The Small Assasin

Awww! Isn't this baby so cute? Well, in "The Small Assassin" by Ray Bradbury, the baby may be cute, but it is a killer.

The mother was having complications that were threatening her life. She had an emergency surgery, and the baby and his mother lived. The mother was extremely exhausted from her near death experience, and the baby would not sleep through the nights. He cried constantly and wore his mother out so bad that she caught pneumonia. Later, the baby purposely left a toy at the top of the stairs just so the mother would fall to her death.

Now, the baby's next target was his father. He had set the toy out originally to kill his father, but ended up killing his mother. Eventually one night while the father was in a deep sleep the baby turned the gas on and the father died a silent death. The baby had succeeded in his plans.

In my opinion, this was one strange baby. I can't ever recall hearing a true story like this fiction story. I can say that pneumonia is a very tiring and miserable illness.

All Summer in a Day

To the left is the sun. It is the center of our solar system. On Earth we see it every day. On other planets, it doesn't come as often. For Venus, the Sun only comes out every seven years. Wow, I could not imagine going seven years without seeing the sun.

In "All Summer in a Day" by Ray Bradbury, there is a community of kids that live and go to school on Venus. This was a very spectacular day. The sun was coming out for the first time in seven years. The teacher had planned a class field trip to see the sun.

Margrot had looked forward to the Sun arriving since the day she left Earth. But, the other kids mocked her because she knew in her heart that the sun was going to come. She just knew it. The other kids were so mean, mad, and malicious that they locked her in the closet.

Eventually, the sun came out and the horrible kids remembered that they had left Margrot in the closet. She never got to see the sun.

I had a similar experience in that I had waited months to take part in the light parade. The night before, I broke my ankle and was forced to stay home.

Children and Their Parents

To the left you see a normal family of kids. Well, as happy as they look, there are other children that are not so happy. Some kids say they hate their parents because their embarrassing, uncool, or too old. Well, that may all be true, but killing them is no way to fix it. Those kids have no reasons whatsoever to think this.

On the other hand, there are kids that have reason to think this. I read a story about a seven year old girl who told an adult that she knew, she wished her parents were dead. Her stepfather abused her both physically, psychological, and sexually. The young girl was absolutely frightened by the man. All the while, her mother knew that abuse had taken place and did nothing about it. The man which the girl told she hated her parents was very remorseful that the young girl died only a week later from abuse.

The Gift

Do you think he can carry any more gifts? Think about this as well. Could you ever imagine spending your Christmas in a space ship?
Well, in "The Gift" by Ray Bradbury that is exactly what a young boy did. The boy and his family traveled out into space. As Christmas drew closer, his parents being fretting about how their son would react when they told him that his present had to be left behind. At the first strike of Christmas, his parents gave him his present. The boy had asked for an extraordinary tree, but he would be amazed by this present as well. His dad took him to an observation desk where the boy could look into space. As they both watched through the glass they fell into utter amazement. As he stood looking into infinite darkness and stars, he realized that it was a truly amazing gift.


I have had situations quite like this one. I thought that I had picked out the perfect gift and had been begging for it for months. Yet, on Christmas morning my mom had the perfect gift, that I had not asked for sitting underneath the Christmas tree.

The Veldt

Don't they look scary? Could you imagine being maulled by one of these? Well, the picture you just saw in your head is what you imagine when you read "The Veldt" by Ray Bradbury.





The story starts off being about a family living in a futuristic smart house. No body has to lift a finger. The mom doesn't cook or clean. The dad doesn't have to fix things when they break. The children do not have to brush their teeth, hair, or tie their own shoes. It gets even better. There is a nursey that changes its walls to what the occupant of the room is thinking. If you are thinking of a ship, you will see a ship on the wall. The picture looks 3D too, almost as if it was real.


Dosen't all of that sound great? Think very hard before you answer. Well, once you find out how the story ends you might change your answer to that question.




Well, the story gets in deeper and the children begin to act strangly. They spend all of their time in the nursery. But, what is even more strange is that the walls in the nursery have been an African Veldt for a long time. The lions are eating something too. But the parents didn't know what the lions were eating until it was much too late.





The parents were eaten by lions from the African Veldt.

For those of you who gasped or shivered, I did the same exact thing. I could not believe what I had just read. I have never heard of children killing their parents. I did hear once that some man's nepheiw killed him for his money. But,I have never heard of kids killing their parents. I just can't believe it.

The Author

Ray Bradbury

This amazing author has written many stories and is no stranger to writing. He has an unusual taste in literature, in my opinion. I have read four short stories and they all have a twisted, almost disturbing ending. His talent is constantly expressed through his vivid writing.