Space brat

"Space Brat" by O. H. Leslie is a science fiction novella written in the late 1950s. The story revolves around an alien invasion that seeks to conquer Earth by starting from the most vulnerable point: a human baby. The narrative explores themes of trust, societal perceptions of infancy, and the complexities of human nature through the lens of extraterrestrial observers. In the plot, a war council from the alien planet Nahrla devises a strategy to infiltrate Earth by sending a disguised agent in the form of a baby. The aliens believe that humans have an ingrained trust for infants and that this guise would allow them to gather information unimpeded. The story alternates between the aliens’ council meetings and the unfolding life of the Bryan family, who adopt the infant, unaware of its true nature. As the narrative progresses, the contrasting perceptions of humans and aliens towards babies highlight both the innocence associated with infancy and the darker, destructive intentions of the invaders. The climax reveals the tension between the couple and the alien plot, ultimately leading to an unexpected conclusion. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Henry Slesar was an American author and playwright. He is famous for his use of irony and twist endings. After reading Slesar's "M Is for the Many" in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Alfred Hitchcock bought it for adaptation and they began many successful collaborations. Slesar wrote hundreds of scripts for television series and soap operas, leading TV Guide to call him "the writer with the largest audience in America."