Reviews with content warning for Suicide attempt - Fahrenheit 451

Reviews tagging 'Suicide attempt'

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

151 reviews

izzykai's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

If you like dystopians, 1984, or books about books it's definitely worth reading. And it's 190 pages, read it! 👍🏻

Content Warnings

elfboy486's review

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This is an amazing novel. Reading it for the first time, I am astounded at how prescient Bradbury was to the possible future of the world. With the number of book bans happening in the US right now and the numbing effect of constant screens screaming at us, the future depicted in this novel seems far too close for comfort.

I hate the idea of someone telling me what I can or cannot read. I have read books simply because someone in authority told me I shouldn't read it. Usually, those books were awful, and I regretted wasting my time, but that is not the point; I, and I alone, will decide what I will read.

I carry this over into my recommendations. I never tell someone to read or not read something. I say I would (or would not) recommend it. I liked it or I didn't like it for this and that reasons. Then, I let them decide.

This book I would highly recommend. It is a wonderfully thought-provoking story. There is a deeper philosophy in the story at which the author hints but doesn't explicitly state. Putting that philosophy into words/thoughts is the main exercise that I enjoyed.

I have fears of something like this coming to pass in the world. I like to think. I find it enjoyable and relaxing. The world depicted in this book, and often the world that I see around me now, is a world which has invested in a scheme to get people to stop thinking. Listen to the seashell radio. Interact with the characters on the video wall(s). Have fun. You don't need to think or have original ideas to have fun. Since this book espouses a different view of the world than ours, we find it distressing. It needs to go away. Obviously, that is best for society, because my view is best for society. We can't allow anything to exist that might be found offensive by someone.

Content Warnings

matonnhermann's review

Go to review page

dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

joshkiba13's review

Go to review page

dark reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I decided to reread this since my first go around with it was at 13 or 14 years old. It's even quite possible that in middle school I was given one of those censored school versions Mr. Bradbury despised so. This time around I was floored by a lot of his prose; reading the narration felt akin to reading poetry. He masterfully utilized defamiliarizarion to bring the reader's understanding to light in fresh and unique ways.
I found this not to just be a fictional commentary on the censorship of books, but it was also a warning about the influence of technology and media. Bradbury feared a time when people sat together, unaware of each other's existence because of the "Seashell radios" in their ears, or the parlor TV walls yelling nonsense at them. Not too far off from today.
The version I checked out from the library also had some really interesting background and afterwords from Mr. Bradbury, which was really interesting to read. He included a scene or two from the play of the same name, giving a bit more background on the characters of Beatty and Clarisse.

Content Warnings

ellalouisedavey's review

Go to review page

dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.5

Very strong ideas, I found it really hard to follow at times because of the vague plot points. I did a mix of listening to and reading this book and found neither helped with my understanding of certain parts. It really picks up after the first half. I really liked how the idea is that we will live in a society where we will burn anything that doesn’t make us happy to the point of having pretty much nothing

Content Warnings

manatad's review against another edition

Go to review page

reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

After revisiting this book since I read it for the first time 13 years ago, I think I can see why it didn't leave a very big impression on me, especially compared to the other dystopian novels I had read around the same time, Brave New World and 1984 (the latter I had also revisited last year). Fahrenheit 451 certainly does describe a few interesting and relevant observations about people's shortening attention spans and resistance to confronting challenging or uncomfortable topics, but I don't agree with the whole "books good, TV bad" sentiment that is strongly expressed throughout the novel. And while its warning message regarding censorship was undeniably relevant at the time when it was written, I'm not sure that it still holds up in the context of today's world. I guess some say now that it's more of a warning against political correctness, but even that interpretation feels like sort of a cop-out to me.

My favorite thing about the novel is actually Ray Bradbury's writing style. I found his imaginative use of simile to be quite wonderful, and I did sense a feeling of great passion from the book in general. I think the short length of the novel is appropriate too, because the prose would very likely have worn out its charm if I had to read 300 pages or more of it.

There's not much else I can say about such a famous book that hasn't already been said a hundred times before. Overall, I think it is an enjoyable read, and quick, so there is no reason for anybody who is interested to not to read this classic.

Content Warnings

singalana's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Omia ajatuksia ja tuntemuksia oli hankalaa summata yhteen tämän kirjan lukemisen jälkeen. Luulen, että se pitääkö tästä kirjasta vai ei, riippuu paljon siitä mitä asioita kirjassa arvostaa.

Fahrenheit 451 on dystooppinen novelli tulevaisuudesta, missä kirjat on kielletty ja ihmiset pidetään tyytyväisenä viihteen avulla. Sodat ovat normaaleja ja ihmiset tekevät itsemurhia, mutta kukaan ei pysähdy miettimään ovatko he onnellisia. Päähenkilö Guy Montag kuuluu palomiehiin, joiden tehtävä on etsiä ja rankaista rikollisia: ihmisiä, joiden hallussa on kirjoja. Kirjat, sekä niitä hallussa pitäneen ihmisen talo poltetaan. Montag pitää työstään, kunnes eräänä päivänä nuori tyttö kysyy häneltä onko hän onnellinen.

On suorastaan hämmästyttävää miten paljon kirjan yhteiskunta muistuttaa maapallon nykytilaa: aivoja turruttavaa viihdettä, mekaanisia robottikoiria valvomassa lainrikkojia, kirjojen kieltämistä. Kuitenkin on sanottava, että kirjan sanoma on vaikuttavampi kuin toteutus. Jos pidät syväluotaavista hahmojen ja maailman kuvauksesta, saatat pettyä tämmän kirjan proosaan. Täytyy kuitenkin miettiä, onko tämä tarkoituksella: onko esimerkiksi Montagin hahmon tarkoitus toimia kehyksinä, joihin voimme asettaa itsemme? Kirjassa esitetään myös muutamia hyviä havaintoja esimerkiksi siitä, mitä ihminen jättää jälkeensä kuollessaan.

Valitettavasti olen itse sellainen lukija, että kaipaan hahmoilta hieman enemmän syvyyttä. Lisäksi olisin toivonut välillä hieman viipyilevämpää kerrontaa, etenkin kun esiteltiin tarinan kannalta tärkeitä konsepteja. Fahrenheit on kuitenkin nopealukuinen ja teemoiltaan tärkeä, joten suosittelen sitä kyllä lämpimästi kaikille.

Tämän painoksen kansi on graafisesti miellyttävä ja kuvaava, ja selkämyksen kuviointi on tehty muistuttamaan tulitikkulaatikon raapaisupintaa.

Content Warnings