encounters Douglas Spaulding, his grand-father Douglas Spaulding, and his son Douglas Spaulding--they play a game "more satanic than Dungeons and Dragons" called "Feed the Baby of Love Many Beans or Perish in the Flames of Hell"--and "The Dandelion Chronicles" by William F. Nolan, a parody pure and simple: "On board [the space ship] were Irish priests and simple Mexican peons and robust lightning-rod salesmen and rag-tag Dublin beggars and robots who cunningly resembled Irish priests and simple Mexican peons and robust lightning-rod salesmen and rag-tag Dublin beggars."Great fun!

Not Free SF Reader
An anthology of stories paying homage to works of the author in question via prequel, pastiches, extension or spoof, or just occasionally referential, as in Benford's CEntigrade 233, which may just be the best story here.

A motley collection, and as such it is only average.Big-time Bradbury fans will enjoy it more, I think, perhaps.

Bradbury Chronicles : The Troll - Ray Bradbury
Bradbury Chronicles : The Awakening - Cameron Nolan
Bradbury Chronicles : The Wind from Midnight - Ed Gorman
Bradbury Chronicles : May 2000: The Tombstones - James Kisner
Bradbury Chronicles : One Life, in an Hourglass - Charles L. Grant
Bradbury Chronicles : Two O'Clock Session - Richard Matheson
Bradbury Chronicles : A Lake of Summer - Chad Oliver
Bradbury Chronicles : The Obsession - William RellingJr.
Bradbury Chronicles : Something in the Earth - Charles Beaumont
Bradbury Chronicles : The Muse - Norman Corwin
Bradbury Chronicles : The Late Arrivals - Roberta Lannes
Bradbury Chronicles : Hiding - Richard Christian Matheson
Bradbury Chronicles : Salome [Saint-Germain] - Chelsea Quinn Yarbro
Bradbury Chronicles : The Inheritance - Bruce Francis
Bradbury Chronicles : The Man With the Power Tie - Christopher Beaumont
Bradbury Chronicles : Centigrade 233 - Gregory Benford
Bradbury Chronicles : Filling Out Fannie - John Maclay
Bradbury Chronicles : Land of the Second Chance - J. N. Williamson
Bradbury Chronicles : The November Game - F. Paul Wilson
Bradbury Chronicles : The Other Mars - Robert Sheckley
Bradbury Chronicles : Feed the Baby of Love - Orson Scott Card
Bradbury Chronicles : The Dandelion Chronicles - William F. Nolan


Under bridge shrink snack.

3.5 out of 5


Auntie babe shots.

3 out of 5


Mini gun moll.

3 out of 5


Not dead, man.

3.5 out of 5


Love, for now.

3 out of 5


Shrink fatigue.

3.5 out of 5


G-8 and His Battles Aces, like a bolt of lightning.

3.5 out of 5


Tv show vampire hunter host removal.

3.5 out of 5


What do do with the old place.

2.5 out of 5


Inspiration resistance.

3 out of 5


Kid replacement.

3 out of 5


Spousal unit is out of sight.

3.5 out of 5


Moggie not fond of weird vamp.

4 out of 5


Lake dead love.

3 out of 5


Shrink succession.

2.5 out of 5


Burning for revenge is pulp.

4 out of 5


Large ending.

3 out of 5


Cryonic doc.

3 out of 5


Child murderer prison horror.

4 out of 5


Marsnaut surprise.

3.5 out of 5


Pig game.

3 out of 5


Spaceship act.

3 out of 5

An excellent tribute anthology
As a long-time fan of Ray Bradbury's wonderful work, I was pleased to find this excellent anthologycelebrating the fiftieth anniversary of his first professional publication.It is an outstanding collection, featuring the work of such noted authors as Ed Gorman, Orson Scott Card, Richard Matheson and Charles Beaumont.I particularly enjoyed Charles Grant's "One Life, In an Hourglass", a sequel to Something Wicked This Way Comes, and F. Paul Wilson's "The November Game", the logical sequel to "The October Game".These are two of the darkest short stories I have read in quite awhile.

