The Houseplant is a standalone short story by Jeremy Ray. At first glance, the title was very reminiscent of a popular short by HG Wells. But while the Wells’ story was a horror tale, ‘The Houseplant’ is a touching story of how a hostile plant met its first human caretaker.

From an ugly unloved fern languishing in a bathroom, the houseplant finds a new spot, a new new name and eventually a whole loving family. So our protagonist is called George, whose character grows from a human-hating plant to an emotional being who begins to connect with its owner.

Ray’s language is simple, the plot quite straightforward and yet, you may never look at your plants in the same way after reading this short story. Not what I was expecting at all. It’s a 5/5 from me.