Bradbury

[RJfromAHD]

Anyone else captivated by this guy's stuff?  I read Something Wicked This Way Comes last year and was blown away.  He's my favorite author in that he balances an amazing story with tangible descriptions.  I just reread it a few days ago along with The Martian Chronicles and I can't even guess where this guy gets it all from.

Bradbury fans?

[thartley]

I dont think I have read him specifically, but thinking on it, there are probably many other writers who borrow from his work, in concept.  I found this interesting and thought I would pass it along.   

http://www.raybradbury.com/inhiswords02.html

[Jennie]

RJfromAHD,

i like bradbury! have you read fahrenheit 451 yet? read parts of the martian chronicles when i studied english at university, it seemed really good. never got around to read more than farenheit though. so which book do you recommend i take on next?

[RJfromAHD]

thartley:  That was nice to read.  Thanks for sharing that. 

Jennie: I started it long ago and never finished it, actually.  Back then, I didn't care a feather for reading, so I just dismissed it. 

I definitely encourage picking up the Martian Chronicles, but Something Wicked This Way Comes is one of my favorite books ever, so I'd say check it out.  It's an actual novel as opposed to several short stories, so it makes it that much more cohesive and exciting.  Plus it's scary in a lot of parts.  Very rich themes too.

[thartley]

Man, I get so happy whenever I see new posts in the book section, so thank YOU RJ for reminding us about such a great writer.  Just reading that link I posted above was enough to make me go search his work out.  What an interesting story about how and why he became a writer to begin with.  Definitely some very unique circumstances.  I'm sorry his uncle died, but look what came of it!  And Mr. Electrico, was it?  I wonder if there is one of those here in Thailand....     What a great thing to tell a young boy who asks how to live forever, giving him a history, as he says, of having lived in some way before, in his friend. 

I have read quite a few books since I've been here, some I brought with me and some I borrowed from a cafe down the street where I frequently eat.  I will look to see if there is any Bradbury there, and if not, I have at least one other option for books in the English language.

 

[RJfromAHD]

Absolutely! It's so hard for people to even engage reading these days without it being grossly action-packed or just a cult favorite (Don't get me wrong, those are great in their own regards), but when a guy like Bradbury comes out and takes a story and balances it with his own style, it's something to admire.

I recently turned one of my good friends onto them, and after visiting yesterday, I noticed she has a basket of Ray Bradbury books. 

[thartley]

Hornbill's was closed today being Sunday, and I checked the shelves at OJ's and no Bradbury there.   

[lambie83]

Hum...I read Farenheit 451 and found it shorter than I expected.  Also, his descriptions are so metaphorical that it was hard sometimes to understand what was going on.  Exemple, the scene at the beginning in the dark with the pills and a siren/bomb and white something or others....?  Very confusing!

But I still liked the book very much and got more into it later on.

[ZeroG]

I just picked up a copy of The Ray Bradbury Theater 2 DVD set in a bargain bin. It has 26 short episodes.

I have only watched the first two and I am not very impressed. The acting is not very good at all. And the writing must be directly from Bradbury as the dialog sounds like his words. The stories are cool, kind of Twilte Zone-ish. They do have some well know actors in it, Drew Barrymore, Jeff Goldblum, William Shatner and Peter 0'Toole. It might get me motivated to read some of his books, but I doubt I will have the urge to produce any short stories for TV.