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Amazon.com Review: In Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury's classic, frightening vision of the future, firemen don't put out fires--they start them in order to burn books. Bradbury's vividly painted society holds up the appearance of happiness as the highest goal--a place where trivial information is good, and knowledge and ideas are bad. Fire Captain Beatty explains it this way, "Give the people contests they win by remembering the words to more popular songs.... Don't give them slippery stuff like philosophy or sociology to tie things up with. That way lies melancholy."
Guy Montag is a book-burning fireman undergoing a crisis of faith. His wife spends all day with her television "family," imploring Montag to work harder so that they can afford a fourth TV wall. Their dull, empty life sharply contrasts with that of his next-door neighbor Clarisse, a young girl thrilled by the ideas in books, and more interested in what she can see in the world around her than in the mindless chatter of the tube. When Clarisse disappears mysteriously, Montag is moved to make some changes, and starts hiding books in his home. Eventually, his wife turns him in, and he must answer the call to burn his secret cache of books. After fleeing to avoid arrest, Montag winds up joining an outlaw band of scholars who keep the contents of books in their heads, waiting for the time society will once again need the wisdom of literature.
Bradbury--the author of more than 500 short stories, novels, plays, and poems, including The Martian Chronicles and The Illustrated Man--is the winner of many awards, including the Grand Master Award from the Science Fiction Writers of America. Readers ages 13 to 93 will be swept up in the harrowing suspense of Fahrenheit 451, and no doubt will join the hordes of Bradbury fans worldwide. --Neil Roseman
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - An easy read with much beneath the surface...
While a good read with strong themes, I struggle to grasp why this book is considered such a "classic" by so many. I'll admit - I am no one to judge what a "classic" is, but it would be nice if someone ... Read More
Rating: - Burn it!
I'm no advocate of book burning, but burn this book! It was terribly disappointing--lots of hype over a cheesy science-fiction novel. There are two major problems with it. One is poor language usage--lousy ... Read More
Rating: - The power of writing and learning to love to read
When I first encountered this book at the age of 13, I was more accustomed to 'choose your own adventure' books or pulp science fiction. I'd never heard of Bradbury, but realized as I fought through the first ... Read More
Rating: - If you like to think for yourself, you'll want to read this book
This book blows my mind. It says so many things that I've been believing for years (and that's before I read it) about human nature: the tendency of the masses to follow and do what they're told; how easily humans ... Read More
Rating: - Science Fiction Masked In A Glaze Of Poetic Impulse
If ever there is a formula for the perfect novel, 451 has the ingredients. It would be one part science fiction masked in a glaze of poetic impulse, settled on a bed of classic literature soaking up the juices of vast ... Read More
- Burn it!
- The power of writing and learning to love to read 