Book Review – Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

I read this book back in June and BOY, it took me almost 2 months to process what I read – it was THAT GOOD.

I think Fahrenheit 451 is a book everyone should read in this day and age. Written in 1953, this story portrays a dystopian society where conformity is enforced and individuality is suppressed. Books are considered “dangerous weapons” that could inspire independent thought and is therefore, banned.

One reason why it took me so long to post this review is because it wasn’t really easy to put my thoughts into words. More than that, I was unable to process the fact that what was considered a “dystopian society” in 1953 is very much our current reality in 2025. The book really touched upon overconsumption of digital media, the way we parent our children now and so much of the sociopolitical issues that exist today.

As a parent, one particular line from the book made me really reflect and look inward and made me go “WOW”. One of the character says,

“I plunk my children nine days out of ten. I put up with them when they come home three days a month; its not bad at all. You heave them into the ‘parlour’ (word for TV room) and turn on the switch. It’s like washing clothes; stuff laundry in and slam the lid.”

This quote was so profound. It speaks directly of the way we raise our kids hooked onto television, phones, tablets, and iPads because it is the easiest way we can parent. We are collectively choosing the most easy route to parent and opting out of the hard work involved in raising a child.

I could go on and on about this book but I am gonna stop. Here are some more quotes from the book to further stir your thoughts.

“We must all be alike. Not everyone born free and equal, as the constitution says, but everyone made equal. Each man the image of every other; then all are happy, for there are no mountains to make then cower, to judge themselves against. So, a book is a loaded gun in the house next door. Burn it. Take the shot from the weapon. Breach man’s mind. Who knows who might be the target of the well-read man?”

“The televisor is real. it is immediate. It has dimension. It tells you what to think and blasts it in. It must be, right. It seems so right. It rushes you on so quickly to its own conclusions your mind hasn’t time to protest ‘What nonsense‘.”

“Most of us can’t rush around talking to everyone, know all the cities of the world, we haven’t time, money or that many friends. The things you’re looking for, are in the world, but the only way the average chap will ever see ninety-nine percent of them is in a book.”

“But that’s the wonderful thing about man; he never gets so discouraged or disgusted that he gives up doing it all over again, because he knows very well it is important and worth the doing.”

“See the world, its more fantastic than any other dream made or paid for in factories”