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A review by rafternorth
A Medicine for Melancholy and Other Stories by Ray Bradbury
5.0
“Captain Hart gave him back the binoculars wearily. “Why do we do it, Martin? This space travel, I mean. Always on the go. Always searching. Our insides always tight, never any rest.”
“Maybe we’re looking for peace and quiet. Certainly there’s none on Earth,” said Martin.
“No, there’s not, is there?” Captain Hart was thoughtful, the fire damped down. “Not since Darwin, eh? Not since everything went by the board, everything we used to believe in, eh? Divine power and all that. And so you think maybe that’s why we’re going out to the stars, eh, Martin? Looking for our lost souls, is that it? Trying to get away from our evil planet to a good one?”
“Perhaps, sir. Certainly we’re looking for something.”
I crave this collection in all formats. After reading “Fahrenheit 451” I realized I needed more Bradbury in my life. As quick as was possible. This was just what I was looking for. Bradbury’s writing is very interesting to me. His stories are more focused on the individual and on feelings than on what you would expect from someone who mainly stays in the Science Fiction/Fantasy world. He’s more vague, not concerned with the scientific explanations like Clarke. He just sort of has ideas and goes with it. Time Machine in the attic? You got it. Alien Mushrooms taking over the world? Why not? Not knowing why things are happening doesn’t bother me as it probably would with other writers. Bradbury’s having fun and so am I, so I don’t care.
I love short stories. When writers pull them off they can be as satisfying; maybe even more so as a tale that takes hundreds of pages to tell. It’s much harder in my opinion to tell a story with less words than it is more. And when it’s achieved, god is it glorious.
Bradbury reaches perfection in many of the stories collected here. Each really deserve their own reviews, but you and I would be here forever if I even attempted it. I will however give a score to each of these stories and will treat them as I would if I were rating each story on their own.
Ratings:
“In a Season of Calm Weather” - 4
“A Medicine for Melancholy” - 4
“The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit” - 5
“Fever Dream” - 4
“The Marriage Mender” - 3
“The Town Where No One Got Off” - 4.5
“A Scent of Sarsaparilla” - 5
“The Headpiece” - 3.5
“The First Night of Lent” - 4
“The Time of Going Away” - 4.5
“All Summer in a Day” - 4
“The Gift” - 3
“The Great of Monday Last” - 3.5
“The Little Mice” -3
“The Shore Line At Sunset” -4
“The Day It Rained Forever” - 4
“Chrysalis” - 5
“Pillar of Fire” - 5
“Zero Hour” - 5
“The Man” - 5
“Time in Thy Flight” - 2.5
“The Pedestrian” - 4.5
“Hail and Farewell” - 4
“Invisible Boy” -2.5
“Come into My Cellar” - 4.5
“The Million Year Picnic” - 4
“The Screaming Woman” - 5
“The Smile” - 5
“Dark They Were, and Golden Eyed” - 5
“The Trolley” - 3.5
“Icarus Montgolfier Wright” - 5
____________________________________________
Rating For Literary Achievement: 4 & 1/2 Stars
However, because it’s an impressive collection of stories and I feel like I would revisit many stories often, I will be placing it on my 5 Star shelf.
“Maybe we’re looking for peace and quiet. Certainly there’s none on Earth,” said Martin.
“No, there’s not, is there?” Captain Hart was thoughtful, the fire damped down. “Not since Darwin, eh? Not since everything went by the board, everything we used to believe in, eh? Divine power and all that. And so you think maybe that’s why we’re going out to the stars, eh, Martin? Looking for our lost souls, is that it? Trying to get away from our evil planet to a good one?”
“Perhaps, sir. Certainly we’re looking for something.”
I crave this collection in all formats. After reading “Fahrenheit 451” I realized I needed more Bradbury in my life. As quick as was possible. This was just what I was looking for. Bradbury’s writing is very interesting to me. His stories are more focused on the individual and on feelings than on what you would expect from someone who mainly stays in the Science Fiction/Fantasy world. He’s more vague, not concerned with the scientific explanations like Clarke. He just sort of has ideas and goes with it. Time Machine in the attic? You got it. Alien Mushrooms taking over the world? Why not? Not knowing why things are happening doesn’t bother me as it probably would with other writers. Bradbury’s having fun and so am I, so I don’t care.
I love short stories. When writers pull them off they can be as satisfying; maybe even more so as a tale that takes hundreds of pages to tell. It’s much harder in my opinion to tell a story with less words than it is more. And when it’s achieved, god is it glorious.
Bradbury reaches perfection in many of the stories collected here. Each really deserve their own reviews, but you and I would be here forever if I even attempted it. I will however give a score to each of these stories and will treat them as I would if I were rating each story on their own.
Ratings:
“In a Season of Calm Weather” - 4
“A Medicine for Melancholy” - 4
“The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit” - 5
“Fever Dream” - 4
“The Marriage Mender” - 3
“The Town Where No One Got Off” - 4.5
“A Scent of Sarsaparilla” - 5
“The Headpiece” - 3.5
“The First Night of Lent” - 4
“The Time of Going Away” - 4.5
“All Summer in a Day” - 4
“The Gift” - 3
“The Great of Monday Last” - 3.5
“The Little Mice” -3
“The Shore Line At Sunset” -4
“The Day It Rained Forever” - 4
“Chrysalis” - 5
“Pillar of Fire” - 5
“Zero Hour” - 5
“The Man” - 5
“Time in Thy Flight” - 2.5
“The Pedestrian” - 4.5
“Hail and Farewell” - 4
“Invisible Boy” -2.5
“Come into My Cellar” - 4.5
“The Million Year Picnic” - 4
“The Screaming Woman” - 5
“The Smile” - 5
“Dark They Were, and Golden Eyed” - 5
“The Trolley” - 3.5
“Icarus Montgolfier Wright” - 5
____________________________________________
Rating For Literary Achievement: 4 & 1/2 Stars
However, because it’s an impressive collection of stories and I feel like I would revisit many stories often, I will be placing it on my 5 Star shelf.