Horror short story with governess, evil doll and button-hook

[Danielle]

I'm trying to track down a horror short story, of the (probably) British restrained-yet-nasty type of horror, rather than anything overt.

It was in an anthology of stories by different authors, and was probably an oldish (70s or earlier) story. It was about a governess whose pupil was a creepy little girl with a circle of dolls, and this girl punished any infractions within her group of dolls by removing their eyes with a button-hook. I think that the name of the story was the same as the name of her favourite doll, which may have been the ringleader of any unpleasant shenanigans (talking doll? can't remember). I believe the end of the story included at least an intent to remove the governess' eyes with the button-hook.

Can anyone help identify this?

[Jen]

Wow- I want to know the title so I can read it too! Wish I could help.

[Danielle]

Whoa, Anna, sure sounds like it! If I could find that, I might find a reference to the story... I can't seem to luck onto the right combination of keywords to find this thing. Probably a not-very-famous author writing this one story in an anthology. Thanks for the tip!

Cheers Jen and will let you know if I find anything.

[April Ann]

What about Eye for an Eye The Doll by John Saul, 1997. Not a 70's book. Not an anthology...but creepy....

Summary:
When the demolition of Blackstone Asylum is postponed due to financial problems, worried contractor Bill McGuire receives the mysterious gift of an antique doll, which is snatched up by his small daughter and contains a terrible evil.

[Danielle]

I found a whole scad of movies on IMDB too about evil dolls, but no luck so far. Evil dolls seem to be a popular theme! From memory though, I think the little girl herself was the really sinister one in the story. And it was definitely set back in the days when button-hooks were needed for boots.

[Anna]

I wonder if this might be a story from one of the Pan Book of Horror Stories anthologies?

Their site is here; if you browse it, you might recognize an author or a title.

[Danielle]

Thanks Anna. Very handy to have the stories listed like that, I'll take a look!

[Lobstergirl, au gratin]

Danielle, are you still looking for this or did you find it?

[Danielle]

Sorry for the delay - no, I never did find it, did you have any ideas?

[Lobstergirl, au gratin]

No, but bump this thread every couple months to get new members looking at it.

Was this for children, YA, or adults?

[Danielle]

I can't recall, good question. Most of the horror I read around then would have been adult series like the Alfred Hitchcock anthologies. I'm just checking now on a couple of sites that list Pan and Hitchcock anthology stories. I'd forgotten about this :) Thanks for the reminder!

[Jon]

OMG I think I've found it!

The story you're looking for could well be "The Doll Named Silvio" by Michael Kernan which appears in The Times Anthology of Ghost Stories (and may be collected elsewhere).

I haven't tracked it down online, but found this description (on the Vault of Evil website):

" A little girl playing with her dollies. Admittedly, some have had their eyes gouged, but what is there for the new governess to get so frightened about?"

Plus this extract:

"Dolls of all sizes sat around on the floor. At least two dozen. There were no chairs or tea-tables. The dolls were humped stiffly forward or lay flat on their backs. They were unkempt, many in rags, some with the hair entirely gone and their bare pink pates shining dully in the soft light. Some of the skulls had been dented or smashed in the back. Then, as I looked from one doll to the next, all around that unlovely circle, I saw something else.

“Every doll was blind. The cloth ones had ragged holes where the glass had been plucked clean out. The hard plastic ones with moveable eyes all showed the whites. A few had nothing more than dark empty sockets.”

[Jon]

Update: looks like the anthology was compiled from entries to The Times 1974-5 ghost story competition (other entrants include a pre-fame Julian Barnes!) and I suspect the terms of this competition precluded "The Doll Named Silvio" from being anthologised elsewhere - hence it doesn't seem to show up anywhere but this particular collection.

However, it looks like you can pick up a secondhand paperback copy cheaply from the usual online outlets.

Alternatively, I note that you can pick up a collectors' edition illustrated bound copy of the story signed by the author for a cool $400...

:)

[Lobstergirl, au gratin]

Still looking now?

[Jon]

I was so intrigued by this story I picked up a secondhand copy of The Times Anthology of Ghost Stories online just to read "The Doll Named Silvio", and it was certainly the deserved winner of the competition.