ray bradbury time travel short story

10 of the Best Ray Bradbury Stories Everyone Should Read

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

Ray Bradbury (1920-2012) is widely recognised as one of the greatest – and most lyrical – science-fiction writers of the twentieth century, although he preferred to describe himself as a ‘fantasy writer’ or simply as a ‘writer’.

Although he is known for novels such as the dystopian classic Fahrenheit 451 and the horror novel Something Wicked This Way Comes , much of Ray Bradbury’s best work was in the short-story form. But where should the beginner start? Below, we select and introduce our pick of ten of Bradbury’s best short stories. If these whet your appetite for more, we thoroughly recommend The Stories of Ray Bradbury .

1. ‘A Sound of Thunder’.

A time-travel story about how changing the past could bring about momentous and catastrophic changes to the future, ‘A Sound of Thunder’ is often taught and studied in schools and remains a classic of 1950s science fiction. The story was first published in Collier’s magazine in 1952 and then collected a year later in Bradbury’s short-story collection, The Golden Apples of the Sun .

Set in the mid-twenty-first century, the story focuses on a hunting party which travels back to prehistoric times so the lucky tourist can hunt a dinosaur: the ultimate in ‘big game’. But Eckels, one of the men taking part in the safari, makes a small blunder which will have far-reaching implications when the party returns to their present time …

2. ‘The Pedestrian’.

In some ways a precursor to Bradbury’s more famous novel Fahrenheit 451 , this 1951 story is set in a future world in which people sit mindlessly and passively in front of their television sets every evening.

The ‘pedestrian’ of the story’s title is the one man in the city who refuses to do so, and doesn’t even own a television, instead preferring to roam the deserted streets and people-watch. Such suspicious behaviour attracts the attention of the authorities. Prophetic in the 1950s, the story took on renewed relevance in the early 2020s in the wake of nationwide shutdowns and stay-at-home orders in response to a virus.

3. ‘All Summer in a Day’.

This 1954 story is set on Venus, where the sun only comes out once every seven years for a couple of hours; the rest of the time, the sun is hidden behind clouds and rains fall constantly. ‘All Summer in a Day’ is about a group of schoolchildren who have grown up on Venus, the sons and daughters of ‘rocket men and women’ who came to the planet from Earth, as the children prepare to experience the first ‘summer’ on Venus that they can remember.

But one of the children can remember what the sun is like, because she grew up on Earth. This prized knowledge makes the other children envious of her, and causes them to do something which they will come to regret.

4. ‘The Flying Machine’.

Often analysed as an allegory for nuclear proliferation during the Cold War, ‘The Flying Machine’ (1953) is in fact more far-reaching than this. A Chinese emperor discovers a man has developed a machine that enables man to fly, and promptly orders for the machine to be destroyed and its inventor put to death.

The story raises some difficult moral questions. Is the Emperor right to destroy the machine and its inventor, because, as he claims, one man’s death is better than a million people potentially dying as a result of his invention? What at first appears to be straightforward allegory for the 1950s arms race is actually a much richer story than this might imply.

5. ‘The Last Night of the World’.

Published in Esquire magazine in February 1951 before being reprinted in his 1952 collection The Illustrated Man , this story is about a husband who tells his wife that the world will end later that night.

‘The Last Night of the World’ is a classic example of Bradbury’s talent for writing brief tales with a moral, using his clear, understated prose style and ear for dialogue to let the salient themes of his story come to the fore.

6. ‘The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind’.

Perhaps the greatest literary rendition of ‘rock, paper, scissors’ ever written, ‘The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind’ is from 1953 and tells of two cities ruled by emperors who continually seek to destroy each other by building their city walls into different shapes which will ‘beat’ the other city and make their own the greatest.

‘The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind’ is another allegory for the Cold War, and the arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union.

7. ‘The Fog Horn’.

This 1951 short story is about a lighthouse whose foghorn emits a noise which attracts the attention of a primeval dinosaur living miles below the ocean. The story contains a number of key themes of Bradbury’s work, especially in its depiction of technology and the need for connection and companionship. In some ways, the story is a love story about a completely different species: one not seen on Earth for millions of years.

8. ‘The Long Rain’.

This is the earliest story on this list, from 1950, though it neatly dovetails with ‘All Summer in a Day’ above. It’s about four men who have crashed on Venus, where it is always raining. In order to preserve their sanity, the spacemen take refuge in the Sun Domes on the planet. However, even the Sun Dome cannot prevent them from slipping into madness and destruction.

9. ‘The Veldt’.

This 1952 story concerns a nursery in an automated home in which a simulation of the African veldt is conjured by some children, but the lions which appear in the nursery start to feel very real. ‘The Veldt’ can be analysed as another of Bradbury’s cautionary tales about the dangers of technology, especially when it threatens the relationship between parents and their children.

10. ‘There Will Come Soft Rains’.

Let’s conclude this pick of Ray Bradbury’s best short stories with one of his best-known. ‘There Will Come Soft Rains’ is, like many stories Bradbury wrote in the early 1950s, haunted by the fear of nuclear war.

Sometimes known by the slightly longer title, ‘August 2026: There Will Come Soft Rains’, the story appeared in Bradbury’s 1951 collection The Martian Chronicles and focuses on a house whose inhabitants have died out in a nuclear blast. The automated house, however, is unaware of this, and so the mechanical mice and other labour-saving devices continue to prepare breakfast for a family that will never sit down to enjoy it again.

Is technology our saviour or our destruction? Once again, Bradbury explores this question, pointing out that powerful new scientific developments have the power to annihilate the very people they are supposed to help.

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A Sound of Thunder

Ray bradbury.

15 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 1951

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It came on great oiled, resilient, striding legs. It towered thirty feet above half of the trees, a great evil god, folding its delicate watchmaker’s claws close to its oily reptilian chest. Each lower leg was a piston, a thousand pounds of white bone, sunk in thick ropes of muscle, sheathed over in a gleam of pebbled skin like the mail of a terrible warrior… Its mouth gaped, exposing a fence of teeth like daggers.

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• A Sound of Thunder

Read our detailed study guide on the short story A Sound of Thunder by Ray Bradbury. Our study guide covers A Sound of Thunder summary , themes, characters, and literary analysis.

A Sound of Thunder Summary

Eckel being an avid hunter wants to hunt the Tyrannosaurus rex. To fulfill his desire, he consults the time travel office. He entered Time Safar Inc., in the year 2055, in order to travel back to the past.  His eyes fell over the sign hanging on the wall. The sign states the company offers to travel back in the past and hunt the animals you want.

Then he opens up a conversation with the company agent on reception while giving him the cheque of ten thousand dollars. He pushes down the phlegm and asks whether the company guarantees his return from the past tour. On which company agent replies in negation and says they only guarantee dinosaurs. 

