White roses in Great Waltham, Essex, England.
"Harry" is a short ghost story by the British author Rosemary Timperley. It was first published in 1955 as part of the anthology The Third Ghost Book. It is included in the 1983 anthology Roald Dahl's Book of Ghost Stories.
The story is narrated in the first person by a woman known only as Mrs. James. Five years before the story begins, she and her husband Jim adopt a baby girl named Christine. The adoption agency that they use has a strict policy of never telling adoptive parents anything about the family background of children placed in their care. When she is 5 years-old, Christine begins talking to Harry, a boy that only she can see who has a fondness for white roses. Christine says that Harry is her brother. Both Jim and the James' family doctor consider Christine having an imaginary friend to be harmless and potentially even beneficial to the girl. Mrs. James, however, is not entirely certain Harry is imaginary and does not like the influence he has on her daughter.
"Harry" was adapted as an episode of the Canadian anthology TV series First Person that first aired on CBC Television on July 20, 1960.
Plot[]
Mrs. James and her husband Jim adopt Christine when she is a baby. One hot summer day when Christine is 5 years-old and sat by a white rose bush in the garden, she suddenly starts having a one-sided conversation. She can be heard saying that she is not a baby and insisting that the people she lives with are her mother and father. Christine tells Mrs. James that she was talking to a boy named Harry who has red hair just like her. Mrs. James immediately feels uneasy. When she tells her husband Jim about it, however, he is unconcerned. He says that it is not unusual for children to have imaginary friends and that Christine will probably forget about Harry once she starts school. In the days that follow, Christine continues talking to Harry and then telling Mrs. James about their conversations. Christine says that Harry is her brother.
Jim is pleased with how Christine's verbal skills have advanced as a result of her constant conversations with Harry. Mrs. James says that Christine is developing a Cockney accent that is more noticeable when she speaks to Harry than when she speaks to her parents. Jim replies that it is normal for children in London to develop something of a Cockney accent and that it will probably get stronger when she starts school and meets other children. Although he still does not think that Christine's imaginary friend is anything to be concerned about, Jim can see that his wife is distressed. He suggests taking Christine to see the family doctor, Dr. Webster.
Mrs. James tells Dr. Webster about her concerns. He then talks to Christine on her own. Dr. Webster happily announces to Mrs. James that there is nothing wrong with Christine. He says Christine has told him that Harry is 14-years old, tall for his age and is a very loving brother who takes good care of his little sister. Dr. Webster also believes that Christine will forget about Harry when she starts school and meets other children. He says that in the meantime, Mrs. James should talk about Harry to her daughter as if he were a real person. Christine tells her mother and Dr. Webster that she can see Harry through the window standing by a white rose bush outside. While walking home, Mrs. James thinks she can briefly see the shadow of a tall thin boy along with her own shadow and that of her daughter.
Just before she is due to start school, Christine announces that she does not want to go because she fears being separated from Harry.
Christine starts school on a hot day in September. Mrs. James leaves Christine with her teacher and says she will come to collect her at half past three that afternoon. Immediately afterwards, Mrs. James goes to the adoption agency that introduced her to Christine. She tells the director, Miss Cleaver, all about Christine and Harry. Miss Cleaver decides to break the agency's strict policy of never telling adoptive parents anything abut the family background of the children they adopt.
Christine had a 14 year-old brother named Harold who, like everyone else in his family, had red hair. Christine was born into a poor family named Jones from the East End of London. She, Harold and her parents lived in an apartment in an upper story of a building in a bad state of disrepair. Shortly after Christine was born, her father, who had already been left psychologically scarred by his experiences in World War II, had to stop work due to injury. That put the family in a worse financial situation. Christine's mother never took any interest in her from the moment she was born. Harold was the only person in the family who cared for her. He adored his baby sister and would often skip school to look after her. Seeing no future for himself or his family, Christine's father came up with a murder-suicide plan that would involve using the apartment's gas supply to kill everyone in it overnight. Mr. Jones and his wife succumbed to the gas and died. Harold, however, woke up in the night and tried to escape out of a window holding Christine in his arms. Harold fell, broke his neck and died. Christine was left as the only survivor. Mrs. James wonders if Harold's priority was saving Christine's life or taking her with him wherever he went.
Miss Cleaver gives Mrs. James the address of the building where Christine and her family used to live. She goes there and sees that there is a white rose bush outside the building. An old woman puts her head out of a window. She says that she continues to live in the building even though it has been condemned and is haunted. She says that she often sees Harry's ghost by the white rose bush, the spot where he fell to his death and the spot where Mrs. James is standing. Mrs. James realizes it is three o'clock in the afternoon. She promised her daughter she would meet her at half past three and she is now far away from Christine's school.
Mrs. James eventually arrives at the almost empty school. She tells Christine's teacher that she has come to collect her daughter. The teacher replies that Christine has already left with her older brother Harry who looked just like her. Mrs. James goes out frantically looking for her daughter. She calls out Christine's name and Harry's too. She eventually collapses from sunstroke in front of the white rose bush in her garden.
It takes several weeks for Mrs. James to recover her health. Christine is never seen again.
See also[]
- "Christmas Meeting", another short story by Rosemary Timperley included in Roald Dahl's Book of Ghost Stories