Mais um livro de contos de um autor de que não me canso de ler. Contrariamente ao que a capa sugere, não são histórias de FC naquele sentido do tecnológico ou espacial. Há elementos de fantasia, sim, mas muitas delas são apenas viagens por mentes alheias e outras são simples histórias de pessoas vulgares que decidiram fazer algo de diferente com as suas vidas. Um pequenino livrito que hei-de reler com prazer.

Not a bad book. Kind of slow moving. So e of the stories seemed unfinished to me. Others just did not have anything to grab me a and pull me in.

An extremely poor collection of stories by one of my absolute favorite authors. Would be a one star but for years and years of prior good will and my affection for the man. While I respect his story-creation process, the results of these late-in-life stories are very often floating verbal exchanges between under-described, disembodied individuals, meant to be witty but which lie flat on the page, unrealistic and perplexing. I frequently ask myself, “Who is speaking here?” When Bradbury does narrate, the results can be pretty good. The Devotee of Metaphor does in these stories now and then produce an evocative turn of phrase, but there are not nearly enough of them here to recommend this book to any but the most ardent Bradbury completists.

Обичам Бредбъри. Първо, заради магическия начин по който пише, заради уникалния му разказвачески талант, който те кара не само ясно да видиш историите в съзнанието си, но и да ги вкусиш, да ги почувстваш… С него четенето се превръща в преживяване, понякога съвсем осезаемо. Малко автори могат така да те пренесат в историите си. Прочетете ревюто на "Книжни Криле": https://knijnikrile.wordpress.com/201...

Not bad, but not great, either. The stories in this collection left me feeling nothing but indifference, which was a bit of a shame. They all had nifty titles, but the stories themselves were so bland that on more than one occasion I found my attention wandering to other things. I've not had a lot of experience with the author, but it does seem to me that short story collections may not be his forte.

Ray writes non-sci-fi, much to my chagrin. The book has a "Science Fiction" sticker on the spine and is in the science fiction section of the local library, but it isn't science fiction. What's with that? Alas. Sigh....

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A stunning new collection of short fiction by the beloved Dean of American storytellers, "Driving Blind" takes readers on unforgettable excursions to the fantastic, glorious grand tours through time and memory--interspersed with strange, unexpected side trips to the disturbing and the eerie.

n   From Library Journal n  

Following his Quicker than the Eye (Avon, 1996), Bradbury, author of such sf classics as Fahrenheit 451 (1953), returns in top form with another new collection of 21 short stories, only four of which were previously published. In "Fee Fie Foe Fum," Grandma fears her grandson-in-law's intentions for her with his new garbage disposal unit. In "Someone in the Rain," a man's adult experiences at a summer resort don't live up to his childhood memories. Bradbury explores a tarnished circus, one of his favorite themes, in "That Old Dog Lying in the Dust." He paints vivid word pictures of people and small towns in a kind of skewed Norman Rockwell way that moves beyond sf categorization. A must for all fiction collections.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

n   From Kirkus Reviews n  

Arriving too late for a full review, grandmaster Bradbury's latest collection (Quicker Than the Eye, 1996, etc.) consists of 17 new tales and 4 reprints, 197497. Among the themes: gambling, WW II, a dead man who doesn't realize he's dead, sexual awakening and ghost stories, a mysterious theft, a sinister butcher and an equally sinister garbage disposal unit, a man with no face who's an expert car salesman (the title piece), circuses, moths, twins, September, a street-cleaning machine, a persecuted smart kid, Irish blarney, religion, and the death of Death. Typically diverse, veering between sentiment and nostalgia, and set forth in the curiously mannered, modern-antique style that has become Bradbury's trademark. -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

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The master at his best. These stories are little gems, for the most part. A few felt pedestrian and forced, thus the 4 stars. Bradbury's writing is infused with unbridled optimism, with the continually renewed joy of discovery. The best of the bunch is 'Someone in the Rain', heart-wrenching and nostalgic in the Ray Bradbury style. The other favorite of mine was 'That Bird That Comes Out of the Clock', a story loaded with humor, but rife with a truth that many a henpecking wife should heed.
If you like Bradbury, you will like this collection.

While not every single story in this collection is a five, I cannot help but say I enjoyed these stories and as a collective, easily a five. To any writers who are struggling with their passion, I recommend Bradbury as his passion is in every line, he loves writing and it’s not hard to tell. The gem of this book was a story about a gentleman who opens the door to see his best friend for the first time in four years… one of my favorites.

Late era Bradbury that wears slightly thin. Mr. Pale is terrific.

Night train to Babylon is a nice tale of a man onboard a train that tries to save some naive young men from the tricks of a cunning gambler. James Cruesoe, our protagonist, ends up being kicked off the train with a deck of Queens of Hearts as a last present from the gambler.

If MGM is killed, who gets the lion? tells the story of Jerry Would's office building being tore down by Hughes Aircraft. The story is told from a humorous perspective, so it's entertaining.

Hello, I must be going is the story of two good old friends, Steve Ralphs and Henry Grossbock, and what happens when Henry visits Steve 4 years after his own death. What I found confusing about this story is the fact that Henry doesn't know he's been dead for years and is very troubled when Steve delivers the news. However, right afterwards he complains about his wife not crying for him anymore and not bringing him flowers as she used to... so does he or does he not know he's dead?

House divided takes us to a family house during a moment when the adults are waiting for news about a sick relative while the kids stay "playing" in one bedroom. 2 of the kids, 12-year old Chris and his 15 year-old cousin Vivian, play more than innocent games in secrecy of the darkness.

Grand theft is the moving love story of a very shy old man and the woman it took him 60 years to ask out.

Remember me? narrates the uncomfortable encounter between Harry and his butcher, Stadler, while they're both vacationing in Florence.

Fee Fie Foe Fum Will a perverse husband dare kill lovely old Grandma using his brand new garbage disposal unit?

Driving blind is a weird tale of a man who sells cars in a village. All seems very normal... except the man wears a hood that completely covers his head, and he never gets it off.

I wonder what's become of Sally shows why it's sometimes best to leave the past in the past. Charlie McGraw tries to find a long lost love and he succeeds... but what he finds is far from what he was expecting.

Nothing changes is the impossible story of the same faces showing up again and again in yearbooks from very different years.

That old dog lying in the dust narrates a remembrance of an old circus.

Someone in the rain tells the story of a man going to a dance in a place he used to visit as a child. As a child, he used to see the adults through the window, longing to grow up and join them in the fun. As an adult, he discovers his childish imagination was far better than the actual dance.

Madame et Monsieur Shill tells about a stunning woman whose job is to sit by the window of a restaurant and pretend to have a great time with her young love to attract customers inside. The problem is, not everybody's as good as pretending and his fake boyfriend falls in love with her for real.

The mirror tells about Coral and Julia, twin sisters, and what happens when one of them decides she doesn't want to be the other's half anymore, but a unit in herself.

End of summer

Thunder in the morning

The highest branch on the tree

A woman is a fast-moving picnic

Virgin resusitas

Mr. Pale

That bird that comes out of the clock

"Nothing Changes" is a gem. It reminds me of Bradbury late in life thinking out loud and asking rhetorical questions to the reader for him/her to ponder. Many of the stories are not for the hardcore sci fi/horror lover, but they are good nonetheless. The main characters are usually older folks philosophizing on life and/or thinking about things that could have been or never were.