Marionettes, Inc: A short story by Ray Bradbury

by Ray Bradbury

In Marionettes, Inc., Ray Bradbury offers his devoted readers something both special and unexpected: a unified view of one small corner of a varied fictional universe. In five stories (one of them original to this collection, plus a rare, previously unpublished screen treatment), Bradbury explores the concept of Robotics and examines its impact on the day-to-day lives of ordinary people.

Several of these tales, including Changeling and Punishment Without Crime, are set in a world in which the eponymous company, Marionettes, Inc., has successfully created incredibly detailed replicas of existing men and women. When these surrogate people take their place in the real, often messy realm of human relationships, the results are sometimes tragic, sometimes ironic, and always surprising.

But the true heart of this resonant collection is the classic novella, I Sing the Body Electric. In this quintessential Bradbury story, an electric Grandma enters the lives of a grieving, newly motherless family, and slowly restores their capacity for wonder and joy. Like the very best of Bradbury s fiction, it is a magical, deeply felt account of hope, growth, survival, and change, and a moving meditation on what it really means to be human.

Genres: Short Stories, Science Fiction, Fiction, Dystopia, Fantasy, Classics, School

Kindle Edition

First published April 30, 2009

About the author

Ray Douglas Bradbury was an American author and screenwriter. One of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers, he worked in a variety of genres, including fantasy, science fiction, horror, mystery, and realistic fiction.

Bradbury is best known for his novel Fahrenheit 451 (1953) and his short-story collections The Martian Chronicles (1950), The Illustrated Man (1951), and The October Country (1955). Other notable works include the coming of age novel Dandelion Wine (1957), the dark fantasy Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962) and the fictionalized memoir Green Shadows, White Whale (1992). He also wrote and consulted on screenplays and television scripts, including Moby Dick and It Came from Outer Space. Many of his works were adapted into television and film productions as well as comic books. Bradbury also wrote poetry which has been published in several collections, such as They Have Not Seen the Stars (2001).

The New York Times called Bradbury "An author whose fanciful imagination, poetic prose, and mature understanding of human character have won him an international reputation" and "the writer most responsible for bringing modern science fiction into the literary mainstream".

Reviews

[catherine ♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I REALLY liked this one. I usually like stories about robot clones taking over the world.

[Gen · Rating 4 out of 5]

ATEEE. I ship the wife and the robot

[AJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

And this is why Ray Bradbury is my favorite author. 5/5 stars.

A perfect blend of sci-fi and normalcy, Marionettes, Inc. illustrates the desires we humans possess and the fallout caused by them. If you like steampunk-y type books, PICK THIS ONE UP NEXT. It's a short read comprised of short stories, all of which are tied to that theme.

I absolutely adored this. I won't stop living until I've read everything Bradbury has written.

[Mahsa · Rating 4 out of 5]

داستان كوتاه علمى-تخيلى جالبى با نام "شركت عروسكهاى خيمه شب بازى" كه به صورت اينترنتى قابل دسترس است.
كتاب انگليسى اينجا ظاهرا مجموعه داستاهاى رى ردبرى است ولى من فقط اين داستان كه عنوان كتاب (عروسك خيمه شب بازى) هست خواندم. داستان هم باعث خنده و هم تامل بود!
ماجراى شركتيست كه مشابه افراد رو به سفارششان مى سازد و ....

[James Biser · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the story of a man who has discovered a robot company (Marionettes, Inc.) that allows an individual to purchase a copy of himself to fool his wife so that he is able to live a secret life unknown to others. An interesting thought about what could happen with the development of human-like robots.

[Margot Meanders · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favourite stories from the collection "The Illustrated Man". I've found interesting twists in this story and it's about getting marionettes / robots to pretend to be you, while you can live another life. Good story, I really like this concept.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.8⭐

I Sing the Body Electric! • (1969) 4.25⭐
Marionettes Inc. • [Marionettes, Inc.] 5⭐
Changeling • [Marionettes, Inc.] • (1949) 3.5⭐
Punishment Without Crime • [Marionettes, Inc.] • (1950) 4.25⭐
Wind-Up World 3⭐
Murder by Facsimile (screen treatment) of the short story Punishment Without Crime 3⭐

[Marc *Dark Reader with a Thousand Young! Iä!* · Rating 1 out of 5]

Please, do not spend money on this short story collection, 'short' being the operative word, since it can be read in entirety in less than an hour. It contains only one new story, a very short story which is quite forgettable and which comes across as an elderly lament over current technology, as in "too many smart phones, too many internets...". One of the 'stories' is a 'play' treatment that is just a re-write of another story from this same collection. But, if you must pick this up because of love of or curiousity about Bradbury, do so only if you can get it for free (e.g. library), or better yet, read some classic Bradbury collections instead, like the Martian chronicles, or the Illustrated man.
At least, the titular 'marionette' stories (robotic human duplicates) were fun and a bit juicy, in a pulpy manner, and not at all like other sci-fi writers' well-controlled robot concepts (such as Asimov).

