"Farenheit 451" by Ray Bradbury is a dystopian novel that revolves around the theme of knowledge where books are illegal. the burning f any books found by the "firemen" also reveals the theme of the censoring of literature and attaining of knowledge through books.
the quote given in the question <em>"He touched it, just to be sure it was real"</em> can be seen in page number 133, the first sentence of the second line of Chapter III: Burning Bright. It shows the scene where Montag had raced to the rivers to avoid the mechanical hound and the helicopters looking for him. The waters will keep the hounds away from detecting his scent, which worked and he drifted to the woods where he met the group of intellects.
Text referred- (https://www.fsusd.org/cms/lib03/CA01001943/Centricity/Domain/2034/Fahrenheit%20451.pdf)
