The classic science fiction novel Fahrenheit 451, a tale about a society in the future where independent thought and  creativity are forbidden and firefighters are sent to burn books, has been released as an e-book despite author Ray Bradbury’s fervent dislike for the format.

 He’s fond of saying ebooks smell like burning fuel and had in the past refused multiple requests to publish Fahrenheit 451 digitally. Bradbury hasn’t had a change of heart however. The ebook resulted after Simon & Schuster insisted on digital rights be included if he wanted a new contract with them.

There is a certain irony to a legendary science fiction author being vehemently opposed to e-readers, e-books, and most other forms of technology. Bradbury insists there are too many machines in our world and they need to be gotten rid of. He’s certainly entitled to that opinion; in fact Fahrenheit 451 is all about fighting for the right to individuality and free thought.  He’s not the only author against ebooks to eventually release their catalog digitally-Harry Potter author JK Rowling was firmly against ebooks for years, insist they would allow people to edit and steal her work, but now she’s preparing to open a website where she will sell digital copies of the entire Harry Potty saga.

How do you feel about ebooks? Do you have an e-reader or are you a steadfast traditionalist that will only read paper books? Please leave a comment and let us know your thoughts!

The ebook version of Fahrenheit 451 is priced at $9.99 and available for the Kindle, Nook, and most popular e-readers.