Story Premise #16: Bambi, A Life in the Town

 

Bambi, the Disney movie, is based on a book for adults called, Bambi, A Life in the Woods.  

In this updated version, Bambi and friends (an opossum and a chipmunk) live in a residential area.  Bambi and his pals eat plants from neighborhood gardens, empty bird feeders, scare little dogs and cross busy streets.  A domestic cat befriends the wild characters and delivers bits of cat wisdom about human perspectives and motivations.  No humans speak in this story, but Bambi and crew conjecture, and learn, about the actions and reactions of their human neighbors. Some humans seem to enjoy Bambi's presence.  Others aren't so welcoming. Eventually, Bambi meets another deer and they have an adorable fawn. 

Crisis comes when the town schedules a residential deer kill.  Men and women with crossbows walk through yards and parking lots, killing deer left and right. Bambi is a coveted prize with his fine antlers. He gets hit with an arrow, but not killed.  He escapes to some woods beyond a new subdivision.  His partner is not so lucky. It's left to Bambi to break the news to his son.