The Martian Chronicles
Ray Bradbury
At first, I thought I was really going to enjoy this book. Then I thought it was going to be more disembodied, a la Star Maker. Then I got into a quieter environment and realized that I love this book. The main reason for my consternation was the fact that the stories in this book are all loosely affiliated through a common theme, and I wasn't sure that the vignettes would ever come together to create a single theme. By the end of the book, however, I realized that Bradbury has done good work in establishing a realistic sampling of events regarding the human adoption of Mars. The book is somewhere between a short story collection and a history of the planet, but it finds its place quite well.
The book uses sly wit and ironic humor to great effect. Bradbury is truly a gifted writer, perfectly exposing the flaws of censorship and projection in general. The second story of the book seems to be a normal family scene...until we find out that the people involved are actually Martians. Bradbury does a fantastic job at catching the intricacies and absurdities of human behavior, and the lack of a strict narrative allows him to freely place all kinds of exhibits on display for the reader's perusal.
Some chapters may seem unrelated, but taken as a whole, the stories all reflect on the fundamental desire of humans to remake new lands according to ideal imagery. The Martian ability to morph into human-desired forms and the numerous appearances of deceptively human robots only underscore this point. The prose itself is rich and fulfilling. Several of the stories can stand alone as excellent short stories, and seem to have been published as such, but only by reading the entire book can one gain full appreciation of Bradbury's vision and the power of the book.
Bradbury has created a vision of the future that ties in multiple aspects of human nature. By chronicling the events on Mars in such a manner, Bradbury creates multiple narratives within a single story that presents a greater view of the whole than other techniques could. The stories offer bite-sized glimpses into the importanta stages of Martian development and yet offer the reader enough fodder to satisfy the desire for a complete story. Bradbury writes top-notch science fiction good for anyone looking for either fantastic tales of colonization or subtle, ironic critiques on the human form.
Grade: A
Ray Bradbury
At first, I thought I was really going to enjoy this book. Then I thought it was going to be more disembodied, a la Star Maker. Then I got into a quieter environment and realized that I love this book. The main reason for my consternation was the fact that the stories in this book are all loosely affiliated through a common theme, and I wasn't sure that the vignettes would ever come together to create a single theme. By the end of the book, however, I realized that Bradbury has done good work in establishing a realistic sampling of events regarding the human adoption of Mars. The book is somewhere between a short story collection and a history of the planet, but it finds its place quite well.
The book uses sly wit and ironic humor to great effect. Bradbury is truly a gifted writer, perfectly exposing the flaws of censorship and projection in general. The second story of the book seems to be a normal family scene...until we find out that the people involved are actually Martians. Bradbury does a fantastic job at catching the intricacies and absurdities of human behavior, and the lack of a strict narrative allows him to freely place all kinds of exhibits on display for the reader's perusal.
Some chapters may seem unrelated, but taken as a whole, the stories all reflect on the fundamental desire of humans to remake new lands according to ideal imagery. The Martian ability to morph into human-desired forms and the numerous appearances of deceptively human robots only underscore this point. The prose itself is rich and fulfilling. Several of the stories can stand alone as excellent short stories, and seem to have been published as such, but only by reading the entire book can one gain full appreciation of Bradbury's vision and the power of the book.
Bradbury has created a vision of the future that ties in multiple aspects of human nature. By chronicling the events on Mars in such a manner, Bradbury creates multiple narratives within a single story that presents a greater view of the whole than other techniques could. The stories offer bite-sized glimpses into the importanta stages of Martian development and yet offer the reader enough fodder to satisfy the desire for a complete story. Bradbury writes top-notch science fiction good for anyone looking for either fantastic tales of colonization or subtle, ironic critiques on the human form.
Grade: A
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