My Favourite Stories from Tom Bradbury

I was shocked to hear that fellow Vocal writer, Tom Bradbury passed away in a fire at his home in France. Everybody in the Vocal community groups on Facebook had interacted with him or at least heard of him. He had been an active member in the Vocal community and he won second place twice in two vocal challenges, which is an amazing achievement. I was happy to see him place because it gave me faith in the Vocal challenges. I started to suspect that they were won by fake profiles, but seeing a writer I knew place in the challenge made me believe in them again.

He gave me some nice compliments on some of my stories on Facebook and it made me really happy. Whilst we never had a deep conversation, I am grateful for all the good things he’s done for the animals he rescued and the writing community.

I’m expecting many others to share their experiences and send condolences to his friends and family. As he was such a valued member of this site, I felt complied to write about my favourite pieces that Tom had written on this website.

Starting this list off is a recipe that lured me in with the title. I’m one of the few people in the world that like dandelions and I always thought they were beautiful. I’ve never had the chance to make this one, but it sounds delicious and something I would enjoy. Tom describes dandelion lemonade as being a bit bitter and a lot like iced tea. Tom also saying that vodka or gin makes it even better is a winner for me. When the season is right, I might make some Dandelion Lemonade with gin in Tom’s honour.

This was a lovely read, with a bittersweet conclusion. I felt Tom’s pain and felt Petit Vache’s pain as well. You can learn a lot about Tom with just this post. What makes it even sadder is that windmill house he bought is no more. It makes me wonder what will happen to these lovely animals, and hope they all end up in lovely homes.

The story of Miss Marla isn’t as romantisized or plain sailing as a lot of other pet stories about there, but I enjoyed the realism and learning about Marla’s character. It’s clear that Tom loved Marla very much and she looks beautiful in all the pictures.

This is another one of Tom’s great pieces. I like the pictures used and how they compliment the story. Also like the part were he writes that the ear is an underrated organ.

I really liked this piece. I also love how he uses the pictures to illustrate the messages in the story. The pictures and lyrical prose helped me become engrossed in the story.

This was one of the last pieces he submitted to Vocal. I remember reading it the first time and it gave me goosebumps. The addiction parts made me feel like it was calling out to me. When I read it again, it feels more poignant now that he’s gone. It’s a terrific piece and it is one that I will never forget.

This has been a small selection of some of the many great works that Tom has done. You can check his profile out for some more great writing. If you love animals, a fan of short stories, or are just looking for a few minutes of with stuff to read, I would recommend checking out Tom’s profile. Such a shame that Tom died in the fire. I hope he is having a great time being reunited with all the animals he lost great that he will be remembered and well loved.