"Baby Is Three" is a

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

novella by American writer

Theodore Sturgeon Theodore Sturgeon (; born Edward Hamilton Waldo, February 26, 1918 – May 8, 1985) was an American fiction author of primarily fantasy, science fiction and horror, as well as a critic. He wrote approximately 400 reviews and more than 120 sh ...

, first published in the October 1952 issue of ''Galaxy'' magazine. It was later crafted into a full novel, ''

More Than Human ''More Than Human'' is a 1953 science fiction novel by American writer Theodore Sturgeon. It is a revision and expansion of his previously published novella ''Baby is Three'', which is bracketed by two additional parts written for the novel (" ...

''. The original novella was voted the fifth-best science fiction novella of the pre-1965 era by the Science Fiction Writers of America, and so was included in ''

The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two ''The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two'' is an English language science fiction two-volume anthology edited by Ben Bova and published in the U.S. by Doubleday (publisher) , Doubleday in 1973, distinguished as volumes "Two A" and "Two B" ...

''.

Summary

The story describes the creation and "bleshing" of a new life form, Homo Gestalt, on Earth. It is formed by the symbiosis of four or more humans with paranormal abilities. One person, the "head" of the organism, assembles and directs the various parts through telepathy, another is the "hands" of the organism, able to move and change physical objects by telekinesis, the third and fourth persons are twins able to teleport at will, and the fifth person of the organism is a silent baby with

Down syndrome Down syndrome or Down's syndrome, also known as trisomy 21, is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21. It is usually associated with physical growth delays, mild to moderate intellectual dis ...

with a brain like a computer and who acts as the "brain". "Bleshing" is how the organism describes its own completeness and functionality. The plot follows the psychiatric evaluation of a fifteen-year-old boy named Gerry, who believes he has murdered his caregiver Miss Kew for endangering the "bleshing" of his new organism.

External links

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"Baby is Three"
at the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

{{Theodore Sturgeon 1952 short stories Short stories by Theodore Sturgeon Works originally published in Galaxy Science Fiction