Ray Bradbury: Always inspiring

Legendary science fiction writer Ray Bradbury.

Source: https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/ray-bradbury-theater-sci-fi-series-streaming-peacock-best-episodes

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Whenever I hear the name Ray Bradbury, I am taken back to a night of homemade pizza, movies, and junior high friendship.

The prolific author recently celebrated a birthday, giving me the chance to reflect on how I crossed his literary path back in the ‘80s and beyond.

Birthday bash
In junior high, I had this friend named Shawn Kingston. We had a lot in common, both playing on the basketball team, reading science fiction, walking to shop class at the high school together, hanging out downtown on our walks to the school, playing a little bit of “Dungeons and Dragons”, and getting into computers and video games.

I was excited when he was having a birthday party, and I was invited. Yet, this question was bugging me – what should I get him for a birthday present? We talked a lot about science fiction and reading.

So, I figured I would get him a book. When my family made our weekly shopping trip to Lethbridge on Saturday morning, I made a stop at Coles Books in the Woodward’s or Lethbridge Centre Mall.

My thought was I would look around, and maybe a book would speak to me, something that Shawn would like. I wandered the aisles, mostly in the science fiction section, casting around for something.

Recently, maybe a year or two earlier, this miniseries had been on that I think he really got into. It was science fiction, about the exploration of Mars and it starred Rock Hudson. It was called . It was based on a book written by Ray Bradbury.

Consequently, I went looking for the book. However, I made sure it was the actual book that Bradbury wrote, not a novelization of the miniseries, which could be very different.

The party was after school. I had been to Shawn’s house before, and loved his mom’s cooking. She made individual pizzas for the party, and they were amazing. We were going to watch a movie downstairs, but not before Shawn opened his presents. I was a little nervous, but he seemed to like “The Martian Chronicles”. I do recall him bringing the book to school with him, because he would read when he had a few minutes here and there.

I never did read “The Martian Chronicles”, but the book occupies a spot in one of my precious memories of junior high.

It would not be long before I saw Ray Bradbury’s name again.

How hot does it get
From a pretty early age, I developed a dislike and aversion to censorship. It was really cemented in junior high by a few things, most notably a drive on the part of pressure groups in the States to ban records or, at the very least, have warning labels put on about their lyrics. I had heard about book burning too, and that was something frowned upon in my own family. Instead, books were valued and even revered.

It was in this period, I heard about a book written by Ray Bradbury that addresses this subject.

It was called “Fahrenheit 451”, named after the temperature at which book paper catches fire. It takes place at a time when books are outlawed and any books discovered are burned by enforcers called “Firemen”. The story follows a fireman who becomes disillusioned with destroying books and knowledge, quits his job, and begins preserving literature.

I heard a lot about “Fahrenheit 451” and discovered my brother had a copy in the book room in his house when he lived in Calgary back then.

The themes resonated with me, but I never read it to this day.

Commercial TV
In junior high, I also recall seeing commercials in 1983 for a movie that looked really scary called “Something Wicked This Way Comes”. It tells the story of an evil carnival owner who preys on unsuspecting townsfolk by granting them wishes – for a price. It was also based on a story by Ray Bradbury.

My good friend David Perlich, was just getting into science fiction and writers such as Bradbury. He wanted to see it and, if memory serves, did go see it.

When I learned it was a horror movie, that turned me off.

So, “Something Wicked This Way Comes” is another book I have not read to this day.

Parting thoughts
Ironically, I haven’t read anything Ray Bradbury has published. Instead, I have read what he hasn’t published – sort of.

“The Martian Chronicles” and especially “Fahrenheit 451” are two books by Ray Bradbury that I really want to read, and eventually will.

Close to 20 years ago, my parents were still alive and I went to see them in Lethbridge pretty much every Sunday. I always stopped at Chapters/Starbucks on my way out of town.

One Sunday, I was looking through books that had been discounted and one in particular caught my eye.

It was called “Bradbury Speaks”, and consisted of writings by Bradbury that were non-fiction, exploring all sorts of topics. Some were even unpublished works he had in his office.

A few years after I bought it, I read “Bradbury Speaks”, finally reading something by this prolific author.

More than the content, the process inspired me.

I thought I also have a lot of material lying around that has never seen the light of day. Maybe I could collect that into an anthology of some sort. Or, I could collect all my writings, such as letters, speeches, eulogies and so on, into a collected works volume.

Either way, Ray Bradbury continues to inspire with his work, whether you read his classic works or not.