Moreover, the company agent informs him about the instructions to obey. Regarding disobedience, he warns him about the penalty of another ten thousand dollars.

While waiting for his past tour to begin, he does small talk with the company agent. They both discuss the recent presidential election. Both of them express their content on the victory of Keith over Deutscher.  

Regarding Deutscher, the company agent says that his victory would have brought dictatorship. He portrays him as a threat that if he had won everyone would have traveled back to 1492. The agent adds that it’s not the business that the company does. Rather they only offer hunting in the past time.

Moreover, Eckel feels confused and hesitant when the agent asks him to sign the release. Particularly, when the agent mentions the risks involved in the past tour and the deaths of previous hunters and guides. The agent tells him if he does not want to go he can tear up his cheque.  However, Eckel couldn’t tear up the cheque. While this, the agent continues the transaction.

The travel machine starts its functioning. Also, Eckel is handed over to his guide Mr. Travis.  The guides and the hunters test their oxygen and intercoms. The time machine flashes back to the past while Eckel sits stiff and pale alongside Travis, Lesperance( Travis’s fellow guide), and Billing and Kramer (other hunters).

When they arrived at their destination, Travis gave them some instructions. He instructs them to stay on the path, as it is antigravity and hovers over the ground and only shoots those which are marked red. When Eckel asks the reason for those instructions, Travis opens up a whole explanation. He tells him how our mistake can negatively impact the future. 

If he kills a mouse it will disturb the whole food chain. The animals who preyed on this mouse will not survive. In this case, generations of the animals will be destroyed. They all feel frightened by hearing this.

While waiting for the T.rex, they hear the dinosaur approaching. When Eckel sees the giant beast he becomes terrified and shied away. Travis tells him to return to the machine. However, Eckel ran in the wrong direction and left the path out of fear. In the meanwhile, T.rex sees the hunters and comes after them. While the hunters open up fire at the giant beast.

After killing the beast, they return to the time machine, where they found Eckel shivering. Travis becomes furious when he sees Eckel’s muddy boot. He threatens to leave him there unless he takes out the bullets from T.rex’s body.  Despite Eckel’s taking out the bullets, Travis intimidates him for disobeying the rules.

As they return to the time travel office, Eckel notices the things have changed a bit. The smell of the air was bizarre and also the spelling on the company’s sign was changed. Eckel starts to look at his boots on which he finds a beautiful dead butterfly.

He at once, asks the company agent about the election. On which he responds cheerfully that Deutscher has won. Eckel moans and asks can’t we fix it. He kneels down and starts trembling. He sees Travis aiming a rifle at him and then there was a sound of thunder.

Background of the Story

A sound of thunder is written by American writer Ray Bradbury .  It is a science fiction short story first published in Collier’s magazine on June 28, 1952. After that, it was republished in Bradbury’s collection The Golden Apples of the Sun in 1953.

This story describes Eckel’s desire to hunt T.rex in prehistoric times. To fulfill his desire he travels back to the past along with some other hunters and his guide via a time machine. Whereas, when they arrived he instead of hunting shied away out of fear. Also, he disobeys the instructions and veers off his path and crushes a butterfly beneath his boots. Due to his disobedience, things change in the future and his guide shoots him.

This story is written after the Second World War and highlights its repercussions. Although this story is set in the future, it depicts the chaotic times of mid-twenties. Bradbury reveals the political upheaval by stereotypically using the German name Deutscher specifically highlighting Hitler’s fascist politics. Moreover, readers may find the prevailing political chaos evident through the conversation of agent and Eckel.

Themes in A Sound of Thunder

Cause and effect.

This short story is an amalgamation of the cause and effect. Bradbury through the journey from present to past depicts the cause and effect in a tactful manner. Though, Eckel’s veering off the path and crushing a butterfly is tiny destruction. However, it changes the future drastically by the victory of a fascist and change of the English language. 

It suggests to the readers how humans make a lot of mistakes by considering them petty. However, somewhere in the future, they will show their effects.  Moreover, it highlights the effects of war. Bradbury is of the view that though the war has ended but it will keep affecting the world in the form of shockwaves.

Authoritarianism, Fascism, and Nostalgia

This story is written shortly after the Second World War and highlights its repercussions. Bradbury via the German name Deutscher depicts Hitler’s fascist politics. He portrays him as a threat to everything from which everyone wants to escape. The agent told Eckel if he wins they will be running out of time machines as everyone would be escaping from the present.

Moreover, when they arrive in prehistoric time they praise the beauty over there. This shows the nostalgia they were having.  The world in which they are living is full of chaos.  Eckel’s desire to travel back in time itself shows nostalgia for the past.

 On the other hand, Bradbury also throws light on the authoritarianism of America. He expresses his concern about the political upheaval in America through the discussion of the election between Eckel and the company agent.

Environmentalism

Bradbury in this story highlights the relationship between ecology and human. He is of the view that both are directly linked to each other. He expresses how human civilization has badly affected nature through weapons of mass destruction or technology. Particularly, when Travis asks Eckel to take out the bullets from the beast’s body they don’t belong there.

 Similarly, when they arrived in the prehistoric age they were surprised by the beauty of nature. Bradbury describes the equilibrium between nature and humans when Travis explains how their minor mistake can destroy the whole food chain. Bradbury points out that everything in the world is linked. He explains it via the crushing of a butterfly that how it changes things in the future.

Bradbury via time travel machine depicts the theme of mortality. Readers may find that aging could be halted via a time machine. Life seems to pause at one point when they visit and return and their ages aren’t changed.

On the other hand, readers may find the Bradbury of the view that death is inevitable. Eckel’s fear and concerns regarding his life foreshadow his death in the story. Though he escapes from the monster in the past, his guide shoots him when they return.

Bradbury clarifies this point to the readers that despite having the time machine Eckel couldn’t escape death. He pinpoints that death is inevitable in anyways.

Characters Analysis

Mr. Eckel is the protagonist of “ a sound of thunder”. He is a hunter and wants to hunt dinosaurs by traveling back into the past. While talking to the company agent he shows his concern about the election. This also foreshadows the change of the history which Eckel will bring later on in the story.

Although, he is passionate about hunting dinosaurs yet he seems fearful of the risks involved.  Despite his desire to hunt, he backs down when he encounters the giant beast. He wanders off the path and crushes the butterfly. The crushed butterfly marked his own death in the story.

He is the tour guide of Mr. Eckel employed by Time Travel Company. He wants the hunters to abide by the rules of the company in case any danger happens. He guides the hunters about the rules of the company. Also, he instructs that no one is supposed to leave the metal path even if any danger happens.

 Despite his role as a guide, he acts out furiously over Eckel. He stresses out himself about the penalty set by the company for disobedience of rules. He becomes outraged when he comes to know about Eckel’s wandering off the path.

