Most versions of "The Star Thrower" that are recounted in popular culture are essentially the same. Eiseley's character approaches the star thrower and says, "You can't possibly make a difference." To this the star thrower replies, "Made a difference to that one!" The most commonly changed characteristics of the story are the setting and the age and gender of the star thrower and Eiseley's character.
"The Star Thrower" appears in Chicken Soup for the Soul as a story entitled "One at a Time." I call this version the "Mexico version" simply because it is set in Mexico. I believe that Jack Canfield and Mark Hansen took the version of "The Star Thrower" that they had heard and made it their own by setting the story in Mexico. They also tell the story from the perspective of "a friend of ours..." and describe the star thrower as a local native. I believe that these characterizations are their additions to the story also.
The "Mexico version" of "The Star Thrower" appears on 31 websites. Chicken Soup for the Soul is credited on 17 of those websites. On one website, Eiseley is actually given credit for a "Mexico version" of "The Star Thrower." The "Mexico version" has been around for so long that even it has been altered and is frequently told without any credit given to Chicken Soup for the Soul. So Jack Canfield and Mark Hansen made their version of "The Star Thrower" without giving credit to Eiseley, but as time has past, they have also lost credit for the story and some people have reclaimed the story for Eiseley.
Elaine Sichel has also apparently put her spin on "The Star Thrower" in her book Circles of Compassion, A Collection of Humane Words and Work. Her version of the story begins, "A friend of mine was walking along a Florida Beach the morning after Hurricane Cassandra had stuck..." Since this "Florida version" only appeared twice and was credited to Sichel both times, I believe that Sichel (or the person who contributed the story to her compilation) created this version of the story.
Versions of "The Star Thrower" have also been set in Spain on the southern coast and a beach at dawn.
In some versions of "The Star Thrower," Eiseley is actually in the story. In other versions, Eiseley's character is referred to as a wise man or writer. Still other versions tell the story from the storyteller's perspective. These descriptions of Eiseley's character are all reminiscent of the original story.
The star thrower is also described many different ways. In some versions, the star thrower is a young girl or young woman. In other versions, the star thrower is a young boy or young man. In still other versions, the star thrower is an old man. In the majority of versions of the story that I found on the internet, the star thrower is described as a younger person. In this respect, the popular versions of "The Star Thrower" are closely related to the original.
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