Our Town

"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.)

Drexel Jerome Lewis Bixby was an American short story writer and scriptwriter. He wrote the 1953 story "It's a Good Life", which was included in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame. It formed the basis of a 1961 episode of The Twilight Zone and was remade in Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983). He wrote four episodes for the Star Trek series: "Mirror, Mirror", "Day of the Dove", "Requiem for Methuselah", and "By Any Other Name". With Otto Klement, he co-wrote the story upon which the science fiction movie Fantastic Voyage (1966), the related television series, and the related Isaac Asimov novel were based. Bixby's final produced or published work so far was the screenplay for the 2007 science fiction film The Man from Earth.