Moreover, he threatens Eckel to leave him behind for the damage he has caused. However, he punishes him by making him retrieve the bullets from the dinosaur’s body. Similarly, he shoots Eckel when Eckel turns everyone’s attention towards the crushed butterfly.

Lesperance is another guide appointed by Safari Inc. his duty is to mark the dinosaurs for the hunters which are going to die anyway. He is given this task to maintain ecological balance. In this way, hunting will not damage the equilibrium.

Unlike Travis, Lesperance is sympathetic and patient. He also tries to stop Travis from punishing Eckel.

Company Agent

He is an anonymous character in the story.  He greets Eckel and completes his transaction for his trip. As well as, he tells him about the risks on the tour. He emphasizes that the company does not guarantee anything whether he will return or not. He also mentions the death of hunters and guides, who recently visited the past.

Moreover, readers may find a bit of political discussion between the agent and Eckel. In the beginning, he expresses his relief over Keith’s victory. However, in the end, he praises Deutscher for winning the election. Through this character, both Eckel and readers can find the glimpses of change occurred due to Eckel’s blunder.

Literary Analysis

A sound of thunder is written by Ray Bradbury. It is a science fiction short story first published in Collier’s magazine on June 28, 1952. After that, it was republished in Bradbury’s collection The Golden Apples of the Sun in 1953.

Moreover, it describes Eckel’s desire to hunt T.rex in prehistoric times. To fulfill his desire he travels back to the past along with some other hunters and his guide via a time machine. Whereas, when they arrived he instead of hunting shied away out of fear. Also, he disobeys the instructions and veers off his path and crushes a butterfly beneath his boots. Due to his disobedience, things change in the future and his guide shoots him.

Similarly, readers may find Bradbury nostalgic through the desire of Eckel; traveling back into the times. It is obvious to the readers that Bradbury is yearning for the calmness of the past when there wasn’t any bloodshed or war.

In addition, he describes the cause and effect of things, how one minor mistake can impact life wholly. He explains it through the crushing of the butterfly that changes things into the future. He is of the view that we turn a blind eye towards the wrong things but they do affect us later. He gives the reference of the aftermath of the war that though it has ended, it has left its drastic side effects behind. War has put everything in disordered form.

Significance of the Title

Usually, the sound of thunder is horrifying and taken as a sign of danger. Similarly, the title itself foreshadows dangers and death in the story. At first, this sound of thunder is heard before the arrival of the giant beast. Afterwards, it is heard at the end of the story, when Travis shoots Eckel.

A sound of thunder is a science fiction story that is set in the time period of 2055. Though, no specific geographical location is given in the story. The story opens up in the office of Safari Time Inc., Time Travel Company which offers hunting in the prehistoric age.

Point of view

Bradbury has told this story from the third-person omniscient narration.

Bradbury has used the symbol of “metal path” for guidance and teachings of religion. He shows how society has been swerved when Eckel veers off the path. He paints a rough image of society before the readers. He shows how they have forgotten ethics at the hand of lust for power.  People were killing each other just to become an imperial power. Through this, he depicts the chaos between Hitler and the Western World.

Moreover, he has used the “bullets” as a symbol of a weapon of mass destruction. He shows the consequences of brutal war and the loss of thousands of innocent lives by the blast of atom bombs. He denounces the bullets by saying “ They don’t belong in the Past”. It signifies the bloodshed due to the sophisticated technology they have used. It throws light on the callousness of people how they destroyed each other to gain power.

On the other hand, Bradbury has used the symbol of “thunder” as death. In the jungle when T.rex approaches it foreshadows Eckel’s death. Similarly, he feels this danger when he returns to the future when Travis points his gun at him. Here, Bradbury depicts death is inevitable.

Additionally, in the story, the “ butterfly” is used as a symbol of ecological balance. With the help of this symbol, he clarifies his point on how everything in the world is linked with each other. Travis explains this point to Eckel that if he kills a mouse it will destroy the whole food chain. In this way, their generations will vanish.

It is evident that Bradbury wants to pinpoint that same is for humans. In war, thousands of humans were killed (means a generation). So this will affect its coming generation as well because they germinate a bad seed for them.

Bradbury has tactfully employed the imagery at certain places in the story. He pictures up the time machine before the readers how it flashes back millions of years.  “A week, a month, a year, a decade! A.D. 2055. A.D. 2019. 1999! 1957! Gone! The Machine roared”

Similarly, he exhibits T.rex, a giant beast with an enormous physical power with a shiny slime skin, digging claws and daggers like teeth “Its eyes rolled, ostrich eggs, empty of all expression save hunger. It closed its mouth in a death grin”

In addition, the view of the jungle is described as a place pure and full of nature. He images the birds flying in the air and flowers as red as blood.

Tone of the Story

Overall tone employed by Bradbury in the story is suspenseful, serious and critical as well. Throughout the story, readers may feel the fears of Eckel. Also, they are put in the dilemma of what will happen next.

Literary Devices

Bradbury has beautified the story through the use of different literary devices such as personification, similes, foreshadowing.  Bradbury seems to personify the thunder “the thunder grumbled like an old man.”  

Further, he comes up with the comparison of a sound of thunder with “ armored flesh glittered like a thousand green coins.” Here, the writer is comparing the two using simile. 

Similarly, he foreshadows the death of Eckel when the company agent tells him that they guarantee nothing. From this part, readers may know something bad could happen.

It is evident to the readers that it is a science fiction short story. The whole story revolves around time travel hunting. The characters go back to the past in order to hunt dinosaurs. Moreover, Eckel’s veering off the path depicts butterfly effects in the story. 

The butterfly effects show how a small change in state can cause a disturbance in the later state. This is evident when they return from the tour and the whole government is changed in the future.

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• There Will Come Soft Rains

A Sound Of Thunder

43 pages • 1 hour read

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Summary and Study Guide

Summary: “a sound of thunder”.

Ray Bradbury’s short story “A Sound of Thunder” was first published in Collier’s magazine on June 28, 1952 and was later reprinted in his 1953 short story collection A Golden Apple in the Sun . It was adapted into a comic book, 2005 film, and made into a video game. In this science fiction story, the Time Safari time travel agency brings hunters back in time to hunt now-extinct animals for a fee of several thousand dollars.

The story opens with the customer, Eckels , standing at the front desk of Time Safari, waiting to be taken back in time to hunt a Tyrannosaurus Rex. As he hands over his check for $10,000, he asks whether his survival during the journey is guaranteed, to which the official beyond the desk answers that nothing is guaranteed; he must obey directions strictly, as there are numerous rules for how the members of the hunting party must behave. They must, above all, listen to Travis , their safari leader. Eckels remarks on how glad he is that Keith has won last night’s election, instead of the tyrannical and dictatorial Deutscher . He points out that he may have tried to escape back in time had Deutscher won. The man behind the counter agrees that Deutscher’s victory would have been a disaster, describing him as “anti-everything” (104). As Eckels signs the waiver forms, the official tries to scare him, explaining that six safari leaders and 12 hunters had died the year before.

