I can remember when I was 12, my oldest brother Kenny, who was 32, took me and my younger brother Robbie camping to Frisco Campground in North Carolina.

We were tent camping on the beach and having a blast. It was at night in the tent that Kenny would tell these stories by Ray Bradbury.

I remember the one that had the biggest impact on me at the time was "Frost and Fire". As a pre adolescent in 1979, the story was phenomenal and opened my mind to the possibilities of "What if?..."

I had read most of the Hardy Boys books and Ray Bradbury was my next phase. I read the Illustrated Man, R is for Rocket, S is for Space, A Medicine for Melancholy, Something Wicked this way comes, and Martian Chronicles.

Stories that I truly love (that I can remember) in no specific order:

The Strawberry Ice Cream Suit
September Rains
Here there be tygers
Frost and Fire

The story with Picasso on the beach
The Mermaid

The story when the husband and wife travel from their horrid time on Earth to the early 1900's to escape and get caught.

The story where the man "Harry" I believe, thinks he is the only one left on Mars. As he travels through the towns, in one town he hears a phone ring and answers it. It's a woman and the rest will unfold when you read it.

I enjoyed the one where the Rocket crew lands on the planet and everyone seems to be in a 'daze'. The captain is furious that there is no fan fare and eventually learns that something "World shattering" has happened to the people that changed their philosophy of life. The captain decides to search for 'the Man" he just missed by a few days. Some of the crew stay on the planet.

I love Ray Bradbury and feel privileged to have been able to read some of his works. His stories opened my mind and imagination and gave me a great appreciation for the written word.

One of the best pleasures of life is being able to pick up a book and actually escape into the story as you read it. Ray Bradbury certainly achieved that level of writing.

There are many other stories I love but I can only remember bits and pieces of them. So, it seems that I will have to pick up the books and shake the dust off of them and reintroduce myself to the pages penned by Mr. Bradbury.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: philnic,

True. It's all true. I just came back from his 92nd birthday party at which he was paid homage. One speaker (Bill Nolan or George?) said that they once asked Ray if he knew who was the most influential author of the 20th century. Ray asked, "Who?" The speaker replied, "You!" And it's true.

quote:

Originally posted by Doug Spaulding:
True. It's all true. I just came back from his 92nd birthday party at which he was paid homage. One speaker (Bill Nolan or George?) said that they once asked Ray if he knew who was the most influential author of the 20th century. Ray asked, "Who?" The speaker replied, "You!" And it's true.

Amen! He is and was my companion during Jr High and High School in which I read alot.

I was not popular among my classmates, and I was sorta shunned because i transferred in from a different district. I basically told them to take a flying leap and began to read.

Herbert, Bradbury, Orwell, C.S Lewis, Anthony, Asimov and took a stab Heinlein. Even TV series like Battlestar Galactica, Flash Gordon, Buck Rogers and Star Trek were HUGE influences for me.

That's how i took an interest in writing and doing work for the Jr. High and High School newspapers. I found my following in college and later was taken to one of Bradbury's Seminars... It was very influential in keeping with my love of reading sci-fi/fantasy and writing it. Also keeping with a literary mind on concepts that most people take a dim view of.

FA Nathaniel A. Miller, USN Ret.
Amateur Author.

Enjoyed your post. Many of us were "birthed" in our literary lives by reading Ray Bradbury. I met him several times and what I liked was his constant enthusiasm, his wonderful state of being opinionated, and his kindness to fans. A non-reader until a friend brow-beat me into reading Fahrenheit 451 in 9th grade, Ray turned me on instantly to the realization that ideas mattered. It still impacts my life at 59 years old. Ray will, indeed, "Live Forever".