I Sing the Body Electric

I Sing the Body Electric! is a 1969 collection of short stories by Ray Bradbury. The book takes its name from an included short story of the same title, which in turn took the title from a poem by Walt Whitman published in his collection Leaves of Grass. Contents The collection includes these stories: "The Kilimanjaro Device" (originally titled "The Kilimanjaro Machine", first appeared in Life Magazine, January 1965) After a long drive, a man arrives in Idaho and begins to ask questions about a local who has died. In a bar, he finally finds someone who was familiar with the person he is looking for. Though the latter is never referred to by name, it becomes clear that he is none other than Ernest Hemingway. When asked why he's looking for him, the traveler reveals that his truck has the ability to travel in time. He goes further to explain that there are right graves and wrong graves; that people do not always die at the right time, and this local man is one of them. The traveler then departs to search for Hemingway, hoping to help him find a better end. "The Terrible Conflagration Up at the Place" A band of rebels plot to overthrow the local lordship and express their own freedom by burning down his stately home. Before they can get on with it, the lordship himself catches them in the act and invites them inside. Offering drinks, he resigns himself to let them burn his house, though bargains with them to do it the following night, so that he and his wife may still attend the theatre. The rebels ultimately agree that it is the only decent thing to do. However, before they leave the house, the lordship asks that they also spare the priceless works of art resting in the house. Before long, the complications of burning the house become too much, and the Lordship too friendly, leaving the rebel plans long forgotten. "Tomorrow's Child" Peter and Polly are excited about the birth of their first child, but the doctor has unfortunate news. Because of a series of malfunctions in the new birthing machines, their newborn child has been born into another dimension. While ultimately healthy, the baby's appearance is that of a small blue pyramid with tentacle-like appendages. Peter and Polly decide to take the baby home on the condition that the doctors continue ongoing work and research to try to bring their child back into his rightful dimension.