The Stories of Ray Bradbury [Hardcover]

Ray Bradbury (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 12, 1999

One hundred of Ray Bradbury’s remarkable stories which have, together with his classic novels, earned him an immense international audience and his place among the most imaginative and enduring writers of our time.

Here are the Martian stories, tales that vividly animate the red planet, with its brittle cities and double-mooned sky. Here are the stories that speak of a special nostalgia for Green Town, Illinois, the perfect setting for a seemingly cloudless childhood—except for the unknown terror lurking in the ravine. Here are the Irish stories and the Mexican stories, linked across their separate geographies by Bradbury’s astonishing inventiveness. Here, too, are thrilling, terrifying stories—including “The Veldt” and “The Fog Horn”—perfect for reading under the covers.

Read for the first time, these stories become as unshakable as one’s own fantasies. Read again—and again—they reveal new, dazzling facets of the extraordinary art of Ray Bradbury.

--This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The Stories of Ray Bradbury--a hundred of his best stories, selected by the author himself--is the definitive collection of one of the greatest fantasists the world has ever known. Published in 1980, the volume contains stories selected from the first four decades of Bradbury's career. There are his unique stories of Mars, which later landed in The Martian Chronicles. There are nostalgic stories of Green Town, Illinois, which Bradbury later brewed into Dandelion Wine. The treasures here also include his regional tales of Ireland and of rural Mexico, classic science fiction such as "The Fog Horn," and the rarely reprinted novella "Frost and Fire." Among the half dozen previously uncollected stories are a few of his earliest--and most terrifying. These include the unforgettable "October Game" (which the author regards as perhaps his most shocking story amongst the thousand that he's written), and "Black Ferris," later to be transformed into the classic Something Wicked This Way Comes. Bradbury also contributes a revealing and highly informative look back at his own career. If you can possess only one book by the legendary Ray Bradbury, this is it. --Stanley Wiater --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

“The truth is, reading the vast new Everyman’s Library edition of The Stories of Ray Bradbury, culling through its perfectly round 100 selections (and 1,000-plus pages), stopping to wonder why it has taken 30 years for this classic collection to join the hardcover literary canon, a thought slips in repeatedly: Stephen King was thinking way too small. [“Without Ray Bradbury, there would be no Stephen King.” —Stephen King]. Without Ray Bradbury, there wouldn’t be American pop culture.
            He is the Shakespeare of American geek culture, which, in effect, is American pop culture. The Waukegan-born writer is a popularizer of ideas so frequently plundered, subjects so unusual yet routinely picked at, reading The Stories of Ray Bradbury becomes a crash course in not just genre but what its modern voice sounds like.”
            —Christopher Borrelli, Chicago Tribune --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Random House Value Publishing (April 12, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0517382091
• ISBN-13: 978-0517382097
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,272,670 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ray Bradbury has published some 500 short stories, novels, plays and poems since his first story appeared in Weird Tales when he was twenty years old. Among his many famous works are 'Fahrenheit 451', 'The Illustrated Man' and 'The Martian Chronicles'.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Some of the best short stories in the world!, May 1, 2000

By 

Lesley West (St James, Western Australia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Stories of Ray Bradbury (Hardcover)

If there is a master of the short story with a twist, it would have to be Ray Bradbury. These stories are all magnificent, and there is not one that will disappoint you. They will sadden you, make you laugh, make you think, horrify you and please you, but they will NEVER disappoint you.

If you were a fan of the series "The Twilight Zone", you will love these stories. If you like science fiction in general you will love these stories. If you are a devotee at literature at its best, you will never forget these stories. Add this to your collection today!

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Definitive Collection, May 11, 2000

By 

Andrew Brown - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Stories of Ray Bradbury (Hardcover)

I pay particular attention to Ray Bradbury as an author, having read him since I was a pre-teenager. Now I'm a philosophy student in college, and despite having become much, much more 'sophisticated' in my literary tastes, I still enjoy Bradbury. I suppose you could think of me as a collector of sorts, and through the years, I have not found a better collection of his work. Bradbury is famed in the general public for "Farenheit 451," or perhaps his "Something Wicked This Way Comes," or even, occasionally, for "The Martian Chronicles." But the reader who would like to see Bradbury at his finest should pick up this collection. An eclectic, self-taught writer, Bradbury's stories carry a tremendous appeal level for me. All literary considerations aside, Bradbury surely must be the greatest living storyteller. Occasionally, he will even wax philosophical with some tremendous insights. The only difficulty with being a Bradbury fan is that he has written SO MUCH that it's tough to even begin to keep track of. But, if I had to recommend one starting point, I'd choose this anthology. And it's at a reasonable price, to top it off.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ever had a love affair with a book? I have., August 24, 2001

By 

Lindsay Rodda "I was the very model of a mode... (Heaven?) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Stories of Ray Bradbury (Hardcover)

I bought a first edition in the US in 1980. It is both my favourite book and most travelled - being an essential component of my personal baggage on numerous international business trips. For someone who grew up in the golden years of science fiction and as a lover of the short story literary form, for me there is only one writer that constantly delivers fresh insights into the possible worlds around us. That writer is Ray Bradbury. He brilliantly spins a lyrical web of simple, singular ideas across the incredible landscape of his mind to captivate his readers. And this collection of stories, spanning 3 decades, reflects the multi-facets of his work. Most of my favourite stories are here. Uncle Einar. The Scythe. Marionettes,Inc. The Small Assasin. The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit. The Day It Rained Forever. The Anthem Sprinters. I am sure that new buyers will enjoy reading the stories in this collection for many years to come. As a retrospective anthology of a great genre author, it's a veritable tour de force.