Allthese stories evoke the style and spirit of Bradbury while retaining the sensibilities of the authors who penned (processed?) them.For those familiar with Bradbury, "The Dandelion Chronicles" by William F. Nolan will make you laugh.Book lovers will be enraged by Gregory Benford's "Centigrade 233".Orson Scott Card's entry, "Feed the Baby of Love" will touch youmore because of what doesn't happen than because of what does.

This book reminded me of the many splendid hours of reading enjoyment I owe to Ray Bradbury.From "The Small Assassin" to Something Wicked This Way Comes, this man has created a formidable body of work.Read The Bradbury Chronicles, then read or reread the work that inspired it.It'll be time well spent. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

"Skin illustrations, the sign of an artist"
"Eighteen illustrations, eighteen tales." "The illustrations came to life..."

A man is encountered who has skin Illustrations all over his body. Each illustration represents a tale from the future. The illustrations come to life and tell a tale of doom or impending doom. In this way ray Bradbury can tell related but different tales in this book. Its Bradbury's writing style and dialogue that holds you as much as the storyline.

At first they are intriguing and fresh. Later they don't as much repeat but are similar in form and function.

One of the best "The Veldt" is first. Of course everyone will have a different favorite.

I suggest that you make your cats leave the room if you read out loud.

The Veldt (Classics Stories of Ray Bradbury) ... Read more

Product Description
A book of poems with photographs of cats, signed by Ray Bradbury ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

The American Master at Work!
Bradbury is one of the greatest writers of our generation, and almost everyting he writes shows this. Death Has Lost its Charm for Me is no exception, the only difference being that instead of a collection ofstories, it is one extravagent tale, filled with joy and sorrow. Buy thisbook now!Peace. ... Read more

Product Description
Over a period of four years, from l992-1996, the world's best comic book artists adapted sf Grand Master Ray Bradbury's best stories in a series of different graphic novel formats. Now, for the first time, the best of these stories by the illustrators comics fans crave are collected in a single affordable volume. Each story is accompanied by an introduction by Bradbury. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

Must have for Bradbuy fanatics
As a lover of both Ray Bradbury and graphic novels I was more than ecstatic to find this. It gives a nice breath of stories and a variety of different illustrators so I think there is at least something in there that everyone would like (and equally something that you probably won't care for). Short stories can be hard to pull off in comic form, but these seem to be done well and while they may not carry the omph of the original they do hold their own and the illustrations do add their own touch which is refreshing for those who are familiar with the stories.

A Mixed Bag of Bradbury
I'm not a particularly huge Bradbury fan, although I am familiar with his most famous/popular work, and am aware of his vast influence on modern science-fiction. I am a fan of graphic storytelling though, and that led me to pick up this collection of graphic adaptations of twelve of his short stories (I have no idea why the publisher has chosen to give the book the subtitle, "The Graphic Novel", presumably to cash in on the current popularity of the so-called graphic novel). To add to the confusion, the selections here all previously appeared in the "Ray Bradbury Chronicles" comic-book series published by Topps. And just to make things totally muddy, some of those reprinted much older adaptations published as comics by EC! So, consider this a sort of best-of collection from the Topps series. Phew!

The book opens with a very nice one-page introduction from Bradbury, about falling in love with comics, abandoning them in the face of peer pressure, and then coming back to them even more committed. He also provides a paragraph intro to each story, telling how it came about, which is a nice bonus (although I would have liked to know what year each was written in). Not having read any of the original stories, I can't comment on how faithful these adaptations are -- although other reviewers say they are quite close. Similarly, those familiar with the story will probably get a richer experience from these visual versions.

"A Sound of Thunder" lays out the classic problem of time-travel -- the smallest impact you have on the past might have a dramatic consequence for the future. This is shown via a plotline involving prehistoric safaris to shoot dinosaurs (surely the developers of time travel could come up with a better business model?) and what happens when one such hunt goes awry. The art here is supplied by Richard Corben, whose strengths lie more in showing the natural world than people. The story was made into a pretty bad film a few years ago with the same title.

