Missives from the master

Simon & Schuster has announced that they will rerelease three of Ray Bradbury’s sci-fi classics, starting with a digital version of his 1953 novel “Fahrenheit 451” that is available now.

The company will also publish a trade paperback edition of “Fahrenheit 451” on January 10, 2012, followed by mass market editions of the books “The Martian Chronicles” and “The Illustrated Man” in March of next year.

What’s interesting is that Bradury has previously been critical and dismissive of digital publishing, saying that they “smell like burning fuel” (a reference to “Fahrenheit 451,” in which all books are not just banned but burned as well). Though he is hardly the first writer to change his stance on electronic books; most recently, J.K Rowling announced plans to do digital editions of the “Harry Potter” novels.

In the meantime, the digital edition of “Fahrenheit 451” will be $9.99, while the upcoming print version will be $11.99.