Literature

Meet the Author

Ray Bradbury was born in

1920. He began writing as a
      boy. “My parents had given
      me a toy typewriter for
      Christmas,” Bradbury wrote,
      “and I stormed it with words.
      Anytime I liked I could turn a
      faucet on each finger and let
      the miracles out, yes, into
      machines and onto paper
      where I might freeze and con-
      trol them forever. I haven’t
      stopped writing since.” See
      page R2 of the Author Files
      for more on Ray Bradbury.

Author Search For more

about Ray Bradbury, go to

http://www.glencoe.com.

READING WORKSHOP 2 • Using Text Features

Before You Read

Ray Bradbury

Vocabulary Preview

shriveled (SHRIV uld) adj. shrunken and wrinkled (p. 569) Dry, shriveled

food sat on the table, uneaten.

emerged (ih MURJD) v. came out; form of the verb emerge (p. 569)

Spotless dishes emerged from the washer.

charred (chard) adj. burned (p. 569) The walls were blackened and

charred in the intense heat of an explosion.

inconvenience (in kun VEEN yuns) n. something that causes difficulty,

discomfort, or bother (p. 570) Messiness may cause inconvenience,

but it’s not a tragedy.

frenzy (FREN zee) n. unusual mental excitement leading to wild activity

(p. 571) In a frenzy, the dog chased its tail and barked.

whims (wimz) n. sudden urges, desires, or ideas (p. 572) The house took

care of family members’ needs as well as their whims.

oblivious (uh BLIV ee us) adj. not noticing; not aware of (p. 574) The trees

stood silently, oblivious to the destruction nearby.

Write to Learn Choose four vocabulary words. For each word, write a

sentence using that word.

English Language Coach

Suffixes There’s one common suffix that does not modify a word; it com-

pletely changes it! It’s the suffix -less.

What’s the opposite of hopeful? Hopeless. The suffix -less means “without.”

If you’re hopeless, you’re without hope. Anytime you add -less to a word

you’ll change the meaning by adding “without” to it.

Practice -less Not Less Add the suffix -less to each word below.

help use friend care penny power

There Will Come Soft Rains

566 UNIT 5 Is Progress Always Good?
Satelight/Gamma Liaison

Objectives (pp. 566–575)
Reading Use text features: italics

• Make connections from text to self
  Literature Identify literary elements:
  concept and definition
  Vocabulary Identify word structure:
  suffixes