Ray Bradbury

Born in Waukegan, Illinois, in 1920 and later based in Los Angeles, Ray Bradbury became one of the most celebrated American writers of the 20th century. He wrote across science fiction, fantasy, horror, and mystery, but his stories are often remembered most for their warmth, imagination, and deep feeling for childhood, memory, and the risks of a dehumanized future.

His best-known books include Fahrenheit 451, The Martian Chronicles, and Something Wicked This Way Comes. Over a career that lasted more than seventy years, he published hundreds of short stories and many books, while also writing for film, television, and theater.

Bradbury received many major honors, including the National Book Foundation's Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, the National Medal of Arts, and a Pulitzer Prize Special Citation in 2007. He died in Los Angeles on June 5, 2012, leaving behind a body of work that continues to invite readers to dream, question, and look at the world with fresh eyes.