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Eckels meets Travis, the safari leader, his assistant, Lesperance , and two other hunters named Billings and Kramer. They all enter the time machine with guns, helmets, and oxygen masks to prevent them from introducing bacteria into the air. The machine brings them back in time. While they wait to arrive over 62 million years in the past, Eckels is very excited and nervous about what they are about to do.

While they journey to the past, Travis explains that the hunters may only shoot when instructed and that they are forbidden from touching anything during their stay. When Eckels asks about this rule, Travis responds gravely that the interruption of any natural processes occurring in the past could have devastating impacts on the course of future events. What is more, the government keeps Time Safari on a tight leash and closely monitors their activities. Even the effects of killing a mouse could ricochet out and cause a caveman to starve and from there prevent the pyramids from being built. As Travis explains, “step on a mouse and you leave your print, like a Grand Canyon, across Eternity” (109).

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They exit the machine, and Travis points out the long path of anti-gravity metal that extends into the jungle, hovering six inches off the ground. As they set off on the path, Eckels learns that Lesperance has tracked down the Tyrannosaurus Rex on a previous trip. This animal was going to die anyway no more than two minutes after they kill it, so they leave the past as close to how it should naturally be as possible.

As the dinosaur comes into view, enormous, strong, and hungry, Eckels begins to panic and doubts his decision to come at all. Travis instructs him to go back to the machine as the others begin to shoot. The dinosaur is huge and terrible. Its death makes a sound like thunder. Finally, they kill it. Soon after, a tree branch falls on it—the dinosaur's scheduled death.

The others make their way back to the time machine, and Travis is furious at Eckels, proclaiming that they cannot take him back to the future after some mud on his boots reveals that he has stepped off the path. After Lesperance and Travis argue over his fate, Eckels is finally ordered to retrieve the bullets from the dinosaur’s corpse. He returns with the bullets, arms bloodied, and the party goes home.

When they arrive, Travis asks the man behind the desk if everything is okay, and the man reassures him everything is fine. Eckels notices that things are subtly but indescribably different, and a sign on the wall has words spelled differently. Eckels begins to panic after seeing how his actions have changed things. He inspects his shoes and finds, imbedded in the mud, a gold and black butterfly. He asks the officer who has won the election, and he replies that it is Deutscher. Eckels begs to be sent back to the past to undo his actions, but Travis enters the room, and a “sound of thunder” (122) is heard as Travis kills Eckels.

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A Sound of Thunder

Ray bradbury, ask litcharts ai: the answer to your questions.

Cause and Effect

In “A Sound of Thunder,” Ray Bradbury imagines a world in which humanity can take touristic journeys back in time. As Eckels , a man on a prehistoric hunting trip, discovers, however, even the slightest alteration to the past can forever alter the course of history; after accidentally crushing a butterfly underfoot 65 million years ago, Eckels returns to a present drastically different from the one he’d initially left behind. Small actions can have major…

Authoritarianism, Fascism, and Nostalgia

While “A Sound of Thunder” takes place in the 2050s, it is in many ways just as much about the concerns of the 1950s. Writing in the aftermath of World War II and at the outset of the Cold War, Bradbury embeds the fear of anti-American authoritarianism in his text. He paints a portrait of futuristic America as an imperialist nation that has found a new direction for its colonial energies (that is, the past)…

Bradbury portrays Eckels as deeply concerned with mortality. His hobby of trophy hunting gets its thrill from feeling a certain power over life and death, and his choice to take a time travel safari derives partly from advertisements portraying triumph over aging and death. When confronted with genuine mortality, however, in the form of the dinosaur, Eckels decides to flee; later, this attempt survive ultimately brings about his own death, when a guide shoots him…

Environmentalism

“A Sound of Thunder” explores the human relationship to ecology and the natural environment. Through the device of time travel, Bradbury is able to show the potential impact of human interference in the environment on seemingly unrelated events. In Bradbury’s world, humanity is inextricably intertwined with the environment, which human beings foolishly often influence with little care for the future. Even with precautions in place, damage is always possible. The story points to the idea…

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"A Sound of Thunder": Ray Bradbury's Famous Science Fiction Story; Dubious Film

" A Sound of Thunder ,"a science fiction short story by  Ray Bradbury , was first published in  Collier's  magazine in June 28, 1952, and was very widely reprinted for decades. The story was based on the idea of the  butterfly effect , in which a very small event could cause a major change in the outcome of later events. Bradbury's story, set in 2055, concerned the use of a time machine to travel back into the very distant past. In the story the killing of a butterfly during the time of dinosaurs caused the future to change in subtle, but meaningful ways. For those of us who sometimes wonder what might have happened had this or that event been a little different, this story may have special interest.

Here is a radio adaptation of the story:

In 2004 Bradbury's story was made into a feature film with the same title . Why the distinguished actor  Ben Kingsley  accepted a leading role in this questionable film remains unclear. The film was widely panned by critics and viewers, and bombed at the box office, but I found it amusing enough to include this in the database:

Timeline Themes

Ray Bradbury Best Short Stories 📚

Ray Bradbury was a popular writer of science fiction, fantasy, and horror stories. He published hundreds of short stories in various magazines and anthologies.

Article written by Ebuka Igbokwe

Bachelor's degree from Nnamdi Azikiwe University.

Ray Bradbury was a prolific and influential writer of science fiction, fantasy, and horror stories. He published hundreds of short stories in various magazines and anthologies, as well as several collections of his own. His stories often explore themes such as the impact of technology, the nature of human creativity, the power of imagination, and the fragility of civilization.

‘ The Veldt’ is a short story by Ray Bradbury that explores the dangers of technology and its impact on human relationships. It tells the story of a family who lives in a futuristic house that caters to their every need, including a nursery that can create any scenario the children imagine. However, the parents soon discover that their children have become obsessed with a virtual African veldt, where lions prey on their victims. The story ends with a shocking twist that reveals the true nature of the children’s fantasies and the fate of their parents.

The Pedestrian

In the year 2053, Leonard Mead is a rare individual who enjoys walking the city streets at night while everyone else stays indoors, glued to their television screens. One night, he encounters a robotic police car that questions his motives and labels him a nonconformist. Mead is arrested and taken to a psychiatric institution, where he is to be studied for his regressive tendencies. ‘ The Pedestrian’ is a dystopian story that warns of the dangers of technology and its impact on human freedom and individuality.

