Short story, some details, no idea what it was

[zedlav]

I realize this is a long shot, but for some reason, I'd really like to find out who the author of the story was.

I read this as a kid, in a short story compilation published in the USSR sometime in the 1970s or 1980s. It was a Western author, presumably American.

- An old guy, living with his wife in a hut, next to a highway, far from the nearest city. A car had crashed not far from there some years ago and he had used the tires to make soles for his boots.

- At some point, the usually empty highway is flooded with a never ending column of long, sleek black cars, all going in the same direction. The man is surprised, but shrugs it off, until the last car in the column stops. It is an old Ford, driven by a young man, who has 3 frightened young women as passengers. I don't remember what they were talking about, but it was quite clear that some sort of catastrophe was imminent and they were left behind.

In case this seem familiar to anyone, it'd be nice to find out who wrote it.

[dwndrgn]

I'm sorry that it isn't a bit familiar to me. Hopefully someone else will be more helpful!

[gully_foyle]

It is very familiar to me, but I'm at work so I can't check my library. My guess is that it is a Fritz Leiber story. I have an anthology of his called Ghost Light, and there's a few stories about big black cars. I'll try to check it out tonight and get back to you.

[j. d. worthington]

"The Highway", by Ray Bradbury. It is included in The Illustrated Man. (Hernando also used the hubcap to fill the radiator of the car of the frightened travellers; the catastrophe was the final -- nuclear -- war; though the cars in this tale are not all black....)

[gully_foyle]

Quite right J.D. I knew I had read it somewhere. Wonder what my Fritz Leiber story was.

[j. d. worthington]

It's one of my favorites from that book... so very quiet, yet so very powerful...

[zedlav]

Great stuff, thanks guys. I should have known it was Bradbury, he was published quite extensively in the USSR.

[j. d. worthington]

Originally Posted by zedlav

Great stuff, thanks guys. I should have known it was Bradbury, he was published quite extensively in the USSR.

Didn't realize that, but it makes sense... and you're welcome.