The summer of '28 was a vintage season for a growing boy. A summer of green apple trees, mowed lawns, and new sneakers. Of half-burnt firecrackers, of gathering dandelions, of Grandma's belly-busting dinner. It was a summer of sorrows and marvels and gold-fuzzed bees. A magical, timeless summer in the life of a twelve-year-old boy named Douglas Spaulding—remembered forever by the incomparable Ray Bradbury.
Dandelion Wine is unique amongst the works of the popular author Ray Bradbury, in that it provides us with perhaps the clearest insight into the thoughts and feelings of the author. The book was published in 1957, perhaps over twenty years after the era which it is about, thus providing an inevitable theme of nostalgia throughout the book. The principal character, Douglas Spalding, and his brother Tom, encounter a series of adventures which are described in a crafted and distinguished manner to provide a philosophical tone throughout the book. The narrative is enriched by the experiences of individuals such as Leo Auffman, who attempts (unsuccessfully) to construct a 'Happiness machine'. Overall, the book provides a nostalgic sense of childhood and an understanding of the beauty of the world and all its features; in this way, it appears to be Bradbury himself reminiscing on his past. Douglas has similar traits to those Bradbury has later in life identified in himself, strengthening this interpretation.
Ray Bradbury is one of those rare individuals whose writing has changed the way people think. His more than five hundred published works -- short stories, novels, plays, screenplays, television scripts, and verse -- exemplify the American imagination at its most creative.
Once read, his words are never forgotten. His best-known and most beloved books, *The Martian Chronicles*, *The Illustrated Man*, *Fahrenheit 451* and *Something Wicked This Way Comes*, are masterworks that readers carry with them over a lifetime. His timeless, constant appeal to audiences young and old has proven him to be one of the truly classic authors of the 20th Century -- and the 21st.
In recognition of his stature in the world of literature and the impact he has had on so many for so many years, Bradbury was awarded the National Book Foundation's 2000 Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, an the National Medal of Arts in 2004.
([Source][1])
[1]: http://www.raybradbury.com/about.html