Fire Balloons

‘ Fire Balloons ’ by Ray Bradbury is a story about a group of Episcopal priests, led by Father Peregrine, who travel to Mars with the intention of converting the natives. They discover a second race of Martians who appear as spheres of blue fire. Peregrine is convinced that these entities are intelligent and have souls, and they even save his life multiple times. However, the blue spheres decline the priests’ attempts to convert them, as they are already holy and free of sin due to their incorporeal form.

A Sound of Thunder

‘A Sound of Thunder ‘ by Ray Bradbury is a science fiction story about a company, Time Safari Inc., that offers time-traveling safaris to hunt dinosaurs as a service. A hunter named Eckels joins a safari but panics and steps off the path, and crushes a butterfly, disrupting the environment. Upon returning to 2055, Eckels notices dramatic changes in the world they meet. This small act in the past has drastically altered the present, illustrating the story’s theme of the butterfly effect.

Dark They Were, and Golden Eyed

‘ Dark They Were, and Golden Eyed ‘ by Ray Bradbury is a story set on Mars, where Harry Bittering and his family move from Earth to participate in a new colony. However, Harry quickly senses that the Martian environment is subtly altering his family. As time passes, the settlers, including Harry’s family, undergo physical changes, becoming taller with dark skin and golden eyes. Eventually, they forget their Earthly origins and fully assimilate into the Martian environment.

There Will Come Soft Rains

The short story ‘ There Will Come Soft Rains ’, published in 1950, tells the story of a lone house standing in a city in California in the aftermath of a nuclear catastrophe. This artificially intelligent house, with its automated systems miraculously preserved, continues to maintain the house as if it were still occupied, making beds, cooking meals, keeping schedules, and addressing the erstwhile inhabitants as if they were present. A freak accident destroys the house, leaving only a wall that endlessly repeats the time and date.

The Small Assassin

In Ray Bradbury’s ‘ The Small Assassin ,’ Alice Leiber gives birth to a baby boy but believes he wants to kill her. Her husband, David, initially dismisses her fears until he trips on a doll at the top of the stairs. Alice is later found dead at the bottom of the stairs with the same doll. David shares his suspicions about their son with their doctor, but he is found dead from gas before any action is taken. The doctor begins to believe the parents’ suspicion.

—And The Moon Be Still As Bright

In ‘ —And The Moon Be Still As Bright ’ by Ray Bradbury, an expedition lands on Mars, only to find that the Martians have been wiped out by a disease brought by the previous humans. While most of the crew celebrate their conquest, one of them, Spender, becomes fascinated by the ancient and mysterious Martian culture. He rebels against his fellow men and tries to protect the Martian ruins from their vandalism and ignorance. His actions lead to a violent confrontation with his captain, Wilder, who has to decide between loyalty and justice. The story is a powerful critique of colonialism and its effects on both the colonizers and the colonized.

All Summer in a Day

‘ All Summer in a Day ’ is set on Venus, where it rains incessantly, and a group of children eagerly await the rare appearance of the sun. But one of them, Margot, who remembers the sun from her childhood on Earth, is isolated and bullied by her classmates. When the sun finally comes out, they lock her in a closet and forget about her. The story is a poignant exploration of the themes of alienation, envy, and cruelty.

The Last Night of the World

‘The Last Night of the World ‘ is a science fiction short story by Ray Bradbury, first published in Esquire magazine in 1951. It depicts a seemingly ordinary evening in the life of a married couple, who have a disturbing conversation over coffee. They reveal to each other that they have both dreamed the same dream: that the world will end that night. As they accept their fate, they wonder what it means and how they should spend their final hours.

I Sing the Body Electric

‘ I Sing the Body Electric’ is a science fiction short story by Ray Bradbury, first published in Esquire magazine in 1951. It tells the tale of a family who buys a lifelike robot grandmother to care for their children after their mother dies. The grandmother becomes a beloved member of the family, teaching them valuable lessons and providing comfort and joy. This story explores themes of love, death, technology, and identity in a poignant and poetic way. Bradbury uses the title, which is taken from a poem by Walt Whitman, to contrast the mechanical and the organic aspects of life. He also raises ethical and philosophical issues about the role of machines in society and the nature of family bonds.

What short story collection is Ray Bradbury best known for?

Ray Bradbury’s collections ‘ The Martian Chronicles ‘ (1950) and ‘ The Illustrated Man ‘ (1951) are his best-known collections.

What are some famous Ray Bradbury’s short stories?

‘ The Veldt ‘, ‘ A Sound of Thunder ‘, and ‘ There Will Come Soft Rains ‘ are a few of Bradbury’s well-known short stories which have been published in several anthologies.

Where did Bradbury publish his first short story?

Ray Bradbury published his first short story, ‘ Hollerbochen’s Dilemma ‘ in the fanzine Imagination! in 1938.

What was Ray Bradbury’s final work?

‘ Farewell, Summer ‘ published in 2006, was Bradbury’s last novel.

Was Ray Bradbury religious?

Bradbury considered himself a Zen Buddhist and “a delicatessen religionist,” taking insights from both Eastern and Western faiths.

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Ebuka Igbokwe is the founder and former leader of a book club, the Liber Book Club, in 2016 and managed it for four years. Ebuka has also authored several children's books. He shares philosophical insights on his newsletter, Carefree Sketches and has published several short stories on a few literary blogs online.

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Ray Bradbury: Short Stories

By ray bradbury, ray bradbury: short stories themes.

Bradbury is perhaps best known for his discussion of censorship in his full-length work, Fahrenheit 451 , but he also uses his short stories to address this theme. In this collection, censorship is a major theme in "The Murderer," "The Exiles," "The Pedestrian," and "The Flying Machine," and it plays a more minor role in his other stories. Censorship applies to censorship of literary works, behavior, and technology. In "The Murderer" and "The Pedestrian," the authorities have censored ways of thinking and being, like the Murderer's dislike of technology gadgets and the Pedestrian's insistence on walking rather than spending time in front of a television screen. While in some cases Bradbury clearly condemns censorship, his thoughts are murkier in the case of "The Flying Machine" when they apply to undirected technological development. In all of these works, Bradbury forces the reader to consider his or her own beliefs about censorship and the risks associate with it.

Technological Innovation

Bradbury has been accused of being against technology, and he is certainly critical of the technology that features in his short stories. In his stories from the Martian Chronicles in particular, humans have left Earth for Mars in hope of a better and more promising future. The Earth has imploded because of humanity’s over-reliance on gadgets, and weapons have proliferated to a point where mutual destruction is nearly ensured on Earth. Many of the characters are either fleeing technology, destroyed by it, or have taken a role in destroying technology. The Murderer has tried to destroy the technology that has interfered in his life, and the Pedestrian has actively tried to avoid technologies encroachment. Additionally, the family in "The Veldt" ends up imploding because of their technologically advanced home, and this is the case with many of the characters in Bradbury’s short stories, whether on a physical or emotional level.  

