02589cam a22003853u 450000100060000000300070000600500170001300600020003000700050003200800410003704000110007804100170008905000070010610000300011324500130014326400510015630000470020733600260025433700260028033800360030649000620034250000310040450801080043552013650054353400450190865300200195365300180197365300160199165300240200765300250203165300250205683000620208185600430214399900170218658974UtSlPG20260610134347.0mcr n260607r2019||||utu|||||o|||||||||||||| d  aUtSlPG 7aen2iso639-1 4aPS1 aBixby, Jerome,d1923-199810aOur Town 1aSalt Lake City, UT :bProject Gutenberg,c2019  a1 online resource :bmultiple file formats  atextbtxt2rdacontent  acomputerbc2rdamedia  aonline resourcebcr2rdacarrier1 aProduced from Worlds of If Science Fiction, February 1955  aRelease date is 2019-02-27  aProduced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online
Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net  a"Our Town" by Jerome Bixby is a science fiction novella written in the early 1950s. The story explores the aftermath of a devastating bombing in a small, fictional Tennessee town called Smoky Creek, where the majority of the population is killed, leaving only a group of elderly residents to remember their lives and the people they lost. The narrative addresses themes of war, loss, and the resilience of those left behind, portraying a haunting yet poignant reflection on the impact of conflict on ordinary lives.  In the aftermath of the bombing, the elderly residents of Smoky Creek try to maintain some semblance of normalcy while grappling with their profound loss and isolation. They have fortified their town to look abandoned to the outside world while secretly salvaging what they can for survival. The story unfolds through conversations and reflections among the characters, revealing their collective grief and resolve to defend their home against any future threats. An enemy jet unexpectedly flies low over the town, prompting the old men to arm themselves and shoot it down, a moment of bitterness tinged with determination. Ultimately, the narrative captures the resilience and camaraderie of the survivors in a world that has forgotten them, exposing the cyclic nature of war and its destruction. (This is an automatically generated summary.)  nOriginal publication data not identified  aScience fiction  aShort stories  aWar stories  aVillages -- Fiction  aOlder men -- Fiction  aTennessee -- Fiction 0aProduced from Worlds of If Science Fiction, February 195540uhttps://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/58974  c99800d99800