The Star Mouse

"The Star Mouse" by Fredric Brown is a science fiction short story written during the early 1940s. The narrative revolves around the peculiar adventures of Mitkey, a mouse, who is unintentionally drafted into a space mission by Professor Oberburger, his somewhat eccentric human inventor. The story delves into themes of innovation, relationships, and the exploration of the unknown, illustrating both the whimsical and profound aspects of the human-animal connection. In the tale, Professor Oberburger constructs a rocket to send Mitkey on an experimental journey to the moon, viewing the mouse as an unwitting astronaut whose experiences would provide valuable data. However, due to unexpected circumstances, the rocket veers off course and lands on an asteroid named Prxl, where Mitkey encounters a race of tiny beings who elevate his intelligence. As he blends the newfound knowledge of the Prxlians with his memories of Earth, he contemplates the idea of elevating mice to coexist with humans. Ultimately, the story concludes with a satisfying yet bittersweet resolution as Mitkey decides to return to his simpler life as a mouse, underscoring themes of identity and the essence of happiness. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Fredric Brown was an American science fiction, fantasy, and mystery writer. He is known for his use of humor and for his mastery of the "short short" form—stories of one to three pages, often with ingenious plotting devices and surprise endings. Humor and a postmodern outlook carried over into his novels as well. One of his stories, "Arena", was adapted to a 1967 episode of the American television series Star Trek.