This collection of short stories didn't have such a heavy sci-fi bent as The Illustrated Man, but the ambiguous endings still remained. He was a master at posing questions about the human condition. One of the stories was about a black boy obsessed with becoming white, until he meets a white boy obsessed with become black (by tanning) to put things into perspective.

He also included a story about a group of senators losing the United States to an Native America Tribe's casino.

Then there was one of his forays into Sci-fi with the story about the race of highly evolved aliens that humans encounter and are scared witless by the pacifists because they're giants spiders.

If you like Bradbury, this isn't his best but even a mediocre Bradbury story is damned decent.

This is a great collection to have around when you just want a quick story. All but two of these stories were previously unpublished, and are from different times in Bradbury's writing career. Some from the 1940's and 50's, some as recent as 2004.
I'm always amazed at the boundlessness of Bradbury's imagination! He is truly a national treasure.

It had some good stories, but wasn't great!

This is a compilation of some of Bradbury's other short stories, many of which were previously unpublished. As much love as I have for Bradbury, I kept thinking throughout reading this why many of them were not published before this collection came out. Harsh perhaps, but I have high expectations for him. Especially when in the introduction he comments on how he always wanted to be on the same level as Fitzgerald, Melville, Twain, etc.

The stories themselves were - for lack of a better word - quaint. They were short (duh, short stories), but in my opinion too shot. I didn't feel there was enough substance in any of the stories, yet too much to pass as mere vignettes. Normally I can pick out a favorite short story in a collection but I can not with this one. I would not recommend this to someone unfamiliar with Bradbury as there are much better short story collections that show his true ability. This one, however, felt more like Bradbury needed some extra cash and thought he would make some money on some old stories.

It’s always a great decision to read Ray Bradbury. This book supports that statement.

Years ago, I read The Martian Chronicles. I thought it would be a novel, but it was simply a collection of stories vaguely related to Mars. I can only remember a couple of those stories, but what I do remember was that the book was basically crap.

Some time later, I read Something Wicked This Way Comes. I was sorry I finished that book as it was definitely crap with a horrible ending.

I thought somehow that a basic collection of short stories would be enjoyable, but again, this was some of the worst crap I've ever read. I didn't even bother finishing this book.

I've given Mr Bradbury 3 chances, which is far more than he deserves. I'll never read anything again with his name on it.

Now I have clear that Bradbury is not only a genius of science fiction, but also one of the few truly artists in literature.
Such beautiful prose he has, so many facets and emotions.
This book is what you can call a rollercoaster of emotions, so deep and intense.
Bradbury's perspective of the certain times in USA history are delightful.
He's such an excellent writer, I cried with some of the stories, my heartbeats raised with some others, and I was pleased by the sci-fi elements in the rest.
Such a good book. It definitely has 5 out of 5.
So recommended!
Love it!

Oh, thank God for Ray Bradbury. Though I consummated my love for his work far too late, better late than never, and I have so much to look forward to, like this small but superlative collection of short stories.

Bradbury defies categorization. Is he SciFi? Horror? Straight fiction? Romance? Yes. And more. and there is so much of all the above to enjoy in this book that it's over all too soon, and it's next to impossible to pick one story than stands out from the rest. Now, admittedly, I did read the title story to my wife because it affected me so, and the closing love sonnet (well, kinda) will be the next monologue I do on stage. It makes you shiver, it's that good. Ray obviously loved his books, and that's what it's all about. I do too.

But I suppose I should at least tease you a bit. Additionally there's a cement mixer that will send you back in time--with a specific purpose, of course. A pair of sisters and their encounter with a singular man. A hemophiliac who trusts the wrong person. A rapist who gets what's coming to him. A house that needs renovation and a wife that doesn't care...until...

All this, and several autobiographical tales that will have tears welling in your eyes if you're at all human. And of course, it will also leave you hungering for more from this genuine American Treasure. Yes, I discovered his wonders late in life, but not too late to be able to enjoy them. You should too.

Absolutely a must-read.

This was just okay. I picked this book out because I liked the cover and was interested in Bradbury. Some of these stories were good, but most of them were bland. My favorites were probably “Chrysalis” (a surprisingly tasteful story on racism given that it was written in the 1940s) and “A Matter of Taste” (a science fiction story on the original relationship between humans and spiders). Overall: 3 stars. The cover is better than most of these stories.

3.5

This is the first Ray Bradbury book I have read. Why wasn't I introduced to him in high school? Anyway, I have found him now. The writing is outstanding!

Bradbury mi amor. MUA MUA MUA