[Heitz Julieta · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Marionettes, Inc." by Ray Bradbury is a science fiction story that delves into the consequences of advanced technology. It follows the protagonist, Braling, who seeks to escape his monotonous life and oppressive marriage. He discovers a company that creates lifelike robot duplicates, allowing individuals to evade their responsibilities. The story explores themes of identity, the ethics of technology, and the pitfalls of trying to control one's life through artificial means. Bradbury prompts readers to contemplate the impact of technological advancements on human existence and the complexities of human relationships.
Furthermore, "Marionettes, Inc." touches upon the theme of control and manipulation, as the characters attempt to manipulate their circumstances through the use of technology. The story highlights the dangers of attempting to exert control over one's life and relationships.

[Susan Molloy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Warning to Our Present Age.

🖋️ A husband has a double of himself made so that he can travel without his wife. What his friend discovers is even more sinister.

📕Published in 1949.

જ⁀🔵 The e-book version can be found at Internet Archive, an anthology of six Ray Bradbury short stories.

📺 1958 “Alfred Hitchcock Presents” television episode version renamed Design for Loving (Sir Alfred Hitchcock, British film producer, film director, actor, and writer.)
༺ ༅ ✬ ༅ ༻ ༺ ༅ ✬ ༅ ༻





Content: ★★★★★
Grammar: ★★★★★
Writing style: ★★★★★
Ease of reading: ★★★★★
My recommendation: ★★★★★
My total rating for this work: ★★★★★ (5.0)

[Karen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think I would have enjoyed all of these short Bradbury stories about life-like robots ... Marionettes, rather ... had they all been interspersed amid other Bradbury works. One after the other - short though they may be - the theme becomes a little tedious. It's a robot! But so life-like! And there are consequences! Unforeseen consequences! By the third story there's a bit of an internal groan and an "Okay, yes, I get it!" feeling, rather than an appreciation for the actual story.

It did remind me of what "Black Mirror" stories were like back in the old days when cautionary tales of how technology would run amok and destroy our humanity wound up forecasting a future that didn't quite come to pass. Well ... yet.

[Dawn Livingston · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not normally a fan of Asimov, he's more hardcore sci fi and I'm more of a fantasy fan. It seems these books by Asimov and others appeal more to males than females. Of course there are always exceptions.

Anyway, the concept was interesting, it was a thin volume and it was all short stories so I figured I could handle it. The story was written strangely and was hard to get used to but it did set the tone. The stories were all interesting, variations on a theme. Well worth reading, interesting, thought provoking. If you own no other Asimov book then add this one. I'm considering it myself, in fact even though I just read it I'm thinking of reading it again to see if I missed anything.

[Midas ☆ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Historia corta que te engancha desde el principio y te deja colgando justo al final. Ah, como amo las historias de robots / inteligencia artificial <3

Edit: Acabo de notar que esta edición contiene más historias cortas de Ray Bradbury, yo solo me leí Marionnettes inc. de la edición "not so classic".

[29, jul, 2025]

[Laurence · Rating 2 out of 5]

More decent idea kernels from Bradbury.

I do think that this like some of Bradbury's other short stories has been further expanded somewhat by other sci fi, such as the ideas of the more emotional than a human, human replacing replica humanoid androids.

[Lupe Dominguez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Certainly different, Marionettes was many tales wrapped into one long one of “what if robots took over”...almost. I think I mostly liked the first story, and then after that, the rest seemed pretty similar.

[mark propp · Rating 4 out of 5]

another fun story. short, punchy. it's the kind of ai-ish fable we've all seen/read a billion times by this point, and you don't have to be nostradamus to see the end coming, but it's good run regardless.

[Jocelyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

4 stars for I Sing The Body Electric.

[Courtney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two very unsympathetic main characters, so yay (?) that they meet their marionette fates. Sigh.

[A M H · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wasn't a fan of the backstory and two main characters, but the ending was great. Really liked it's conclusion.

[Anabella Demarchi · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this compelling story Ray invites us to reflect upon the relationship between humans and technology, and the ways we can make use of it to fulfill our darkest desires.

[Bella Martinez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant. But when is Bradbury not?

[Katja · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing new.
Maybe i would like it more if i had read this before reading books and watching films.

[romane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this short story!! It was really scary…

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very quick read over lunch. I enjoyed the stories and Mr Bradbury’s imagination.

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

After this reread, I'll up the rating to 3.5

[gyanve · Rating 5 out of 5]

another really good read, sci-fi but super clever as well
i think i am slowly becoming a very low-key sci-fi fan (!!!)

[Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Only read the title story ⭐⭐⭐⭐

[Mike Lisanke]

I feel like I just read a miniature version of the Veldt... what sinister things these Marionettes are... I can see why they're Not Quite Legal yet! :rofl.

[Fati · Rating 4 out of 5]

detroit become human? lol, i really liked it

[Stanzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Black Mirror didn't invent anything.