From the Dust Returned

• Publisher:   Avon
• Number Of Pages:   288
• Publication Date:   2002-09-01
• ISBN-10 / ASIN:   0380789612
• ISBN-13 / EAN:   9780380789610

Ray Bradbury, America's most beloved storyteller, has spent a lifetime carrying readers to exhilarating and dangerous places, from dark street comers in unfamiliar cities and towns to the edge of the universe. Now, in an extraordinary flight of the imagination a half-century in the making, he takes us to a most wondrous destination: into the heart of an Eternal Family.

They have lived for centuries in a house of legend and mystery in upper Illinois -- and they are not like other midwesterners. Rarely encountered in daylight hours, their children are curious and wild; their old ones have survived since before the Sphinx first sank its paws deep in Egyptian sands. And some sleep in beds with lids.

Now the house is being readied in anticipation of the gala homecoming that will gather together the farflung branches of this odd and remarkable family. In the past-midnight stillness can be detected the soft fluttering of Uncle Einars wings. From her realm of sleep, Cecy, the fairest and most special daughter, can feel the approach of many a welcome being -- shapeshifter, telepath, somnambulist, vampire -- as she flies high in the consciousness of bird and bat.

But in the midst of eager anticipation, a sense of doom pervades. For the world is changing. And death, no stranger, will always shadow this most singular family: Father, arisen from the Earth; Mother, who never sleeps but dreams; A Thousand Times Great Grandmére; Grandfather, who keeps the wildness of youth between his ears.

And the boy who, more than anyone, carries the burden of time on his shoulders: Timothy, the sad and different foundling son who must share it all, remember, and tell...and who, alone out of all of them, must one day age and wither and die.

By turns lyrical, wistful, poignant, and chilling, From the Dust Returned is the long-awaited new novel by the peerless Ray Bradbury -- a book that will surely be numbered among his most enduring masterworks.

High on a hill by a forked tree, the House beckons its family homeward, and they come--travelers from the lyrical, lush imagination of Ray Bradbury.

From the Dust Returned chronicles a community of eternal beings: a mummified matriarch who speaks in dust; a sleeping daughter who lives through the eyes and ears of the creatures she visits in her dreams; an uncle with wings like sea-green sails. And there is also the mortal child Timothy, the foundling son who yearns to be like those he loves: to fly, to sleep in daytime, and to live forever. Instead, his task is to witness the family's struggle with the startling possibility of its own end.

Bradbury is deservedly recognized as a master of lyricism and delicate mood. In this novel he weaves together individuals' stories and the overarching family crisis into a softly whispered, seductive tale of longing and loss, death and life in the shadowy places. --Roz Genessee

Pulling a lifetime of short stories into one novel, From the Dust Returned is the story of one large, unusual, supernatural family which makes its home in a grand old house in the Midwest. The book begins with a promising combination of Halloween-esque figures and lush storytelling, but that's not enough to fill a book. The characters are intriguing, but they feel unrealistic; the lush language swiftly becomes repetitive; the plot eventually comes into itself but for the most part reflects too much of its short story origins. A chapter at a time, I could appreciate From the Dust Returned--but as an entire novel I felt like something was missing: something solid, concrete enough to sustain 200 pages of text. As a result I have a mixed reaction to this novel. I wanted to like it, and sometimes did, but I can't in good faith recommend it. Pick it up if you're interested, but consider the caveats: From the Dust Returned is intriguing but imperfect, and it's certainly not Bradbury's best work.

Bradbury is without competition my favorite author of all time. I've read all of his books, and some of them several times. Of them, this is probably his loosest. It is poetic, beautiful, haunting. It is also at times opaque, whimsical, and difficult to engage. I believe that some readers will probably enjoy this book as much as Bradbury's other offerings, but I personally found this to be merely average. Without question a beautifully written book filled with lovely descriptions, the lyrical quality of Bradbury's writing is in full force. Unfortunately, his usual plotting and continuity in his collections of short stories is largely missing. I feel like he perfectly captures a dreamy, childlike quality of observation, but this comes with some of the confusion of childhood as well. If you enjoy Bradbury, you will like the book, even if you agree with me that it is not his best effort.

This book puts some early stories that didn't make much sense in their collections into a context that certainly does. The result is impressive and enjoyable. Like Dandelion Wine it is a sequence of stories collectively forming a novel. The early writing is brilliant, the later examples simpler and mellower, and the whole thing adds up surely to one of his essential books. The only doubts I had were about a story from the 1980s. Ray Bradbury is on a roll and it is wonderful to have him even now adding great books to his name.

I had read pieces of this work before scattered through various Bradbury anthologies, and so it was surprising and somewhat unsettling to encounter them in their original context. This is a short, odd book, populated by characters that only a wonderfully-sane madman could dream up. Like most Bradbury works, it leaves you with a simultaneous feeling of satisfaction, but also the puzzlement of wondering what exactly just happened.

