"Dandelion Wine": a summary of the book by Ray Bradbury

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Ray Bradbury is an American science fiction writer. He is considered to be a classic of science fiction, although many of his works are closer to the genre of fairy tales, fantasy. The author wrote about eight hundred literary works in various genres. "Dandelion Wine", according to readers, is considered one of the writer's favorite books.

General characteristics of the work

Ray Bradbury's story "Dandelion Wine" is autobiographical. In the main character of this work, you can guess the author himself. This is a boy who has a kind heart, an inquisitive mind and a subtle soul. He is inquisitive, he is interested in everything.

At the heart of the brief content "Dandelion Wine" - the events of the summer through the eyes of a boy - Douglas Spaulding. The author describes them through a romantic perception of reality. This is not so much the inner world as the world that the child sees. It is not at all like the world of adults, it is bright, sometimes incomprehensible, unpredictable, changeable. But the main intrigue of Bradbury's story "Dandelion Wine" is the search for the secret of life, which makes the world interesting, scary and beautiful at the same time. And the idea of good as the greatest inthe life of a miracle runs through the entire story of the author. Find out more about Dandelion Wine here.

Collecting dandelions

At the center of Ray Bradbury's "Dandelion Wine" is Douglas Spaulding, a boy of twelve. He met the morning of the first day of the summer of 1928 in the highest tower of the town of Greentown.

In the early morning, the boy went to the forest with his father and younger brother Tom to gather wild grapes. Suddenly he felt how something gigantic and unknown surged over him, he felt the contraction of his muscles, the movement of blood through the veins. For the first time, he felt that he was alive. This feeling intoxicated him. When the dandelions blossomed, the children began to collect them in bags. Grandfather paid 10 cents for each bag. Flowers were carried to the cellar and poured out under the press. Then the juice was poured into earthenware jugs in which it fermented. After that, grandfather poured them into clean ketchup bottles. Each bottle of dandelion wine seemed to fit one summer day. Then, during the long winter, the whole huge Douglas family saved themselves from colds with this wonderful summer drink. Picking flowers for dandelion wine is the first summer ritual for a boy.

After picking dandelions, Douglas went to meet his friends. They were Charlie Woodman and John Hough. Together they traveled around Greentown and its environs. Douglas was particularly attracted to the ravine. It seemed to him that some secret was hidden here.

Second Rite of Douglas

When the boy and his parents returned from the cinema in the evening, he saw new tennis shoes,which were on display in the shop window. Douglas realized that he simply needed them, because the old shoes no longer had the magic that only a new pair could have. But his father refused to buy him.

Because the boy had too little savings of his own, he went to Mr. Sanderson's shoe shop. The boy wanted to work for him as a courier all summer. But the old man only asked Douglas to do his little errands.

On the same day in the evening, the boy bought a notebook with a yellow cover. He divided it into two parts. One was called "Rites and Ordinaries", which recorded the summer events that take place every year. In the second part, en titled "Discoveries and Revelations", it was necessary to record what was happening for the first time or everything old that was perceived in a new way. Douglas and Tom filled out this notebook every night.

Rite on the third day of summer

Grandpa built a swing. Now, on summer evenings, the whole Spaulding family will relax on the veranda, swinging on them.

One day a grandfather with his grandchildren passed by a tobacco shop. He advised the men who gathered there to make a machine of happiness. City jeweler Leo Aufman decided to take it on.

Happiness Machine

Bradbury's story "Dandelion Wine" continues the story of the creation of the machine of happiness. Lina, his wife, was against the creation of this machine. However, Leo spent two whole weeks in the garage, creating it. Finally she was done. The Happiness Machine has become the cause of contention in the Leo family. One day his son secretly from everyonegot into the car. At night, Leo heard him crying. The next morning his wife decided to leave him. But before that, she looked at the machine of happiness. In the car, she saw something that would never happen in her life, that had already passed. Lina said that this invention should be called "grief machine", because now she will always strive into the world of illusions. Leo himself wanted to see this and climbed into the car. But she suddenly burned out. In the evening, looking out the window, Leo saw real happiness - children playing and his wife busy with household chores.