"The City" is a very dark and cool story about a city that is alive and waiting for humans to come back to it. The artwork is by Mike Mignola, who is one of my favorites. "Dark They Were, And Golden-Eyed" is another dark story, this one about Mars colonists who are stranded following a war on Earth. The artwork by Kent Williams and John Van Fleet is a little too arty and impressionistic for my taste. Van Fleet appears again in "Picasso Summer," about an American's summer vacation in Southern France and his obsession with Picasso. It' a cool piece, but I didn't care for the art that much.

"The Golden Apples of the Sun" is a kind of weird one about a spaceship on a journey to harvest a portion of the sun in order to save humanity (which strikes me as quite similar to the recent film "Sunshine"). The art by P. Craig Russell is nothing particularly interesting, sort of well-done generic comic-book stuff. Daniel Torres's art for "Night Meeting" is much cooler, as the material allows him to mix the machines and fashions of the 1950s with crazy organic Martian dwellings and forms. The premise is a kind of neat idea -- a human and Martian meet on Mars, but they're each in a different point in time -- but there's not much story to it. Mars features again in "The Visitor," in which sick men are sent to Mars to die with minimal comforts. When a Christ-like figure arrives and demonstrates his ability to conjure up immersive illusions to ease their final days, human nature at its worst takes hold. P. Craig Russell and Michael Lark combine to bring this to life with quite vivid work.

"A Piece of Wood" is a cool story about a soldier who has worked out how to rust all the weapons of war, unfortunately it's pretty static and doesn't really lend itself to a visual interpretation, leaving Mark Chiarello with not a lot to work with. On the flip side, "Come into My Cellar" is a classic 1950s cautionary tale, providing tons of iconic retro material for Dave Gibbons to work with. Basically, it involves alien mushrooms, and that's all you need to know! Less compelling plotwise, but totally different artwise, "It Burns Me Up" is a semi-crime story set ablaze by Harvey Korman and Matt Wagner's stunning and unique work. Their style is hard to describe and really works better as individual frames than it does at creating a flowing story. The last two tales, "The April Witch" (art by J. Muth) and "The Foghorn" (art by Wayne Barlowe) failed to do much for me from either a storytelling or artistic perspective.

Overall an interesting project, with maybe slightly more misses than hits. Definitely not the way to be introduced to Bradbury, but certainly something existing fans will want to check out.

Must Have for Bradbury/Comic Fans
The Best of Ray Bradbury contains illustrated adaptations of some of Ray Bradbury's most famous stories.The text and the art unquestionably captures the essence of these classic science fiction tales from the 1960's.The language and clothing reflect the time period, and are not modernized.Reading it, I felt as if I was holding a yellowed paperback published in the 1970's.Definitely authentic.

The art for each story is unique.No artist's style is the same.Best of all, Bradbury (who is still alive and writing) has written a moving introduction to the book.The introduction really touched my heart.It has to do with following your dreams, and how he got his start in writing sci-fi.And as a delightful bonus, Bradbury has written brief introductions to each and every story in the book!

Good stories, good art
Bradbury, more than most well known SF writers, put a human face on his tales of maybe-if and far-away.

Here, some of comics' best artists put faces on Bradbury's tales. On the whole, the matching of artist to story was brilliant. Jon J. Muth's watercolors illustrated an eerie, atmospheric experience within another mind. Harvey Kurtzman's geometric, brash figures walk through a noir murder mystery, narrated by the deceased. Richard Corben's piece opens the book, showing not a hero or has-been but a never-was, who screws up 65 million times over. P. Craig Russell's pictures give life to two stories, both that want the kind of majesty he puts into visual storytelling. All that, and lots more.

These are good comics - masterful artists rendering a master's storytelling. Good for anyone who like narrative comics or who likes Bradbury. I have the good fortune of being both.

