Jonah of the Jove-Run by Ray Bradbury Episode #113

Ray Bradbury | October 6, 2023

Jonah of the Jove-Run by Ray Bradbury Episode #113
Ray Bradbury

JONAH OF THE JOVE–RUN

Episode #113 · Written by Ray Bradbury · Narrated by Scott Miller

A washed-up old spacer with a strange gift may be the only hope for a ship trying to reach Jupiter through a lethal storm of asteroids. But trusting him means gambling lives, loyalty, and the future of an entire colony on a man everyone believes is finished.

Jonah of the Jove-Run is a tense, character-driven space drama from a young Ray Bradbury, written long before he became a literary icon. Jupiter’s colony is running out of time, and the crew of the rocket Terra must deliver food, machinery, and hope—before the families waiting on the giant world die. But between Mars and Jupiter lies the asteroid belt, a shifting minefield of rock and metal that no ship can cross without a fully functioning radar computator. The backup unit is gone, shot down in space, and the Terra is grounded unless someone can do the impossible.

Enter Nibley—an old man every pilot, engineer, and officer dismisses as a washed-up drunk. Once, he could out-calculate machines and chart the impossible in his head, but the years have not been kind, and the universe has moved on without him. Yet Nibley still insists he can take the ship through the asteroids using nothing but instinct, experience, and something that feels a little too close to psychic math. Nobody wants him. Nobody trusts him. But there may be no other choice.

Bradbury turns what could have been a simple space-run into a story about dignity, redemption, sacrifice, and the fine line between genius and madness. The tension builds not through lasers or aliens, but through human fear, stubbornness, and the terrible weight of responsibility when lives depend on a single decision. And when sabotage is uncovered aboard the ship, the danger becomes more than meteors—there’s a traitor on board who wants the mission to fail.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

This is Bradbury before the fame, before the awards, before Fahrenheit 451—a writer already obsessed with the human heart inside the machine. His early work shows how science fiction could be emotional, personal, and deeply dramatic, and Jonah of the Jove-Run stands as one of his strongest stories from the 1940s magazine era.

If you love classic science fiction built on character, tension, and humanity instead of tech jargon and explosions, this is a story worth rediscovering.

LISTEN TO THE STORY

Listen to Jonah of the Jove-Run by Ray Bradbury — a vintage sci-fi short story of danger, sabotage, and a risky run through the asteroid belt.

ABOUT THE LOST SCI-FI PODCAST

The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast is the most listened-to vintage science fiction podcast in the world. Ranked the #1 Science Fiction Podcast in 34 countries and heard in more than 190 countries, the show has surpassed 3.3 million listens.

Each episode features carefully selected stories from the Golden Age of science fiction, professionally narrated. Timeless storytelling the way it was meant to be heard.

What listeners are saying:

★★★★★ “Amazing, if you’re a fan of old school sci-fi like the twilight zone. You will love this. Highly recommended. The reader is great as well easy listening.”
— Wafflegod87

★★★★★ “Sci-Fi Short Stories: 40s to 60s. If you love the classic sci-fi stories it the 40s to 60s, you’ll find them here. Also, each episode has an introduction detailing author and publication information. The narrator has an excellent character range and an obvious love for classic sci-fi.”
— NormanH52

Vintage science fiction. Professionally narrated. Carefully curated.