海角大神

He was one of the last bastions against the digital age, who once famously claimed that e-books 鈥渟mell like burned fuel.鈥� After years of resistance, however, Ray Bradbury has surrendered and his science fiction classic, 鈥�Fahrenheit 451鈥� has been published as an e-book.

In the past, the outspoken Mr. Bradbury, now 91, has lambasted the Internet, e-books, 鈥済iant screens,鈥� and the 鈥渕oronic influence鈥� they have on our culture. In 2009, he told 鈥渢he internet is a big distraction.鈥� Yahoo!, he explained, had contacted him about putting one of his books on their site. 鈥淵ou know what I told them?鈥� he told the Times. 鈥溾�橳o hell with you. To hell with you and to hell with the internet. It鈥檚 distracting. It鈥檚 meaningless; it鈥檚 not real. It鈥檚 in the air somewhere.鈥欌��

And in a video on his own homepage, Bradbury says that 鈥淔ahrenheit 451鈥� isn鈥檛 just about book censorship, but about how television and other assorted 鈥渟creens鈥� can destroy and displace books. 鈥� 鈥淔ahrenheit鈥檚鈥� not about censorship,鈥� he says in the video. 鈥淚t鈥檚 about the moronic influence of popular culture through local TV news, the proliferation of giant screens and the bombardment of factoids. We鈥檝e moved in to this period of history that I described in 'Fahrenheit' 50 years ago.鈥�

Nevertheless, publisher Simon & Schuster has convinced the forthright author to allow the release of 鈥淔ahrenheit鈥� in digital format. that, per contract, renewing the book鈥檚 hardcover rights had to include digital rights, also.

鈥淲e explained the situation to [Bradbury] that a new contract wouldn鈥檛 be possible without e-book rights,鈥� . 鈥淗e understood and gave us the right to go ahead.鈥�

Simon & Schuster announced the news Tuesday and 鈥淔ahrenheit鈥� is now available as an e-book. The deal is reportedly worth millions. In order to get Bradbury to relent,, "the publisher had to both pay a premium price and play a little hardball."

First published in 1953, the novel predicts a dystopian future in which books are burned and reading is banned. 鈥淔ahrenheit 451鈥� has since sold more than 10 million copies.

As Wired notes, Bradbury has not been alone in his resistance to allowing electronic versions of his books. (The new agreement between Bradbury and Simon & Schuster includes the mass-market rights to "The Martian Chronicles" and "The Illustrated Man," but not their digital rights.) Harper Lee and Thomas Pynchon have balked at selling digital rights to their books, as has the estate of James Joyce.

But Bradbury, with his shift to digital, now stands poised to sell many more copies of 鈥淔ahrenheit鈥� 鈥� perhaps to soften suspicions of the digital age.

In , Bradbury acknowledges the irony of his own webpage and posits that although people are in danger of losing themselves in the virtual worlds of the Internet, it may also hold opportunities for some.

鈥淚 find it amusing that I鈥檓 on the internet now, because I鈥檝e criticized it, but mainly I鈥檝e criticized it on the basis of 鈥榳hat are you going to do with it?鈥� 鈥� . 鈥淚鈥檝e been afraid of people playing their life away with too many toys.鈥�

鈥淎ll I want to do is warn people, that鈥檚 all,鈥� he goes on. 鈥淲e can use it as a good tool; we can use it for information. I hope it鈥檚 an experiment that works.鈥�

Husna Haq is a Monitor correspondent.

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