Short Story Sunday: Harry

This week I read "Harry" by Rosemary Timperley, which is the second story in "Roald Dahl's Book of Ghost Stories".

"Harry " is a story about Mrs. James who becomes very concerned when daughter starts talking to her "brother" Harry. Mrs. James cannot see this Harry, but sometimes sees shadows by the rosebushes where her daughter, Christine, talks to him. Mr. James writes the daughters behavior off as her just being lonely and needing a friend to talk to, but Mrs. James isn't convinced even after a doctor agrees with her husband. Mrs. James only hope is that Christine will loses interest in Harry when she starts school and has children her own age to play with.

Even though this story wasn't anymore creepy than the last one I read, I think I enjoyed it a bit more. It was interesting to learn about Harry and I didn't find the story quite as predictable as "W.S.". I could also empathize with Mrs. James's situation. She is trying to be a good mother, but her feelings towards her daughter's behavior take over her better judgment. It is really interesting to see how this plays out throughout the story. I think "Harry" could be pretty creepy if you were a mother with a child who talks to an imaginary friend. I am giving it a 3.5 because I really liked it, but I didn't love it.