Isaac Asimov's "Youth" (novelette, first contact, free): On daring of the young

Familiar tropes - tiny intelligent species meets giants. But it was good fun read. With a surprising, though not new, ending.

Very important:  See note with download links at bottom before choosing a download link & format. Most versions include spoiler as illustration!

Story summary.

Two young boys are caught up in adventure. One of them found two tiny very exotic animals, & has put them in a cage. The duo intend to use them to get into a circus.

Of course, the "animals" are actually aliens, crash landed on their world last night. One of them had previously made contact with dad of one of the children, but is not able to meet appointment because of being caged.

Advenure & confusion ensues.

Fact sheet.

First published: Space Science Fiction, May 1952.
Download full text from Project Gutenberg, Manybooks, Feedbooks (Caution: Prefer text-only version at Project Gutenberg; all other versions, including landing pages at Manybooks & Feedbooks, include an illustration that is a BIG story spoiler).
Rating: A.
Related: Stories of Isaac Asimov; Fiction from 1950s; Tuesday Classics.