Project Gutenberg 2024-04-03 Public domain in the USA. 123 Long, Frank Belknap 1903 1994 Mr. Caxton draws a Martian bird $aNew York, NY :$bKing-Size Publications, Inc., $c1954. Produced from Fantastic Universe July 1954. Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net "Mr. Caxton Draws a Martian Bird" by Frank Belknap Long is a science fiction short story written in the mid-20th century. The narrative centers around two young siblings, Peter and Susan Ashley, who are left in the care of a harsh and impatient adult named Mr. Caxton while their parents are on an expedition in the Martian desert. The story explores themes of childhood innocence, imagination, and the clash between youthful wonder and adult skepticism. The plot unfolds as Peter, eager and inquisitive, believes he has seen a mysterious bird on Mars, a claim that Mr. Caxton dismisses with ridicule and scorn. The children find themselves in a struggle for validation against the adult's cynicism, leading to a climactic confrontation where Peter's vision of the strange bird becomes a pivotal moment. Ultimately, Mr. Caxton's cruel mockery leads to his downfall as he encounters the real Martian bird, resulting in a fatal consequence. The story captures the essence of how the imagination of children can challenge and surpass the limiting views of adults, blending adventure with a cautionary tale about the effects of jealousy and cruelty. (This is an automatically generated summary.) 20240310113816long 1954 US Reading ease score: 84.2 (6th grade). Easy to read. en Science fiction Short stories Mars (Planet) -- Fiction PS Text Category: Short Stories Category: Science-Fiction & Fantasy Category: Adventure 52575 2025-07-29T05:54:59.001791 text/html 28146 2024-04-03T08:27:08 text/html 284477 2025-07-29T05:55:01.794812 application/epub+zip 283259 2025-07-29T05:54:59.950825 application/epub+zip 158882 2025-07-29T05:54:59.386796 application/epub+zip 589867 2025-07-29T05:55:03.170773 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 582729 2025-07-29T05:55:01.393827 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 45368 2025-07-29T05:54:58.877792 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 25517 2024-04-03T08:27:08 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 16214 2025-07-29T05:55:03.306767 application/rdf+xml 30599 2025-07-29T05:54:59.640792 image/jpeg 4850 2025-07-29T05:54:59.513805 image/jpeg 645466 2025-07-29T05:54:59.015834 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia