by Monnie

Created on: September 10, 2010

Nightmares & Dreamscapes, the third collection of short stories by Stephen King, is filled with all kinds of unsettling tales of terror. From tales of revenge like the opening “Dolan’s Cadillac” to tales of the unexplainable and weird like “The Moving Finger” its quite possible Nightmares & Dreamscapes has something for everyone. While most of the stories contained in this collection are worthy of a reader’s time, some are definitely more interesting than others. One of the more disturbing, even sadistically satisfying tales, is “Popsy”. King uses the potential harm to a child and then gives this fairly universal fear a tweak.

Sheridan is in over his head with gambling debts when he gets introduced to a creepy Russian guy named Mr. Wizard. If he doesn’t pay his gambling debts he will end up six feet under and he is desperate. Desperate enough to do this man’s horrible bidding. For the last few weeks he has been abducting children and delivering them to his man. He continues to half-heartedly pretend he doesn’t know what happens to these children after he collects his fee. When he sees the young boy standing outside of the mall he figures this will be an easy target. The boy is clearly lost, in tears and desperate to find a man he simply refers to as Popsy. It seems Popsy left him briefly to get him a drink and he hasn’t returned yet. Soon Sheridan is heading on a road away from the mall, the little boy in the seat next to him frightened but fierce.

Is it possible Sheridan got more than he bargained for?

King does a masterful job in building the main character of the story. He is a heinous, pitiful man who is a slave to his addictions and willing to destroy the lives of innocent children to fuel his gambling habit. Sheridan inspires both pure revile and the most degrading type of pity. Disgusted pity in what kind of animal he is. So when the end of the story is revealed there are conflicting emotions about the turn of events. Not nearly as many though as a reader might feel comfortable with.

“Popsy” is one of the most disturbing tales in Nightmares & Dreamscapes on many levels. King does a good job of foreshadowing and creating a mood. He creates a sense of impending doom and imminent justice without giving everything away. So while it’s not my absolute favorite within Nightmares & Dreamscapes its very close. It’s dark, memorable and satisfying on a most basic level.

Learn more about this author, Monnie.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.