//wiredweird

Good but missing some things.
Its great to see classic Bradbury stories adapted into graphic peaces. Only one compliant; the book description mentions HOMECOMING illustrated by Steve Leialoha, this is not in the book. Homecoming is a favorite of mine, and I imagined it would be great illustrated. But nonetheless I enjoyed the book for the great stories, and beautiful art. ... Read more

Product Description
Hugh Starke, space-rat and convict, was being pursued by spacecraft into the unknown parts of Venus. He had just pulled off the largest lone wolf heist in the history of that planet. But now it looked like he was going to pay the ultimate price for his misdeeds. But fate had a strange twist on Starke’s life when he woke up in a different body. A body that was strong and powerful. In a body of a Venusian barbarian named Conan. But was Starke anything more than a puppet in this new body? For he soon found out the strings were being pulled by the beautiful, but terrible, Rann. For Rann was like the siren, Lorelei, and it was Hugh-Starke-called-Conan that would have to fight her or be lured to his doom!

"Lorelei of the Red Mist" is one of those stories you hear about and you just have to read it. The first half was written by Leigh Brackett in 1944 who then had to drop it because she went to Hollywood to write the Bogart picture The Big Sleep (1946) with William Faulkner. This left Lorelei unfinished. Ray Bradbury, yes, that Ray Bradbury, finished the tale without any outline from Leigh. Bradbury's part starts with : "He saw the flock, herded by more of the golden hounds." --G.W. Thomas, Dark Worlds site ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

A classic Bradbury edition
After the variable and sometimes slightly unhinged previous two collections, where it was considered that he had lost his magic, he produced this collection which has always been one of my favourites.The purpose of my review here is to put in a word about the Earthlight cover design, which is so handsome and atmospheric and suits Bradbury's vision ideally.This edition is a treasure and I hope that the cover design will be kept for future editions.

Perfect stories for bedtime scares
I thoroughly enjoyed 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 the setting of a typical lone road hitchhiker horror story, and "The Perfect Murder" which shows that time is the ultimate judge and jury.

Treasures of imagination and wonder
I must preface this review by stating that I have not read this edition but the original paperback Bantam publication from 1976. Assuming that the contents are the same, I will proceed thusly. . .

This collection of 22 short pieces might prove something of a puzzle for anybody picking it up based on Bradbury's reputation as a science fiction writer. To be sure, there are stories here that fit neatly into that genre due to subject matter (robots, time travel) or setting (Mars) but Bradbury is really not a science fiction writer so much as a storyteller. This is a distinction that seems to be much more clear today than it was back in 1976 when Bradbury seemed to be stuck with the Sci-Fi type despite stories such as those found in "Long After Midnight", which are closer to literary than genre fiction even when employing science fiction devices.

Perhaps a good example of the latter would be "The Messiah". This story simply yet profoundly examines the nature of religious faith via the characters of a missionary priest on Mars and a telepathic, shape changing Martian.

Other pieces defy any easy classification and stand alone as simple revelations of the human condition and the mysteries of life. "Getting Through Sunday Somehow" is such a one. Bradbury's gift for poetic nostalgia is used to brilliant effect here as an American writer in Dublin, facing a gray wall of ennui, is transformed and made aware of his blessings through a bar room philosopher and a street side harp player.

Bradbury, with his seemingly boundless imagination and gift for transcribing the visions of that imagination, is a treasure and these stories are literary jewels shining dark and light.

Great one of Bradbury's best!!
Recovering from one or two monotonous bores, "Long After Midnight" is an excellent collection of the best of Bradbury.It offers a wide variety of appeals to all audiences and all of the stories are gripping to the point that you feel like it is taking over your life and making it a part of the story.Some of the storieshave such parnormality that they could easily be the storyline for an X-Files episode.Yet some are so ordinary and monotonous that it almost seems that it was an ordinary work of literature.But none of the stories in "Long After Midnight" are ordinary.All of them are written with such painstaking detail which make them spectacular.Being as it is "Long After Midnight" is a must read for almost all readers today ... Read more

