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Re: [Young People Read Old SFF] The Man Who Traveled in Elephants

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James Nicoll <jdnicoll@panix.com> wrote:
> The Man Who Traveled in Elephants by Robert A. Heinlein
>
> http://youngpeoplereadoldsff.com/story/the-man-who-traveled-in-elephants

This is one of the six stories published in _6xH_ (Heinlein). A trippy
cover appears my MMPB. [1] Presumably this is the fifth printing (1971)
iteration of the cover. It leaves me with the impression that this
product was marketing to early 1970s youth, even though the stories date
back to the early 1940s.
    Regardless, this is a different facet of RAH. It reminds me of
Bradbury or Serling a good day. On a bad day there's always "The Lottery"
(Jackson). For some reason the Jackson conjures up a naughty carnival
setting in my mind. Even though she specifically writes, "town square."
    It's typically easy for me to see short story tells. The bus
accident's "been expecting this" is a tell. Referring to Martha in the
past tense is another tell.
    My small town hosts a number of events each summer. The season kicks
off when _Crimson Dawn_ (Forsling) literally comes alive. [2] (The
Forsling story, not the Marvel comic.)
    BTW Ahasuerus, _Crimson Dawn_'s missing from isfdb. Good luck with
trying to find any story details. Although the Marvel comic pops up all
over creation on the Inet, it's hard to find out much of anything about
the Forsling.
    A couple of weeks after Crimson Dawn my town hosts a county fair.
Lots of kids from surrounding ranches and farms show up to show off
their livestock.
    At some point through the decades, a carnival with rides and a
midway was added. Later on a rodeo was tacked on. (The less said about
that "sport" the better.) So a carnival setting still works for me.
YMMV.
    Regardless, carnivals change their complexion of the years. A few
seasons ago a tee-shirt booth offered a few War-on-Terror themed shirts.
You certainly didn't see that back in RAH's day.

Note.

1. https://i.ebayimg.com/thumbs/images/g/LfEAAOSw-xVaIGTR/s-l225.jpg
2. http://www.natronacounty-wy.gov/234/Crimson-Dawn

Thank you,

--
Don

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[Young People Read Old SFF] The Man Who Traveled in Elephants jdnicoll@panix.com (James Nicoll) - 2018-03-15 13:24 +0000
  Re: [Young People Read Old SFF] The Man Who Traveled in Elephants Robert Woodward <robertaw@drizzle.com> - 2018-03-15 10:23 -0700
  Re: [Young People Read Old SFF] The Man Who Traveled in Elephants D B Davis <g@crcomp.net> - 2018-03-16 15:16 +0000
    Re: [Young People Read Old SFF] The Man Who Traveled in Elephants Ahasuerus <ahasuerus@email.com> - 2018-03-16 09:05 -0700
      Re: [Young People Read Old SFF] The Man Who Traveled in Elephants D B Davis <g@crcomp.net> - 2018-03-16 16:56 +0000
  Re: [Young People Read Old SFF] The Man Who Traveled in Elephants a425couple <a425couple@hotmail.com> - 2018-03-16 09:25 -0700

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