This year marks the 60th Anniversary of Ray Bradbury’s novel Fahrenheit 451. So, to celebrate Half Price Books is reading and discussing the book this month.
I had never read Fahrenheit 451, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. The story is set in the future, where people turn their walls into interactive television screens, overdose on sleeping pills and get their blood “cleaned” so that they wake up with no knowledge of trying to kill themselves. And the job of a fireman has switched from putting out fires to starting them. How did this switch happen? People stopped reading, and so the need for books was eliminated. In this world (the world of Fahrenheit 451) a person can be jailed or even killed for owning a book (which I believe is bit overkill, but then power is corrupting and knowledge can be a dangerous thing).
The main character, Montag is a fireman. He is paid to set fire to books found in people’s homes. However, his curiosity gets the better of him and he starts taking books home, little by little. His newfound curiosity and his resulting discontent with his life forces him to seek out others who question things and cling to the knowledge found in books.
Fahrenheit 451 is a warning to not become complacent in your life, to keep on questioning things, to keep on searching for knowledge and understanding, to take time to listen and wonder, to create and imagine…to read.
Join the conversation this month by liking the Half Price Books page on Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/halfpricebooks/app_541077369245456
Happy reading!
Reading, Writing & Other Addictions 
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