I purchased this book immediately after I devoured The Martian Chronicles by the same author. Unfortunately, it left me feeling disappointed and empty. Like The Martian Chronicles, this book is also a short story collection, but I picked it up thinking its contents wouldn’t mirror TMC. The Martian Chronicles was essentially about mankind’s colonization of Mars; the stories within all had a space-related theme. What I wanted out of The Illustrated Man was to be filled with the same fascination I had after finishing the former, but to be truthful, I found myself burnt out on topics about rocket-men. If I had wanted another space-themed story, I would have sought that particular genre out! Don’t get me wrong — would still recommend The Martian Chronicles to everyone I know. I just thought that this new collection would have a different theme, to show that Bradbury is diverse in his story-telling.
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A Suitcase Full of Books 