Old people couldn't be children

One day, Alice, Jane and Tom Spaulding wandered into the lawn of old Mrs. Helen Bentley. When she saw them, she treated them to ice cream and began to talk about her childhood. As evidence, she showed the children her childhood photo, old things and toys from childhood, which she carefully kept in her chests for many years. However, the children still did not believe that such an old woman was once a little girl. The next morning, Helen gave her old toys to the children, and pulled out all the other old things from the past from the chests and burned them.

Douglas wrote in "Revelations and Revelations" that old people were never little children.

Time travel

The content of the story "Dandelion Wine" includes a story about an extraordinary person. Colonel Freeleigh had the ability to travel into the past. His memory served as a time machine. Once Charlie Woodman came to him with friends to make a trip. They visited the WildWest in the days of Indians and cowboys. After that, the children often came to him to travel more.

Green car

Miss Fern and Miss Roberta bought a green battery car from a visiting salesman because Miss Fern couldn't walk for long because her legs hurt. The old ladies drove this car for a whole week. But one day Mr. Quaterman got under their wheels. The old women were frightened, ran away from the scene of the accident and hid in the attic. Douglas was a witness to this story. He decided to inform the old women that their "victim" was alive and well. But they didn't open the door for him. As a result, women have given up traveling in green cars forever.

Farewell to the tram

One fine day, Douglas, Tom and Charlie, together with the city tram leader, rode around the city. This old tram ran for the last time: it was closed, and now a bus should run instead of it. The counselor showed the guys a half-forgotten route.

One day, Douglas' friend John Hav informed him that his father had got a job away from Greentown and they were now leaving that city for good. So that the time before parting did not pass too quickly, the friends sat and did nothing. However, the day, as always, went by very quickly. When they played in the evening, Douglas tried in vain to keep his companion. But nothing helped, he left. When Douglas went to bed with Tom, he asked him to never part.

Failed sorcery

Elmira Brown, the postman's wife, constantly happenedall sorts of troubles: she broke her leg, tore expensive stockings, she was not elected chairman of the Honeysuckle women's club. She blamed Clara Goodwater for all her troubles. Elmira was sure that Clara could not do without witchcraft here, and decided to answer her in the same way. After preparing the potion and drinking it, she took Tom with her as having a “pure soul” and went to the next meeting of the club. But the potion did not work - the ladies again chose Clara as chairman, and not her. But the potion caused Elmira to vomit. She ran to the ladies' room, but, mistaking the door, fell down the stairs. After clarifying the relationship with Clara in the presence of the ladies surrounding them, Clara gave up her position to her. It turned out that there was no witchcraft at all. It's just that Elmira was very clumsy.

Freeley's death

When the apples ripened and began to fall from the trees, children were no longer allowed to visit Colonel Freeley. He had a very strict nurse. Secretly from her, Frilei would sneak to the phone and call Mexico City, where his friend lived, who helped him awaken memories. The colonel died with a phone in his hands. With his death, an entire era ended for Douglas.

Soulmates

After the second harvest of dandelions, Douglas, at the invitation of Bill Forester, sat at a table in a drugstore, eating an unusual ice cream. At the next table sat Helen Loomis, a ninety-five-year-old woman. Bill spoke to her. Somehow, seeing her old photo, he fell in love with her, not suspecting that this beautiful girl had already become an old woman. They talked to each other for a long time. It turned out that these are two kindred spirits who missed each other in time. She died in August. Before she died, she wrote a letter to Bill.

