Dissing Dandelion Wine

Cover of 'Dandelion Wine' by Ray Bradbury;
this was the edition I read in high school.

When I was in 11th grade English class at McDowell High School in Erie, PA, I flippantly criticized Ray Bradbury's Dandelion Wine, which was our next assigned reading. A very pretty, athletic girl heard me and corrected me for someone else's benefit, lest I ruin their experience with Mr Bradbury.

I felt rather shut down and insulted.

As it turned out, I really didn't like Dandelion Wine. (Does anyone coming of age want to read about coming of age?) In fact, I'm not crazy about Bradbury overall. I know that puts me in the minority from my generation of sci-fi fans, but what'r'yagonnado, if you don't like something, you don't like something. There's no rule that says I have to like what everyone else likes.

For the record, I'm also not crazy about Shakespeare, DH Lawrence, or Graham Greene (just picking a few off the top of my head that I know others do like and that deserve more attention than I give them, but life is shorter than it used to be, and I read what enlightens or entertains me).

[2013-05-08]

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