Fahrenheit 451 in The Challenge Factory

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Fahrenheit 451

Ray Bradbury

Start date: August 1, 2024

Finish date: August 15, 2024

Discussion: Archived-A Year of Banned Books

Discussion leader: Erica

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Archived-A Year of Banned Books

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* Reading List
By Erica , Quality Control Supervisor · 1 post · 96 views

last updated Dec 12, 2023 04:05PM

* A Year of Banned Books Info
By Erica , Quality Control Supervisor · 1 post · 122 views

last updated Dec 12, 2023 03:53PM

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What Members Thought

Oct 01, 2012 Vicki rated it really liked it

A very interesting concept and philosophical book. In the past I have not been very fond of science fiction books so I've waited years to read this one, but it was worth it.

Re-read: I don't even want to think about a world with no books, nothing but TV and media to brainwash us. The idea of censorship to the nth degree is disturbing to say the least. This hits home today more than it di back in 2013 for sure. I see far too much censorship going on in our nation that I never thought I'd see happe ...more

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Sep 21, 2021 Naomi rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, classics

Interesting concept for a book. I had a hard time getting into this. It was hard to follow with his internal dialog at times. I couldn't imagine living in a world that books are illegal. ...more

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Mar 23, 2023 Sha rated it liked it

24 March 2023
Rating: 3.5 stars, probably

Professional bookburner in dystopian world encounters "thoughtful" girl and it sets off his identity crisis.

1. I always go into older books with the expectation of "this is probably not for me" and I'm always pleasantly surprised when that turns out to not quite be the case. Don't get me wrong- large parts of this relatively small book were written in the kind of rambling literary style that I generally loathe (if you have something to say, you can say i 24 March 2023
Rating: 3.5 stars, probably

Professional bookburner in dystopian world encounters "thoughtful" girl and it sets off his identity crisis.

1. I always go into older books with the expectation of "this is probably not for me" and I'm always pleasantly surprised when that turns out to not quite be the case. Don't get me wrong- large parts of this relatively small book were written in the kind of rambling literary style that I generally loathe (if you have something to say, you can say it, thank you), but there was enough meat in the matter that it wasn't too bad.

2. This is supposed to be a book about book burnings, and it is that. But it's also, equally significantly imo, a book about how you are not immune to propaganda and how sanitization and censorship lead to rally bad consequences. Which-fair enough.

3. There were a lot of lines in here that were pretty good, and pretty thought-provoking. And since this is a book lamenting about the lack of provoked thoughts, I guess it fulfilled its purpose? And I did find many scenes poignant. Faber's feelings about that one bible, the woman who burned herself with her books, the woman who started crying because of the poem (lady good for you, but our tastes are not the same), and Montag's slowly building drive to be more and know more. These are good themes! And they were well-written, enough that a loather of litfic like me can still admit they were well written.

4. Sidenote: Why is Clarisse always advertised as a major character? She's at most a spark that sets off the flame of Montag's existential/identity (it's both) crisis. Any effect she has on the plot is through Montag, and there are other people (Faber, heck- even Beatty and arguably Mildred) who are more prominent. Clarisse is a narrative device and catalyst more than she is an actual character, and yes she is a great example of little things causing a whole ass avalanche, but a proper character she is not. I'd immediately peg her as a manic pixie dream girl equivalent if she were a love interest (which she, thankfully, is not).

5. The thing is, I don't know if I read the book the way Bradbury meant to write it. I've seen commentary about how he meant to warn people about TV rotting their brains, but that seems to run counter to that one paragraph about how the problem is in the content and not the medium. I do think the effects showcased in Bradbury's world- isolation, increased suicidal ideation, hectic lifestyles leading to no time to think, and so forth are relevant to our lives today, but some other things seem a bit far-fetched and exaggerated. It does feel too disjointed sometimes and I can't tell if it's a mistake, litfic-style open-endedness, or my lack of comprehension.

6. The adventure elements were pretty meh, to be honest. And definitely not where the author should have showcased their litfic prose. I would also have liked less purple prose and more descriptions of the limits and uses of technology in this world- I'm still baffled about how cesareans are something you voluntarily choose for no reason, and the only thing I can think of are medical advancements making surgery fast and quick and painless (in which case, good for her for picking it). I did like the sentient library concept towards the end, though- but that's also kinda marred by lack of scifi exposition.

7. Anyway! I enjoyed this more than I thought I would! I understand this may at least partially be because I don't know what the author actually meant to say. ...more

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