Deathkiller

Children ate "fruit ice" and remembered the Soul Killer who lived in Greentown. The whole city was afraid of him, as he killed young girls. One day, Lavinia Nebbs and her girlfriends were going to the movies. When they walked through the ravine, they found the victim of the Murderer. Calling the police, they continued on their way. After the session was over, the girlfriends persuaded Lavinia to stay overnight with one of them, because it was already dark outside, and her house was behind a ravine. But the stubborn girl refused the proposal of her girlfriends and went home alone. On the way through the ravine, someone began to pursue her. Lavinia ran home as fast as she could. Having reached the house, she immediately closed the door, but suddenly someone coughed near her. The girl was not taken aback, grabbed the scissors and pierced the intruder. The legend of Greentown came to an end, which the boys very much regretted. But then they came up with the idea that this intruder was not a Soul Killer at all, so they could continue to be afraid.

Inevitable

Douglas's great-grandmother was very energetic throughout her life. She was constantly doing some household chores. But one day, going around the whole house, she went to her room and died there.

Dandelion Wine quotes give a slightly different idea of simple things. The reader involuntarily draws attention to the words of the grandmother, said to the family at parting, that if the work brings pleasure, it always turns out well.

After these events in Douglas' notebookthere is a new entry saying that if people die, then he will die someday.

Witch

Realizing that one day this will happen, Douglas lost his peace. Only a wax sorceress, an attraction that stood in the Gallery, could calm him down. In it, a wax doll-sorceress wrote predictions. She gave Douglas a card predicting a long and happy life for him. From that time on, the boy became a frequent visitor to the Gallery. He watched with interest the automata, which performed the same actions. It seemed to the boy that the sorceress used to be real, but she was turned into a wax doll. One day, the sorceress began to issue empty cards instead of the promised predictions. Tom believed that the machine had run out of ink, but Douglas decided that Mr. Dark could not have been here, and he wanted to save the fortune teller. The children witnessed how the drunk Mr. Dark broke the machine gun. They picked up the wax doll and ran. At the ravine, Mr. Dark overtook the boys, took the witch from them and threw them far into the ravine. The brothers called for help from their father, who helped pull the doll out and bring it to the garage.

Useful things

Nad Jonas is a weirdo who got fed up with life in Chicago and came to Greentown. He drove a van with things around the city around the clock, collecting unnecessary things from people in order to give them to those who needed them. One hot summer day, Douglas fell ill. All day he was relieved of fever, but all in vain. Tom told Nadu Jonas about this, and he urgently wanted to visit the boy. But the mother did not let the stranger see her sick son. Then at night Jonas sneaked into the sick man and gave him two bottles. In one of them there was the purest northern air from the Arctic, in the other - the s alty wind of the Aran Islands and Dublin Bay, fruit extract, menthol and camphor. Douglas inhaled the contents of the bottles, and the disease began to recede.

Culinary Talent

"Dandelion Wine" in summary continues with the following story. My grandmother had extraordinary culinary skills. In the kitchen, she worked a miracle, but there was no order there. One day, Aunt Rose came to visit the Douglas family. She decided to rectify the situation and put the kitchen in perfect order. All spices and other products were neatly arranged in jars on the shelves. The whole kitchen shone with order and cleanliness. She bought her grandmother new glasses and a cookbook. In the evening the family gathered for dinner. Everyone expected something unusually tasty from the grandmother. But the food turned out to be inedible, as the grandmother forgot how to cook in the new kitchen. The family sent Aunt Rosa home, but grandmother's talent did not return. Then Douglas made his way to the kitchen at night and returned her former mess, at the same time throwing out her new grandmother's glasses. He just burned the cookbook. Grandma came to the noise in the kitchen. The gift returned to her and she began to cook.

End of summer

The stationery store started selling school supplies. This meant that summer had come to an end. Grandpa had his last flower picking for dandelion wine. He removed the swing from the veranda. The last time Douglas spent the night in his grandfather's tower. Like a magician, he waved his hand, and in the citythe lights began to go out. But he was not upset: the cellar was filled with bottles of dandelion wine, in which summer days were canned.