Ray Bradbury’s internationally acclaimed novel Fahrenheit 451 is a masterwork of twentieth-century literature set in a bleak, dystopian future. Ray Bradbury’s internationally acclaimed novel Fahrenheit 451 is a masterwork of twentieth-century literature set in a bleak, dystopian future. Guy Montag is a fireman. In his world, where television rules and literature is on the brink of extinction, … literature is on the brink of extinction, firemen start fires rather than put them out. His job is to destroy the most illegal of commodities, the printed book, along with the houses in which they are hidden.
Montag never questions the destruction and ruin his actions produce, returning each day to his bland life and wife, Mildred, who spends all day with her television “family.” But then he meets an eccentric young neighbor, Clarisse, who introduces him to a past where people didn’t live in fear and to a present where one sees the world through the ideas in books instead of the mindless chatter of television.
When Mildred attempts suicide and Clarisse suddenly disappears, Montag begins to question everything he has ever known. He starts hiding books in his home, and when his pilfering is discovered, the fireman has to run for his life.more
Read this when I was still in school. Really good.
Fahrenheit 451 is commonly known to deal with censorship. After reading this novel written back in the 1950s, the advent of the television era, it seems that TV is as much of a target. Citizens of Bradbury’s world can purchase screens to take up an entire wall of their home. They can even play small roles I their favorite TV shows. One character’s speech centers on the dumbing effect that TV has on society to the point that o one cares that books have been taken awsy. At another moment, a character indicates that the same things that are contained in books can be found on TV. The problem is that individuals don’t choose intelligent content.
I was surprised to come across so much dealing with TV. I was perplexed by the war going on in the background throughout much of the book. The war becomes central to the book’s conclusion although it’s not clear what the war is over. I was a little confused.
Bradbury is a beautiful writer. His prose is eloquent and was the highlight of the story for me.
A classic.
A true classic that I loved teaching to high school students who really seemed to enjoy reading it. It seems rather timely these days, too.
I actually don’t recommend this book. But the book itself isn’t the reason why. It’s the countless people that have told me how amazing this book is and what an impressive social statement it makes.
The truth though? This is a really good book. It’s imaginative and the writing is good. And contrary to my first statement here, you SHOULD read it!
But read it because you’re looking for an interestingly crafted world. Not because someone told you it was scary to witness a world where books are banned. This book doesn’t do that. It’s in there but I don’t think the author made the statement people are saying he made. I think readers of the book over the years have ballooned that claim into something more than it is and have, unfortunately, caused undue expectations much like one experiences when seeing a movie their friend claimed to be “…the best move they’ve ever seen!”. The movie just isn’t that.
Read it because you want to be taken somewhere special, somewhere interesting. Not because someone tells you it’s the best book ever and “…you just have to read it!”.
And read it because you want to meet sweet, and daring, and courageous characters, some of which choose to think for themselves and break out of current cultural monotony looking for an unfettered rest of their life.
Don’t read this book because you’re looking for the best book ever written because even if it is, you will be disappointed.
Also, it’s entirely possible my feeble mind completely missed it and I’m left talking out of my ass here. I mean hey, they don’t make bad books into movies so…
Happy reading.
T
What the liberals plan upon.
Ray Bradbury wrote in multiple genres, Sci Fi, Fantasy, Dystopian. This one’s dystopian. I first read this book in junior high school. Very thought-provoking. My son read it in middle school and goes back and rereads it every couple of years, getting something new out of it each time. My wife is a middle-school language arts teacher and it’s always in her curriculum or on her recommended list for her students.
My absolute favorite since I was a teen. An original dystopian future with elements that have since come true, and elements of believable future outcomes
A true classic.
Amazing!!
I hated this book so much! I could not finish it even though I have a rule that I have to finish books I pay full price for. This was so awful it made me break that rule. There was not ONE likable character in this book.
Very well written story and great characters.Have always loved this book.
How do we live without books?
Reading the beginning of the book I was already hooked on everything about it. There is so much imagery that I could imagine being in the book and experiencing all what the characters were doing.
As far as I’m concerned this is the best Ray Bradbury book. Imagine, a fireman doesn’t put out fires but instead is in charge of burning books. What happens when one of them finds he like to read them.
It’s classic Science Fiction by one of the best Scifi authors that ever lived. Today, it seems very possible with laws being “tested” in larger states against certain books. Ray Bradbury could have been a prophet with this book.
This book really delves deep into the murky areas of morality as it guides you through an amazing, page-turning story. This book is incredible because not only does it get you thinking, it has a great plot that will DEFINITELY keep you interested.
A classic. The author waxes lyrical.
A wonderful classic! Thought provoking
Could this be coming in our time?