Product Description
Webster's bibliographic and event-based timelines are comprehensive in scope, covering virtually all topics, geographic locations and people. They do so from a linguistic point of view, and in the case of this book, the focus is on "Ray Bradbury," including when used in literature (e.g. all authors that might have Ray Bradbury in their name). As such, this book represents the largest compilation of timeline events associated with Ray Bradbury when it is used in proper noun form. Webster's timelines cover bibliographic citations, patented inventions, as well as non-conventional and alternative meanings which capture ambiguities in usage. These furthermore cover all parts of speech (possessive, institutional usage, geographic usage) and contexts, including pop culture, the arts, social sciences (linguistics, history, geography, economics, sociology, political science), business, computer science, literature, law, medicine, psychology, mathematics, chemistry, physics, biology and other physical sciences. This "data dump" results in a comprehensive set of entries for a bibliographic and/or event-based timeline on the proper name Ray Bradbury, since editorial decisions to include or exclude events is purely a linguistic process. The resulting entries are used under license or with permission, used under "fair use" conditions, used in agreement with the original authors, or are in the public domain. ... Read more

Product Description

On a dismal evening in the previous century, an unnamed writer in Venice, California, answers a furious pounding at his beachfront bungalow door and again admits Constance Rattigan into his life. An aging, once-glamorous Hollywood star, Constance is running in fear from something she dares not acknowledge -- and vanishes as suddenly as she appeared, leaving the narrator two macabre books: twin listings of the Tinseltown dead and soon to be dead, with Constance's name included among them. And so begins an odyssey as dark as it is wondrous, as the writer sets off in a broken-down jalopy with his irascible sidekick Crumley to sift through the ashes of a bygone Hollywood -- a graveyard of ghosts and secrets where each twisted road leads to grim shrines and shattered dreams ... and, all too often, to death.

Customer Reviews (19)

Cliche-ridden, ephemeral farce with a few strikingly memorable moments
The far-and-away most memorable scene in "Let's All Kill Constance" is when the Bradbury-like narrator, searching for clues in a film star's disappearance, encounters a hermit surrounded by old, decomposing newspapers in a hovel on top of a Los Angeles hill. All of recent history is here, a "tunnel of bad news," and its guard turns out to be one of the actress's discarded husbands. Indeed, it's moments like this--and there are several, fortunately--that almost keep Bradbury's roman-a-clef from being as dated and forgettable as an old pile of newsprint.

Constance is on the run because two old books--a previously discarded address book and 60-year-old telephone directory--have shown up on her doorstep, and the few remaining living persons listed within seem to be marked for death. From there, the bodies pile up in a predestined order ("Final Destination" style), and the obvious suspect might be Constance herself--except that some of the deaths are possibly coincidental rather than homicidal.

Bradbury probably had fun writing this novel; he and his characters tour the landmarks, the beaches, and even the underground storm drains of Los Angeles in 1960--when the author was at the height of his own real-life Hollywood career, writing film treatments and teleplays. The reader, alas, doesn't have quite as much fun. The oh-too-cute opening ("It was a dark and stormy night") of Bradbury's third mystery novel serves as a warning: cliches ahead. The prose is surprisingly sloppy for a writer of Bradbury's caliber.

Now, granted, this is Hollywood of a long-gone era and I'm sure many residents might have conversed in the vapid patois of the local luminarati. Yet aside from the doppelganger-narrator (an amateur detective who has written novels about book burning and Martians--yuk, yuk--Philip Roth, he's not), the supporting cast members, I'm afraid, are walking, talking stereotypes (the priest, the fortune teller, the blind man, the German, etc., etc.) who all manage to talk very much alike. And they do talk and talk and talk: most of the story is related in a clipped, elliptical dialogue that is meant, clearly, to evoke certain crime classics (especially the comic banter of "The Thin Man") but instead underscores that we're reading a light farce that often isn't funny and a noir novel that's rather short on atmosphere. It's all pleasant enough, but this ultimately silly and lackluster romp won't be one of the books Bradbury is remembered for.

Autobiographical in an eerie way
If you've ever had the honor of hearing Mr. Bradbury speak in person, this book is like an extension of what he speaks about on stage.This story has a strange flavor to it, like he's speaking about himself while actually participating in his own story as a character, much like his short "The Pedestrian".I'd almost go so far as to say that this one is best read by the fans who know a lot about Ray Bradbury the person rather than by those who've only read his work.I very much enjoyed this glimpse into the mind of a genius of our time.

