Driving Blind

Reading Ray Bradbury is like going through a door into a nostalgic, odd America that never existed, a universe of strange possibility that brings to mind the haunting memories of childhood. The short stories in Driving Blind are vintage Bradbury, with a pleasant smattering of ideas: dark fantasy, boyhood sense of wonder, Twilight Zone-esque twist. These 21 stories (4 are reprints) were inspired by a dream Bradbury had in which his muse, blindfolded, drove him to destinations unknown. We're glad he went along for the ride. Spare word portraits will transport you to a world of scratchy phonograph records and cuckoo clocks, evil garbage disposals and Mexican border-town circuses. Bradbury fans will enjoy revisiting the worlds of his imagination, while those new to the master will find themselves in need of another shot of Bradbury... quick. --Therese Littleton