11. The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury
12. The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury
13. Golden Apples of the Sun by Ray Bradbury
For the last two years, I have been completely unable to shut up about how much I love Ray Bradbury. It started when a friend lent me Fahrenheit 451, then continued when my sister and her husband gave me an old copy of Dandelion Wine. So you can guess how super-excited I was when I got this B&N hardbound collection for my birthday last year.
All three books are collections of short stories. The first bundle are related by theme--they all take place on Mars (it's like a space version of Dandelion Wine in that respect.) The second has a sort of thread that connects everything, but it's pretty loose (and the individual stories don't really relate at all.) The third...doesn't.
The only problem I have with Bradbury's writing is that he was something of a technophobe--there are a lot of stories about how dependence on technology will make us forget how to be self-reliant (or even people), and a couple about our pursuit of science will make us revile fantasy. (I only half-agree with the first, and fully disagree with the second.) When he wrote about humanity, though, Bradbury absolutely shined--whether he used a sci-fi backdrop or not. (The one story in the collection I always go back to is Kaleidoscope, in The Illustrated Man. Such an amazing piece.)
My only regret is that I didn't read his work sooner, which I plan to hold against everyone who could have told me to do so, but didn't. Well, you won't be able to do the same, because I'm going to tell you right now. Head to the library or book store, get some of his books, and read the shit out of them. You won't regret it.
Do it. Now.
GO.
