Brainchild

Slesar, Henry, 1927-2002Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.5

Word count: 49K words
Chapters: 5

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Brainchild by Henry SlesarAuthor: Slesar, Henry, 1927-2002,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Jun 26, 2019

Editor's review

Brainchild is a short work by the American popular-fiction writer Henry Slesar (1927–2002), released as an e-book by Project Gutenberg in 2019. Slesar was known for short suspense, science fiction, and satire, often using a spare style to create unexpected twists; this work continues that trait and serves as an accessible sample of mid-twentieth-century American genre short fiction. The Gutenberg edition is the original English text, freely available, convenient to read anytime on electronic devices, and suitable for English reading practice and genre-fiction study. Note that this e-book was compiled and proofread by volunteers and includes Project Gutenberg's copyright and release notices before the text; first-time readers need not be distracted by these front matters and can go straight to the story. As a public-domain e-book, it is better read with the dual aims of light reading and textual analysis than for a long immersive experience.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy short suspense or science-fiction twist stories
English learners who want to practice reading with brief original English texts
Students and enthusiasts studying twentieth-century American popular genre fiction
Readers who prefer free public-domain e-books and are used to screen reading

Not a good fit for

Readers hoping for a long work with a complete world or a series
People with weak English who need Chinese parallel support
Readers impatient with Project Gutenberg's front-matter notices

Reading tips

Skip the copyright notice before the text, read the story first, then return to the version information.
Read through once to grasp the plot, then a second time to note foreshadowing and narrative perspective at the twist.
Read alongside other Slesar shorts to appreciate common features of his short-story structure.
English learners can excerpt typical sentence patterns for retelling or rewriting practice.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book in Chinese or English?

The edition released by Project Gutenberg is the original English, with the main text in English and no Chinese translation. Chinese readers need some English reading ability or a dictionary tool.

Is it long? How long does it take to finish?

This is a short work by Slesar, a short-form genre story, usually finishable in one or two readings. The material does not state a specific word count, but as a short story the overall reading burden is light.

Is it suitable as an English textbook?

It can serve as supplementary reading material. It is a complete English short story in a popular-fiction style, suitable for practicing narrative reading; but it was not written for teaching and lacks notes and exercises, so readers must design their own study tasks.

Why are there so many notices before the e-book text?

Project Gutenberg e-books usually include copyright statements, release information, and project introductions as part of their public-domain publishing format. Readers can jump straight to the story text without affecting their reading.

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About the author

Slesar, Henry, 1927-2002 Author

Henry Slesar (1927-2002) was an American writer best known for his short science fiction and suspense stories. Reliable public information about his life is limited, and readers in China know relatively little about him. Eight of his works are included in this collection: My Father, the Cat, Brainchild, The Delegate from Venus, The Stuff, The Success Machine, Reluctant Genius, Heart and Dream Town, most of them short or novella-length pieces. These stories often use science-fictional premises while blending suspense and satire; their plots move briskly and end with striking twists, and they use everyday situations to expose human weaknesses and the absurdities of a technological society. Their subjects range from family relationships and mistaken identity to alien visitors and machine intelligence, reflecting a sharp eye for the anxieties of modern life. Slesar's tightly structured, ingeniously conceived short stories have been enjoyed by genre readers and have had some influence on later science fiction and suspense writing.