Time Travel

Time travel features predominantly in Bradbury's famous story, "A Sound of Thunder," where he explores the idea of time travel as well as the possible repercussions of entering the past. He plays with the idea of "the ripple effect," where even the minutest events in the past can have drastic repercussions for the future. Bradbury's discussion of the ripple effect forces the reader to consider his or her own place in the world and their responsibilities for future generations. The reader must ask the questions, "How are my actions affecting the people who will come after me? Am I leaving the world a better place for them?" Not only must one examine their relationship with the future, but also their relationship with the people around them. How do their actions affect the others that they live with? Bradbury is able to raise all of these questions through his novel discussion of time travel in his fantasy literature.  

Space Travel

Space travel is the primary theme of the short stories that were originally published in The Martian Chronicles , such as "The Million Year Picnic," and "Dark They Were, and Golden Eyed." "All Summer in a Day," also discusses space travel, but the setting is Venus instead of Mars. In the case of travel to Mars, the Earthmen are typically fleeing the potential destruction of Earth. There are threats of bombs and the planet is in the midst of war, driven to this existence because of an over reliance on technology, but ironically it is this technology that enables them to travel to Mars. Bradbury's fascination with space travel takes place in the midst of the beginning of the space race. Written just about a decade before man first walked on the moon, Bradbury anticipated the excitement around space travel and exploration. Also a temporal reference is the idea of fleeing a nuclear situation. Many of Bradbury's stories that deal with space travel were written just after the development of the atomic bomb.  

Ripple Effect

The theme of the ripple effect has a strong connection with the theme of time travel, particularly in the story "A Sound of Thunder." Bradbury's exploration of time travel leads him to discuss the potential effects the past and present have on the future, as well as the interconnectivity we have as human beings living on the same planet. In a less direct manner, the ripple effect relates to the short stories that deal with humans traveling to Mars, such as "Dark They Were, and Golden Eyed," as well as, "The Million Years Picnic." Humans have fled Earth and begun to colonize Mars because of the ripple effect of war and destruction on Earth. Instead of the past affecting the future far down the line, present actions have deep and profound effects on how people live during the present day.

Companionship

In both "I See You Never" and "The Fog Horn," Bradbury experiments with the idea of companionship and loneliness. Mr. Ramirez must say goodbye to his landlady, Mrs. O'Brien , after he has been deported to Mexico. He has enjoyed his time in America but has not made many lasting friendships, except for with his landlady, a stern but respectable woman. He tries to communicate his appreciation for her companionship when he leaves and says goodbye, saying, "I see you never," and meaning that he will never see her again. In "The Fog Horn," companionship is the main theme of the story. A monster, which is rumored to sit alone in the depths of the lonely ocean, responds to the call of the Fog Horn, which sounds remarkably similar to its own screams. The lighthouse workers believe the monster returns to the lighthouse annually because it believes that something of its kind will be there waiting for it. The monster's perpetual and consistent journey speaks to the power and allure of companionship.  

Progress vs. Tradition

The theme of progress vs. tradition speaks to the idea of man vs. nature in Bradbury's work. The battle between progress and tradition features predominantly in "The Pedestrian," where the man continues to walk despite the onslaught of technological advances. He is considered an out of touch traditionalist because he continues to walk every night. This theme forces the reader to consider if progress and preservation of tradition can coexist together. In the short stories, those who oppose technology are eliminated or isolated, but that is not always the case outside of Bradbury's literature.

Ray Bradbury: Short Stories Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Ray Bradbury: Short Stories is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

From the story There Will Come Soft Rains- In what way does the information you learned shed light on an aspect of the story?

Check out the story analysis in GradeSaver's study guide for Bradbury's short stories. I think you will find what you are looking for there. If you need additional information, feel free to ask. Pay close attention to the section talking about...

What rules are referred to as silly rules and why

I'm sorry, which of Bradbury's short stories are you referring to?

The Flying Machine

The Emperor explains to the flier that he fears that an evil man will manipulate the technology and destroy its beauty - for instance using the flying machine to throw rocks down upon the Great Wall of China. The Emperor says to the inventor,...

Study Guide for Ray Bradbury: Short Stories

Ray Bradbury: Short Stories study guide contains a biography of Ray Bradbury, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis of select short stories.

• About Ray Bradbury: Short Stories
• Ray Bradbury: Short Stories Summary
• Character List

Essays for Ray Bradbury: Short Stories

Ray Bradbury: Short Stories essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of select short stories by Ray Bradbury.

• Ray Bradbury Hates Technology: Analyzing "The Pedestrian"
• "There Will Come Soft Rains": From Poem to Story
• Contextual Study of Science Fiction Texts, and Intertextual Ideas that Transcend Time: "The Pedestrian," "Harrison Bergeron," and Equilibrium
• The Power of Technology: Comparing "Rocket Summer," "There Will Come Soft Rains," and Fahrenheit 451
• “…The house shuddered, oak bone on bone, its bared skeleton …”:A Postmodern Reading of Ray Bradbury’s “The Will Come Soft Rains”

Lesson Plan for Ray Bradbury: Short Stories

• About the Author
• Study Objectives
• Common Core Standards
• Introduction to Ray Bradbury: Short Stories
• Relationship to Other Books
• Bringing in Technology
• Notes to the Teacher
• Related Links
• Ray Bradbury: Short Stories Bibliography

Wikipedia Entries for Ray Bradbury: Short Stories

• Introduction

Summaries, Analysis & Lists

Time Travel Short Stories: Examples Online

The short stories on this page all contain some form of time travel, including time loops. Some of them contain time machines or other technologies that makes the trip possible; in other stories the jump in time doesn’t have an obvious explanation. They don’t all involve obvious trips to the past or future. Sometimes, the story simply contains an element that is out of place in time. See also:

Short Stories About Time Travel

“caveat time traveler” by gregory benford.

The narrator spots the man from the past immediately. The visitor identifies himself. He’s surprised to find he’s not the first visitor from the past. He wants to take something back to prove he made it.

“Caveat Time Travel” can be read in the preview of  The Mammoth Book of Time Travel SF.

“Absolutely Inflexible” by Robert Silverberg

A time traveler in a spacesuit sits in Mahler’s office. He’s informed that he’ll be sent to the Moon, where all visitors from the past have to go. The man tries to get out of it, but Mahler explains why no exceptions are possible.

“Absolutely Inflexible” can be read in the preview of  Time and Time Again :  Sixteen Trips in Time.

