Miquel Reina's Reviews > The Martian Chronicles

I read Fahrenheit 451 years ago and since then I have always wanted to read more books of the author Ray Bradbury. The Martian Chronicles was one of those books I have in my must read shelf and until today, I didn't find time to read it. Well, the truth is that it's a book that has surprised me a lot! As I mentioned, I had read Bradbury before, but in my opinion, The Martian Chronicles is totally different from Fahrenheit 451. The story is broken into fragments that move through time like puzzle pieces floating in space, but this is precisely the point that I liked the most of the novel. This way of telling the chronicles that go through different characters, different scenarios, different ways of understanding what is happening gives a kaleidoscopic view of the whole story. Bradbury also delights us with deep thoughts and phrases, sometimes sorely lacking in most modern novels. Finally, I would like to encourage everyone to read this fantastic book. This is my favorite quote of the book:

"I hate being clever, thought the captain, when you don’t really feel clever and don’t want to be clever. To sneak around and make plans and feel big about making them. I hate this feeling of thinking I’m doing right when I’m not really certain I am. Who are we, anyway? The majority? Is that the answer? The majority is always holy, is it not? Always, always; just never wrong for
one little insignificant tiny moment, is it? Never ever wrong in ten million years? He thought: What is this majority and who are in it? And what do they think and how did they get that way and will they ever change and how the devil did I get caught in this rotten majority? I don’t feel comfortable. Is it claustrophobia, fear of crowds, or common sense? Can one man be right, while all the world thinks they are right? Let’s not think about it. Let’s crawl around and act exciting and pull the trigger. There, and there!” ― Ray Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles

Spanish version:
Hace años leí Farenheit 451 y desde entonces siempre he querido leer más del autor Ray Bradbury. Crònicas Marcianas era uno de esos libros tan pendientes y que hasta el día de hoy no he podido leer. Bien, la verdad es que es un libro que me ha sorprendido y mucho! Como ya he comentado ya había leído a Bradbury pero Farenheit i Cronicas Marcianas tienen poco que ver. La historia está fracturada en mil fragmentos que van avanzando a través del tiempo como piezas de puzzle flotando en el espacio, pero es aquí precisamente el punto que más me ha gustado de la novela. Esta manera de contar las crónicas que va pasando por diferentes personajes, diferentes escenarios, diferentes modos de entender lo que va sucediendo confiere una visión calidoscópica a la historia. Bradbury además nos deleita con frases y pasamientos profundos que a veces se echan en falta en las novelas más modernas. Por último animo a todo el mundo a leer este fantástico libro.