Let's All Kill Constance
I have been reading Ray Bradbury for close to 40 years now. He never ceases to amaze me. Wonderful book, well done, again !!

Bradbury Style
I sometimes think that Ray Bradbury is not, in fact, a multi-genre writer. That through his entire career, he has only written in one genre a genre to be named "Bradbury." I feel that way because no matter which genre he chooses to write in (are there any that he hasn't?) his inimitable style is always dominant.

In "Let's All Kill Constance," this style is applied to a murder mystery set in 1960 in Hollywood. An older actress named Constance receives an old phone book, many names are crossed out, even some of people who are still alive. Then she disappears and bodies turn up. The unnamed narrator (who is possibly Bradbury himself) must find out what's going on.

That's the simple part. The special Ray Bradbury touch is that while the overall plot structure is purely genre murder mystery, all the dialog and all the scene setting is pure Bradbury. The people all talk like they're slightly (or more than slightly) unhinged, and the scene descriptions are pure poetry (and as such, don't always make the most sense).

Now, here's a bit of heresy. I prefer Bradbury's work in the short form. I loved "Illustrated Man" and "The Martian Chronicles," but even at a brief 210 pages, I found it a bit wearing to read the dialog of all these crazy people. But that's just me. If you've ever been curious to see what Bradbury might do to a standard mystery to make it completely his own, you should read this.

Old Hollywood Mystery Intrigues and Delights
Ray Bradbury, celebrated author of modern classics such as "Fahrenheit 451" and "The Martian Chronicles," brings us "Let's All Kill Constance," a mystery running in 1960 set amidst the backdrop of a bygone Hollywood when Eric Von Stroheim held sway.

An unnamed writer, the narrator of the novel, begins the suspense with the cliché, "It was a dark and stormy night." Constance Rattigan, an aging former starlet, hastily gives the unnamed writer two books - a 1900 Los Angeles phone book and her old address book - both containing red-circled entries with crosses that suggest who will die next; Rattigan is one of the names circled.

Some of the names circled begin to die suddenly under suspect circumstances while Rattigan concurrently becomes difficult to find.Is she the next victim or the murderer?The unnamed writer becomes obsessed with procuring answers.Entertaining sidekicks like Crumley, a lovable grouch, and Henry, a blind man that invariably sees more than everyone, accompanies the unnamed writer's search within fast-paced engaging dialog.

Brief chapters - many five pages or less - and simple word usage are effective throughout the novel.The climax is unclear as many twists abound, a given in a Bradbury production - remember the fireman Guy Montag from "Fahrenheit 451" who starts fires? Bradbury dazzles and boggles the mind till the final pages.

Bohdan Kot

... Read more

Product Description
From the back cover: When the dank mists rise up from the graveyard, and shutters bang in the windows of old abandoned houses, and the lights burn late in the back rooms of funeral parlors, the hour has struck for THE AUTUMN PEOPLE.From his sorcerer's bag of tricks, Ray Bradbury, the king of fantasy, has picked eight all-time favorites - his most hauting tales of creeping terror, each one lovingly illustrated in the (heh-heh) good old comics tradition.Open the book now and turn the pages slowly...feel the hair rising on the back of your neck...your fingers curl into claws...the icy flow of formaldehyde seeping into your veins...now, NOW you are ready to join the Autumn People...First Ballantine Books edition U2141. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Classic tales in Classic Comic Form
Somewhere out there, a reader is looking at this listing and saying, "What is this? I've never heard of a book by Bradbury called 'The Autumn People!'"
Gotcha! This is a mass-market-sized paperback, but the eight stories contained within are in COMIC BOOK format (black & white, yet!). The adaptations and drawing were performed by no less than Albert B. Feldstein, of MAD Magazine fame.

Stories included:

There Was an Old Woman
The Screaming Woman
Touch and Go
The Small Assassin
The Handler
The Lake
The Coffin
Let's Play Poison ... Read more