“Yesterday Was Monday” by Theodore Sturgeon

When Harry Wright wakes up on Wednesday morning he realizes that yesterday was Monday. Somehow there is a gap. He notices that his environment doesn’t quite seem complete.

“Yesterday Was Monday” can be read in the preview of  The Best Time Travel Stories of the 20th Century.

“Death Ship” by Richard Matheson

The crew of a spaceship is collecting samples from various planets to determine their suitability for human habitation. While nearing a new planet, Mason spots a metallic flash. The crew speculates that it might be a ship. Captain Ross orders a landing to check it out.

“Death Ship” can be read in the preview of  The Time Traveler’s Almanac.

“The Third Level” by Jack Finney

The narrator has been to the third level of Grand Central Station, even though everyone else believes there are only two. He’s just an ordinary guy and doesn’t know why he discovered this unknown level. He relates how it happened.

“The Third Level” can be read in the preview of  About Time: 12 Short Stories.

“A Touch of Petulance” by Ray Bradbury

Jonathan Hughes met his fate in the form of an old man while he rode the train home from work. He noticed the old man’s newspaper looked more modern than his own. There was a story on the front page about a murdered woman—his wife. His mind raced.

This story can be read in the preview of  Killer, Come Back To Me: The Crime Stories of Ray Bradbury.

“Rip Van Winkle” by Washington Irving

Rip Van Winkle is lazy at home but helpful to, and well-liked by, his neighbors. He’s out in the mountains one day to get away from things. With night approaching, he starts for home but meets up with a group of men. He has something to drink and goes to sleep, which changes everything.

This story can be read in the preview of  The Big Book of Classic Fantasy .

“Twilight” by John W. Campbell

Jim picks up a hitch-hiker, Ares, who says he’s a scientist from the year 3059. He says he traveled millions of years into the future, but came back to the wrong year. Life in 3059 is trouble free, with machines taking care of everything. Future Earth is in trouble, with all life extinct, except for humans and plants.

This is the second story in the preview of  The Science Fiction Hall of Fame: Vol 1 .  (49% into preview)

“The Man Who Walked Home” by James Tiptree, Jr.

An accident at the Bonneville Particle Acceleration Facility decimated the Earth’s population and severely damaged the biosphere and surface. Decades later, a huge flat creature emerges from the crater at the explosion site and promptly disappeared. There are other sightings in the years that follow.

This story can be read in the preview of the anthology  Timegates .  (18% into preview)

“An Assassin in Time” by S. A. Asthana

Navy Seal Jessica Kravitz recovers from the effects of the time jump. She’s done it before, but there are always side-effects. She’s on a highly classified, very important, and expensive mission. Previous jumps have familiarized her with the grounds. This time, she should be able to reach her target.

This story can be read in the preview of  AT THE EDGES: Short Science Fiction, Thriller and Horror Stories .  (17% in)

“The Merchant and the Alchemist’s Gate” by Ted Chiang

Fuwaad, a fabric merchant, appears before the Caliph to recount a remarkable story. While looking for a gift, he entered a large shop with a new owner. It had a marvelous assortment of offerings, all made by the owner or under his direction. Fuwaad is led into the back where he’s shown a small hoop that manipulates time. He also has a larger gateway that people can walk through. The owner tells Fuwaad the stories of a few who did just that.

This story is on the longer side but doesn’t feel like it. Most of “The Merchant and the Alchemist’s Gate” can be read in the Amazon preview of  Exhalation: Stories .

“Time Locker” by Harry Kuttner

Gallegher is a scientist—drunken, erratic and brilliant. He invents things but pays them little attention after. His acquaintance Vanning, an unscrupulous lawyer, has made use of some of these inventions, including a neuro-gun that he rents out. During a visit he sees a locker that is bigger inside than out. Fascinated with the item’s possibilities, he offers to purchase it.

Some of “Time Locker” can be read in the preview of  The Best Time Travel Stories of the 20th Century.

Time Travel Short Stories, Cont’d

“All You Zombies” by Robert A. Heinlein

A young man explains to a bartender that he was born a girl. He (she) gave birth to a child and there were complications. The doctors noticed he (she) was a hermaphrodite and performed an emergency sex-change operation.

A lot of this story can be read in the preview of  “ All You Zombies—”: Five Classic Stories .

“The Hundred-Light-Year Diary” by Greg Egan

The narrator meets his future wife, Alison, for lunch exactly when he knew he would. His diary told him. Everyone alive is allotted a hundred words a day to send back to themselves.

Most of this story can be read in the preview of Axiomatic .  (Select Kindle first then Preview, 57% in)

“The Dead Past” by Isaac Asimov

Arnold Potterley, a Professor of Ancient History, wants to use the chronoscope—the ability to view a scene from the past—for his research on Carthage. The government maintains strict control over its use, and his request is denied. Frustrated, Potterley embarks on a plan to get around this restriction, which is professionally risky.

Some of this story can be read in the preview of  The Complete Stories, Vol 1 .  (6% in)

“Signal Moon” by Kate Quinn

Working with the Royal Naval Service, Lily Baines intercepts radio communications to enemy vessels for decoding. One night, everything changes when she picks up an impossible message—a plea for help from another time.

Preview of “Signal Moon”

“Journey to the Seed” by Alejo Carpentier

An old man wanders around a demolition site, muttering a string of incomprehensible phrases. The roof has been removed and, by evening, most of the house is down. When the site is deserted, the old man waves his walking stick over a pile of discarded tiles. They fly back and cover the floor. The house continues to rebuild. Inside, Don Marcial lies on his deathbed.

“A Sound of Thunder” by Ray Bradbury

In the future, a company offers guided hunting safaris into the past to kill dinosaurs. Extreme care is taken to ensure nothing happens that could alter the present.

Read “A Sound of Thunder” (PDF Pg. 3)

“That Feeling, You Can Only Say What It Is In French” by Stephen King

Carol and Bill, married twenty-five years, are on their second honeymoon, driving to their destination. Carol experiences déjà vu; voices and images keep coming to her mind. Their drive comes to an end and she finds herself at an earlier point in their trip.

“The Clock That Went Backward” by Edward Page Mitchell

The narrator recounts the discovery surrounding a clock left to his cousin Harry by his Aunt Gertrude. As young boys they witnessed a strange event. Late one night Aunt Gertrude wound the clock, put her face to the dial, and then kissed and caressed it. The hands were moving backward. She fell to the floor when it stopped.

Read “The Clock That Went Backward” 

“Soldier (Soldier from Tomorrow)” by Harlan Ellison

Qarlo, a soldier, is fighting in the Great War VII. He doesn’t expect to be able to go back. The odds are against it. Qarlo anticipates the Regimenter’s order and gets warped off the battlefield. He’s not sure where he is but his instincts kick in.

