Posted by Firemen are known for their work putting out flames and saving people and homes. But if instead – what if they started the fire? Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury, is a chilling story about a world where books are illegal, and any house found with one inside is burned to the ground. And sometimes firefighter Guy Montag is the one burning them down.
In this dystopian novel, the government believes books are harmful because they introduce people to their own opinions and thoughts. Society does not want people having either of those things. And Montag believes the same until someone sparks a flame in his mind making him question everything.
I liked the concept of the book! The way our world is now, with technology and screens, makes the plot not far off from where we are headed because, in the story, people were so obsessed with their TVs, they did not see the world around them. The book focused on the propaganda of how erasing thoughts and feelings will keep citizens controlled and “happy”. I think that it relates to how our world is today because many people try to ban books that have a point of view they don’t agree with.
I like that you can learn new things from books, especially books with diversity. It’s interesting that Fahrenheit 451 includes messages about censorship because it also has been on banned books lists when people were upset about its use of “vulgar language”. How ironic!
This book is great for readers who are 13-16, and people who like dystopian novels. If you enjoyed the short story All Summer In A Day, also by Bradbury, you will definitely enjoy this one.
I am really glad I read Fahrenheit 451 in Honors English and talked about it in class. Three out of four roses. I did not really enjoy Bradbury’s writing style. He was very verbose and spent too many paragraphs describing things.
Elena Reads and Reviews 