In Honor of Ray Bradbury

When I was in tenth grade English, we read a book called Farenheit 451. I spent large amounts of time raging at the ending, but was fascinated by its truth in predicting the future. I loved the idea of the "TV room." It reminded me of many people's obsessions with television, especially reality TV and soap operas.

The part that most deeply affected me, however, was the censorship. The book burnings. The very idea was enough to make me shudder. There have been a lot of books in my life that I haven't enjoyed. Books that I've tossed to the floor (though, I've never thrown one into a wall, it makes me feel bad). Maybe even a few that I truly hated.

But burning books? Never. The scene in the original Footloose makes me twitch. It's unthinkable for me. I don't know what my life would be like without my books, but I know that I can't even begin to imagine it.

Fahrenheit 451 was my first exposure to censorship, something that I've violently opposed ever since. Even though I wasn't particularly fond of it when I read it back then, it was definitely an influential book in my life.

Ray Bradbury was a great writer and he will be missed.

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