In “The Small Assassin,” a short story by Ray Bradbury published in 1946, a woman named Alice Leiber experiences an intense fear of her newborn son, convinced that the baby wants to hurt her. Despite the support of her husband and the doctors, Alice feels alone in her struggle, perceiving a sinister connection with her son that nobody else seems to notice.
The Nameless Offspring is a short story by Clark Ashton Smith published in June 1932 in the magazine Strange Tales of Mystery and Terror. It tells the story of Henry Chaldane, who, during a trip through the English countryside, happens upon Tremoth Hall, an old mansion shrouded in a dark family legend. There, he meets Sir John Tremoth, a man tormented by a terrible secret related to his lineage.
“All you zombies…” is a science fiction short story by Robert A. Heinlein, published in March 1959 in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. The story follows a mysterious bartender who listens to the confession of a young writer nicknamed “Single Mother.” In a New York bar in 1970, the young man recounts his extraordinary life, marked by abandonment, transformation, and a desperate search for his identity. What begins as a simple conversation turns into a surprising revelation when the bartender offers him the opportunity to face his past, unleashing a unique and disturbing temporal paradox.
The Salem Horror is a short story by Henry Kuttner, published in May 1937 in the magazine Weird Tales. It tells the story of Carson, a writer who rents an old house in Salem to find peace and finish his novel. Soon, he discovers strange noises in the basement and a disturbing presence in the house, linked to an ancient witch named Abigail Prinn. Moved by curiosity, Carson finds a hidden room full of arcane symbols, unaware of the dark power that still dwells there. As he delves deeper into his discovery, he finds himself trapped in unimaginable horror.
The Impossible Planet is a science fiction story by Philip K. Dick, published in October 1953 in the magazine Imagination. The story follows Captain Andrews and his crew, who receive an unusual request from a 350-year-old woman: to travel to Earth, the mythical planet believed to be the cradle of humanity. Although science has ruled out that the Earth ever existed, the older woman is willing to pay a large sum to fulfill her dream, which awakens Andrews’ greed.
“The Man Who Wrote Books in His Head” is a short story by Patricia Highsmith, published in 1979, which narrates the peculiar life of E. Taylor Cheever, an aspiring writer who, after the failure of his first novel, decides to devote himself to writing only in his mind. Throughout his life, Cheever created a vast body of literary work but never managed to put it down on paper. The story reflects his growing isolation and the repercussions this decision had on his family, especially on his son Everett, who oscillates between frustration and admiration for his father. With subtle irony, Highsmith weaves a moving tale about the power and fragility of the imagination.