“The Men Who Murdered Mohammed” by Alfred Bester

Henry Hassel comes home to find his wife in the arms of another man. He could get his revenge immediately but he has a more intellectual plan. He gets a revolver and builds a time machine. He goes into the past.

“Cosmic Corkscrew” by Michael A. Burstein

The narrator is sent back to 1938 to make a copy of a rejected story by an unnamed writer. Unknown to Dr. Scheihagen, the narrator adjusts his arrival to three days earlier. He wants to make contact with the writer.

“Time’s Arrow” by Arthur C. Clarke

Barton and Davis, geologists, are assisting Professor Fowler with an excavation. The professor receives an invitation to visit a nearby research facility. Barton and Davis are curious to know what goes on there. The professor says he will fill them in, but after his visit he says he’s been asked not to talk about it. Henderson, from the research facility, returns the visit. Something he says starts the geologists speculating about a device that could see into the past.

“The Final Days” by David Langford

Harman and Ferris, presidential candidates, are participating in a televised debate. Ferris is struggling to connect with the audience while Harman relishes the attention. The technician signals Harman that there are fourteen watchers. His confidence increases.

Read “The Final Days”

“Hwang’s Billion Brilliant Daughters” by Alice Sola Kim

When Hwang is in a time he likes he tries to stay awake. Hwang jumps ahead in time when he sleeps. It could only be a few days; it could be years.

Read “Hwang’s Billion Brilliant Daughters”

“Fish Night” by Joe R. Lansdale

Two traveling salesmen, a father and son, get broke down on a desert road. They sit by the car and talk about how hard it is to make a living. The father tells his son about an unusual experience he had on the same road years ago.

Read “Fish Night”

“The Fox and the Forest” by Ray Bradbury

William and Susan Travis have gone to Mexico in 1938. They’re enjoying a local celebration. William assures Susan that they’re safe—they have traveler’s checks to last a lifetime, and he’s confident they won’t be found. Susan notices a conspicuous man in a café looking at them. She thinks he could be a Searcher, but William says he’s nobody.

“A Statue for Father” by Isaac Asimov

The narrator tells the story of his father, a theoretical physicist who researched time travel. He’s celebrated now, but it was a difficult climb. When time travel research fell out of favor, the dean forced him out. He continued the research independently with his son. Eventually, they succeed in holding a window open long enough for the son to reach in. He brings back some dinosaur eggs.

“The Pendulum” by Ray Bradbury

Layeville has been swinging in a massive glass pendulum for a long time. The people call him The Prisoner of Time. It’s his punishment for his crime. He had constructed a time machine and invited thirty of the world’s preeminent scientists to attend the unveiling.

Read  The Pendulum

“Who’s Cribbing?” by Jack Lewis

A writer has his manuscript returned by a publisher. The story he submitted was published years before—he obviously plagiarized it. They warn him against doing this again. The writer has never heard of the author who first wrote the story and claims it’s an original work.

“Who’s Cribbing” is in  Time Machines: The Best Time Travel Stories Ever Written.

I’ll keep adding short stories about time travel and time machines as I find more.

10 Great Time Travel Stories: Part I

April 6, 2016.

Time travel has intrigued people for as long as, well, time. There are no hard and fast rules, but for over a hundred years writers have given us their take on how it works. Time travel allows us to imagine what it would be like to experience other worlds and consider what we would do if we could influence history or see the future.

We’ve picked out ten great ten time travel books take us through our own time – from Mark Twain’s Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court published in 1889 to Audrey Niffenegger’s Time Traveler’s Wife published in 2003.

Here are the first five on our list; stay tuned next week for five more time warping classics!

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court, Mark Twain (1889)

social satire, humor

Twain’s special gift for satire makes this story hilarious, fantastical and to the point. His comparative study and social commentary exposes his dissatisfaction of the romantic ideal of King Arthur’s world and faith in the scientific and social progress of his own time.

Twain starts by sending Hank Morgan, a self-reliant New Englander and engineer, back in time to King Arthur’s Court. Things go bad quickly and he is sentenced to death by Merlin. When Hank uses his knowledge of the nineteenth-century to save himself, he convinces the people, the King, and himself , that he is a magician greater than Merlin. He begins to transform King Arthur’s world where he transforms into the Boss.

Book eBook Audiobook

Time Machine, H.G. Wells (1895)

science fiction, fantasy, Darwinism, socialism

A forerunner of the science fiction genre, this classic novel popularized the concept of time travel and introduced the term “time machine”. Written in 1895, it is couched in a Darwinian and Socialist parable about a time traveler who is sent into the year 802,701. The traveler finds himself in a society of two races, the Eloi, peaceful dwellers who live above ground and the Morlocks, ape-like creatures who live below ground. It is a cautionary tale taking on the themes of evolution, capitalism, and social class division.

A Sound of Thunder, Ray Bradbury (1952)

science fiction, fantasy

Time travel, safari hunting and the opportunity to take down a Tyrannosaurus Rex. That’s what Time Safari offers its customers when it sends them sixty million years into the past. But there are strict rules and real dangers to anyone who breaks them. All travelers must stay on the designated Path provided by Time Safari. Anyone stepping off of it could create a ripple in time that could alter the future, the concept known as the “butterfly effect”. Bradbury asks us to consider our actions and how they effect the world. (In The Stories of Ray Bradbury and A Sound of Thunder and other Stories .)

Book Audiobook

The End of Eternity, Isaac Asimov (1955)

science fiction, romance

Considered his best by many, this short fiction novel places time travel outside of linear reality. The non-linear world, Eternity, is a location outside of time and place where an elite few, the Eternals, monitor and alter time’s cause and effect relationships. Andrew Harlan is an Eternal. On one of his assignments, he falls in love with a woman who lives in linear time only to find out she will not exist after the next change. He risks everything to bring her to Eternity with him, but his actions create a paradox that threatens the existence of Eternity. To fix the problem, he is given his next assignment. He must kill the woman he loves.

The Door into Summer, Robert A. Heinlein (1957)

This short fiction book is one of Heinlein’s lighter novels and uses time travel in a limited way. It begins in 1970. Dan Davis is the successful inventor of a household robot, an automated “cleaning lady” called Hired Girl . With the help of his fiancée, Belle and their friend Miles, his new company is thriving beyond his wildest dreams. But Belle and Miles betray him, steal his patents, and trick him into spending thirty years in suspended animation. They thought that was the end of Dan.

What they didn’t expect was that time travel exists in the year 2000. When Dan wakes up from thirty years of sleep, he is able to go back to 1970 where he recovers his research and then returns to the year 2000 with his reputation, invention and fiancée.

About the Author

IVY BRUNELLE is a Reference Librarian at PPL. She accidentally became a sci-fi geek in college. But if you asked her about it, she’d deny the whole thing, then silently slip through a portal of ancient standing stones.