Read: The Bradbury Chronicles by Sam Weller

Reading The Bradbury Chronicles sure made me want to go out and get my hands on every single one of Ray Bradbury's works, now that I've learnt how he was inspired to write them. At this point, I have read just a few of his books, such as Farenheit 451, The Golden Apples of the Sun and Martian Chronicles (two of which were only recently read). But his imagination is truly something. And now, having read The Bradbury Chronicles, I am in awe of Bradbury's determination, the way he went out to get what he wanted, from chasing Marlena Dietrich to get a photo (when he was a kid that is), to educating himself at the library after finishing high school. This biography makes this great writer, who had such a humble background, so much more human. But there seemed to be something missing from the book, especially with regards to his later years. A lot was hinted at, but never fully divulged.

However I must profess a fondness for Bradbury, especially his lifelong love for libraries. His design for his dream library includes a subbasement children's library accessible by a slide! He feels that modern libraries have lost their mystery and are impersonal. And that libraries should also have "shadowy areas in which the mind an body could wander and get lost."

My library doesn't quite have shadowy areas, but one of the reading corners has a splendid view of trees. So excuse me while I go find a copy of Dandelion Wine and indulge in more of Bradbury.