After reading a fair amount of Ray Bradbury's work, I searched for more. I found From the Dust Returned (Hardcover) in a used book store for six dollars, and I feel a bit robbed. Some of these stories previously published (Homecoming, The April Witch, On the Orient North) are some of Bradbury's best short stories. So then, what is wrong with this novel? It all doesn't flow together well. Bradbury should have just left his short stories alone and should not have tried to make a full novel based around them. Ray Bradbury's writing is, as always, gorgeous, and I do like a few of these chapters, but overall, it wasn't a very exciting read. 3.5 stars.

password: R20090817

NEWER EBOOKS

Count of Monte Christo - Alexandre Dumas - Audio Book

Alexandre | ISBN: N/a | 2004 | MP3 | 32 Mb The Count of Monte Cristo (French: Le Comte de Monte-Cristo) is an adventure novel by Alexandre Dumas, père. It is often considered to be, along with The Three Musketeers, Dumas' most popular work. The writing of the work was completed in 1844. Like many of his novels, it is expanded from the plot outlines suggested by his collaborating ghostwriter Auguste Maquet. about this ebook

Holes - Louis Sachar - Audiobook

Louis Sachar | ISBN: N/a | 2005 | MP3 | 28 Mb The story of Stanley Yelnats and Camp Green Lake started about one hundred years ago. Back in Latvia, Elya Yelnats, the great-great-grandfather of Stanley, fell in love with an empty headed girl. Her father announced that on this girl's birthday, whoever shows up with the largest pig will have his daughter. Elya did not own any pigs; discouraged, he went to Madame Zeroni, an old woman with many words of advice. about this ebook

12 Byzantine Rulers: The History of The Byzantine Empire

Lars Brownworth | ISBN: N/a | 2004 | MP3 | 28 Mb This history lecture podcast covers the little known Byzantine Empire through the study of twelve of its greatest rulers. 12 Byzantine Rulers: The History of The Byzantine Empire 12 Byzantine Rulers: Part 1 - Introduction What is the Byzantine Empire? Why would a Byzantine citizen call himself Roman and not know what the Byzantine Empire was? In this introduction to Byzantine history, Lars Brownworth describes where Byzantium came from and why defining Byzantium is a murky and difficult task. about this ebook

Dragon Tears - Dean Koontz - Audiobook

Dean Koontz | ISBN: N/a | 2002 | MP3 | 172 Mb Harry Lyon is a cop who embraces tradition and order. The biggest bane of his life is his partner, Connie Gulliver. Harry doesn't like the messiness of her desk, her lack of social polish or her sometimes casual attitude towards the law. 'Look, Harry, it's the Age of Chaos,' she tells him. 'Get with the times.' And when Harry and Connie have to take out a hopped-up gunman in a restaurant, the chase and shootout swiftly degenerate into a surreal nightmare that seems to justify Connie's view of the modern world. about this ebook

L. Frank Baum - Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz

L. Frank Baum | ISBN: 0486247147 | 1984 | MP3 | 112 Mb The Earthquake The train from 'Frisco was very late. It should have arrived at Hugson's Siding at midnight, but it was already five o'clock and the gray dawn was breaking in the east when the little train slowly rumbled up to the open shed that served for the station-house. As it came to a stop the conductor called out in a loud voice: Hugson's Siding! At once a little girl rose from her seat and walked to the door of the car, carrying a wicker suit-case in one hand and a round bird-cage covered up with newspapers in the other, while a parasol was tucked under her arm. about this ebook

Nora Roberts - Time and Again (Audiobook)

Silhouette | ISBN: 0373285337 | 2006 | MP3 | 202 Mb New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts enchants readers once again with two unique and intriguing classic tales about passion so powerful it transcends time itself! Time Was Stranded in the present, time traveler Caleb Hornblower's biggest problem wasn't returning to the twenty-third century -- it was falling in love with the beguiling Liberty Stone, who showed him a love more powerful than time itself. about this ebook

Edgar Rice Burroughs - Tarzan of the Apes

Edgar Rice Burroughs | ISBN: 0451524233 | 2007 | MP3 | 255 Mb First published in 1914, Edgar Rice Burroughs's romance has lost little of its force over the years--as film revivals and TV series well attest. Tarzan of the Apes is very much a product of its age: replete with bloodthirsty natives and a bulky, swooning American Negress, and haunted by what zoo specialists now call charismatic megafauna (great beasts snarling, roaring, and stalking, most of whom would be out of place in a real African jungle). about this ebook

Lewis Carroll - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Lewis Carroll | ISBN: 0785824464 | 2006 | MP3 | 282 Mb Alice was beginning to get very tired of sitting by her sister on the river bank, and of having nothing to do...when suddenly a White Rabbit with pink eyes ran by her. Alice did not think it so very strange to hear the Rabbit say to itself, "Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!" But when the Rabbit actually took a watch out of its waistcoat pocket and then hurried on, she started to wonder! Running after the strange fellow, she was just in time to see it pop down a large rabbit-hole. about this ebook

Eldest (Inheritance, Book 2) [Audiobook, Unabridged]

Young Adult | ISBN: 0307280721 | 2005 | MP3 | 342 Mb Surpassing its popular prequel Eragon, this second volume in the Inheritance trilogy shows growing maturity and skill on the part of its very young author, who was only seventeen when the first volume was published in 2003. The story is solidly in the tradition (some might say derivative) of the classic heroic quest fantasy, with the predictable cast of dwarves, elves, and dragons--but also including some imaginatively creepy creatures of evil. about this ebook

The Battle of Corrin (Legends of Dune, Book 3) [Audiobook, CD, Unabridged]

Macmillan Audio | ISBN: 1593974256 | 2004 | MP3 | 312 Mb Dune addicts will happily devour Herbert and Anderson's spicy conclusion (after 2003's Dune: The Machine Crusade) to their second prequel trilogy, Legends of Dune. A fearsome robot-engineered plague opens the tumultuous Battle of Corrin, climaxing the century-long galactic war between humans and the computer Omnius's robotic Synchronized Empire. about this ebook

Bookmark From the Dust Returned

Hyperlink code: