{"product_id":"death-is-a-lonely-business-9780380789658","title":"Death Is a Lonely Business","description":"\u003cp\u003eRay Bradbury, the undisputed Dean of American storytelling, dips his accomplished pen into the cryptic inkwell of \u003cem\u003enoir\u003c\/em\u003e and creates a stylish and slightly fantastical tale of mayhem and murder set among the shadows and the murky canals of Venice, California, in the early 1950s.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eToiling away amid the looming palm trees and decaying bungalows, a struggling young writer (who bears a resemblance to the author) spins fantastic stories from his fertile imagination upon his clacking typewriter. Trying not to miss his girlfriend (away studying in Mexico), the nameless writer steadily crafts his literary effort--until strange things begin happening around him.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eStarting with a series of peculiar phone calls, the writer then finds clumps of seaweed on his doorstep. But as the incidents escalate, his friends fall victim to a series of mysterious \"accidents\"--some of them fatal. Aided by Elmo Crumley, a savvy, street-smart detective, and a reclusive actress of yesteryear with an intense hunger for life, the wordsmith sets out to find the connection between the bizarre events, and in doing so, uncovers the truth about his own creative abilities.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBradbury, Ray:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - \u003cp\u003eIn a career spanning more than seventy years, Ray Bradbury, who died on June 5, 2011 at the age of 91, inspired generations of readers to dream, think, and create. A prolific author of hundreds of short stories and close to fifty books, as well as numerous poems, essays, operas, plays, teleplays, and screenplays, Bradbury was one of the most celebrated writers of our time. His groundbreaking works include \u003cem\u003eFahrenheit 451\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Martian Chronicles\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Illustrated Man\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eDandelion Wine\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eSomething Wicked This Way Comes\u003c\/em\u003e. He wrote the screen play for John Huston's classic film adaptation of \u003cem\u003eMoby Dick\u003c\/em\u003e, and was nominated for an Academy Award. He adapted sixty-five of his stories for television's \u003cem\u003eThe Ray Bradbury Theater\u003c\/em\u003e, and won an Emmy for his teleplay of \u003cem\u003eThe Halloween Tree\u003c\/em\u003e. He was the recipient of the 2000 National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, the 2004 National Medal of Arts, and the 2007 Pulitzer Prize Special Citation, among many honors.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThroughout his life, Bradbury liked to recount the story of meeting a carnival magician, Mr. Electrico, in 1932. At the end of his performance Electrico reached out to the twelve-year-old Bradbury, touched the boy with his sword, and commanded, \"Live forever!\" Bradbury later said, \"I decided that was the greatest idea I had ever heard. I started writing every day. I never stopped.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBradbury, Ray D.:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - \u003cp\u003eIn a career spanning more than seventy years, Ray Bradbury inspired generations of readers to dream, think, and create. A prolific author of hundreds of short stories and close to fifty books, as well as numerous poems, essays, operas, plays, and screenplays, Bradbury was one of the most celebrated writers of our time. His groundbreaking works include \u003cem\u003eFahrenheit 451, The Martian Chronicles, The Illustrated Man, Dandelion Wine\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eSomething Wicked This Way Comes\u003c\/em\u003e. An Emmy Award winner for his teleplay \u003cem\u003eThe Halloween Tree \u003c\/em\u003eand an Academy Award nominee, he was the recipient of the 2000 National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, the 2004 National Medal of Arts, and the 2007 Pulitzer Prize Special Citation, among many honors.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"William Morrow \u0026 Company","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50643258245394,"sku":"9780380789658","price":10.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_baf4d3b0-9144-4cd8-a515-ee15e9a3f1aa.jpg?v=1733081672","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/death-is-a-lonely-business-9780380789658","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}