Guy Montag is your ordinary fireman. He hops on the salamander (fire truck) to a house and burns all the books. He loves what he does, it’s pure joy to pour the kerosene on the disgusting little books and light it on fire. This book takes place in the future, where books are outlawed, and thinking things thoroughly is almost a crime. There are firemen who, unlike present day firemen, don’t go to houses to put out fires... they start them. Guy is one of them. Constantly referred as Montag throughout the book, he used to like lighting books on fire. Until one day a new neighbor moves in next to his house. Clarisse, the girl that just moved in, meets up with Montag on his way to work one day (he walks). Montag and Clarisse get to know each other and become friends. But along the way Clarisse gives Montag her opinion of how life is. She talks to him about how people should think and learn more, process their feelings, and most importantly, read books. This completely changes his perspective on life, considering the fact that he burned the books, he now thinks... and maybe even tries out a book. When he meets a professor named Faber, and Faber tells him how great life used to be with books, Montag starting to go against his way of life, thinks that maybe their way of life is wrong.
This is an exciting, dramatic, and extremely action-packed book (I know that seems cheesy, but it’s true). It makes you think about your perspectives on life and how you think. This is the kind of book where you get a new feeling, idea, and perspective, every time you turn the page, and I really enjoyed that. Honestly, it’s an utterly magnificent book. Ray Bradbury is a phenomenal writer, who pacts so many different emotions, and scenes, into less than 200 pages. You never stop thinking. I really say that anyone in high school would enjoy this but, if you’re looking for an amazingly well written, dystopian, classic, I'd say you’re in luck! Fahrenheit 451 is probably the best book for you! Just be ready for an amazing roller coaster of a book!
Reviewed by Sebastian W., Grade 9
