Ray Bradbury RIP

[Barry]

There are quite a few readers of science fiction here on the Forum, who will be saddened to hear of the passing today of Ray Bradbury at the age of 91.

A legend of the 'golden age' of science-fiction writing during the '60s, Bradbury was the first person to be awarded a Pulitzer price for an author writing in that genre.

He is best known for his novel of a dystopian future, 'Fahrenheit 451', writen in 1953, and for 'The Martian Chronicals'.

I regard him as the master of the sci-fi short story, and loved the fact that a lot of his subject matter was what would not normally be considered as 'hard core' sci-fi: tales based around carnival side shows; prescient imaginings of the end of the world; tales of lonely individuals who will not conform to rigorous social norms, and other subjects involving future environmental effects on the human psyche.

He has left a grand legecy of writing, and was one of my favourite sci-fi authors.

RIP Ray

[Reid Malenfant]

Ray Bradbury RIP, that's another excuse to watch The Martian Chronicles again shortly :)

Damn shame, we are all going to go the same way though :(


Just remember that energy is never created or destroyed, just converted into something else... Until Proton decay...

[Spectral Morn]

Indeed a sad day for literature (and I consider his writing to be that good. His books are in the Literature section and Sci Fi sections of the bookshop I work in) and science fiction.

91 is a great age though, so he did very well there.

[synsei]

He will be sorely missed :(

There was much of Bradbury's work that simply didn't resonate with me, I was more into Asimov and Clarke, but one day I came across a short story in which he shocked me with his insight into where society was going. That story is The Pedestrian and I read it from time to time to remind myself that there is more to life than images dictated through a screen...

[Spectral Morn]

He will be sorely missed :(

There was much of Bradbury's work that simply didn't resonate with me, I was more into Asimov and Clarke, but one day I came across a short story in which he shocked me with his insight into where society was going. That story is The Pedestrian and I read it from time to time to remind myself that there is more to life than images dictated through a screen...

I love Clarke but find Asimov hard to read. Bradbury could be hard too. I have heard his writing described as being more poetry than straight prose, and I think there is some truth in that.

As a physical book lover, faced with a possible future where physical books are going to be less common, the idea of the 'Book People' in Fahrenheit 451 appeals more but which book would I learn..... :scratch:

[Rare Bird]

Ray Bradbury RIP, that's another excuse to watch The Martian Chronicles again shortly :)



Hi Mark
Is your set on two sided DVD's like mine :eyebrows: ?

[Reid Malenfant]

Hi Mark
Is your set on two sided DVD's like mine :eyebrows: ?
I'm guessing so, they are both flippers but apparently there is nothing on the second side of the second DVD. In all honesty I haven't looked as it appeared to end on the first side of the second DVD ;)

[colinB]

He will be sorely missed :(

There was much of Bradbury's work that simply didn't resonate with me, I was more into Asimov and Clarke, but one day I came across a short story in which he shocked me with his insight into where society was going. That story is The Pedestrian and I read it from time to time to remind myself that there is more to life than images dictated through a screen...

I remember reading the pedestrian at school. Started my love of the written word and sci fi.

[synsei]

I love Clarke but find Asimov hard to read. Bradbury could be hard too. I have heard his writing described as being more poetry than straight prose, and I think there is some truth in that.

As a physical book lover, faced with a possible future where physical books are going to be less common, the idea of the 'Book People' in Fahrenheit 451 appeals more but which book would I learn..... :scratch:

I haven't read Farnheit 451 for a very long time, possibly as far back as when I was at school. I'll revisit it at some point because I don't remember much about the story although it did leave its mark on me because I cherish my real books even though I own a Kindle for convenience sake. I'm not sure it would be the done thing to read the ebook version... :lol:

[Barry]

He will be sorely missed :(

There was much of Bradbury's work that simply didn't resonate with me, I was more into Asimov and Clarke, but one day I came across a short story in which he shocked me with his insight into where society was going. That story is The Pedestrian and I read it from time to time to remind myself that there is more to life than images dictated through a screen...

It was 'The Pedestrian' I had in mind when I refered to "lonely individuals who will not conform to rigorous social norms". It is one story in a collection of short stories put together under the title "The Golden Apples of the Sun" and published by Corgi.

I enjoy Asimov, especially his robot stories, but found the Foundation trilogy tiresome. Clarke swings between being too technical at one end and too mystical at the other, though I have to say I enjoyed 'Childhood's End' and the short story 'The Sentinel' (from which evolved the screenplay for '2001, A Space Odyssey').

[synsei]

It was 'The Pedestrian' I had in mind when I refered to "lonely individuals who will not conform to rigorous social norms". It is one story in a collection of short stories put together under the title "The Golden Apples of the Sun" and published by Corgi.

I guessed as much which is what spurred me to post ;)



I enjoy Asimov, especially his robot stories, but found the Foundation trilogy tiresome. Clarke swings between being too technical at one end and too mystical at the other, though I have to say I enjoyed 'Childhood's End' and the short story 'The Sentinel' (from which evolved the screenplay for '2001, A Space Odyssey').

I love hard scifi Barry. I wouldn't attempt any of Greg Bear's stuff if you don't do technical. Even with my love of hard scifi there is the odd passage in Bear's novels that I just accept as is whilst reading it, in the hope that he will explain things a little more simply a little further down the line :lol: He is my favourite scifi author regardless of this slightly tricky issue... ;)

[MartinT]

Clarke swings between being too technical at one end and too mystical at the other, though I have to say I enjoyed 'Childhood's End' and the short story 'The Sentinel' (from which evolved the screenplay for '2001, A Space Odyssey').

Agreed with those, also The Songs of Distant Earth is very moving and beautifully done.