Cannonball Read 3 - Review #11 - Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury

I've read Fahrenheit 451 and I own The Martian Chronicles and plan on reading that, so I know that Bradbury writes some science-fiction, but this book is a simple and beautifully written book that centers around Douglas Spaulding and other residents in the fictional Green Town, Illinois during the summer of 1928. Split into brief chapters, there is no real plot, but rather small stories and reflections of the characters as they go through their summertime lives. Douglas is a sensitive, passionate, and serious 12-year-old boy who treasures the joys of being a kid in a small town during the summer so much that he recognizes how amazing everything is while it is happening, and writes down his discoveries and joys so he won't forget. The reader gets perspectives from young children as well as the old and frail citizens who often are found reflecting on their youth with envy, amusement, and fondness. The whole novel is sort of restless, with a sense of urgency that time is flying by, and Douglas is so desperate to remember the little things that make him happy and the things he learns. One especially beautiful passage is at the beginning, when Douglas realizes that he's "alive." It's something he all of a sudden understands and marvels at, and it leaves him kind of flabbergasted. There is also a part at the end that endears him to me, forever, when an old sort of rambling man of the town tells Douglas how he is one of those children who become sad younger than everyone else. I think Douglas is the 1928, male version of me as a child. Mostly the book is made up of snapshots in the daily lives of these people in a simple town during one summer. People have their petty squabbles and their small worries that don't mean much in the long run, but then there are relationships that form us and genuine moments of love and kindness that stay with us forever. Bradbury's writing in this novel is flowery and lovely, and not something we see much of anymore, as in 2011 readers tend to scoff at the nostalgic or the precious. I, however, loved reading about the daily goings-on of Green Town, and the character of Douglas is a sweet and earnest little hero.