A picture book about a spider and its house guests.
Properties[]
Induces the reader to walk to an unknown house and knock on the door, to presumably be devoured by "Mr Spider."
Notes[]
This book was part of Jurgen Leitner's library.
Jonathan Sims encountered this book during his childhood when it was inadvertently bought for him by his grandmother from a local charity shop or second-hand bookstore. The experience convinced him of the existence of the supernatural.
Contents[]
The cover is monochrome, with black webs covering its corners, and the title is half-written, half-carved in the centre. The back cover features an illustration of Mr. Spider.
Pages 1-4
[Image: A house with a small table with a pot of flowers and two doors. Mr. Spider stands in the centre, back to the reader, looking at the door on the left. On each page, Mr. Spider's arms are in different positions.]
Page 5 onwards
KNOCK KNOCK
[Image: Mr. Spider with his arms straight by his side.]
WHO IS IT, MR. SPIDER?
[Image: One of the doors opens; on the other side is a thin fly in an ill-fitting suit, clutching a box. The fly is anxious.]
IT'S MR. BLUEBOTTLE, AND HE'S BROUGHT YOU A CAKE.
[Images: Large slice of cake. Mr. Bluebottle's worried face.]
MR. SPIDER DOESN'T LIKE IT.
[Image: same room, both doors closed. Ink is spilled in the lower half of the right-hand door. Several repeated pages, Mr. Spider's arms in different positions. His belly is bigger than on the first four pages.]
KNOCK KNOCK
[Image: Mr. Spider goes rigid.]
WHO IS IT, MR. SPIDER?
[Image: Door opening; a fly wearing a yellow dress.]
IT'S MRS. FRUIT, AND SHE'S BROUGHT YOU SOME FLOWERS.
[Images: Unhealthy pink flowers. Mrs. Fruit's terrified face.]
MR. SPIDER DOESN'T EAT FLOWERS.
[Images: Same room, both doors closed. Right-hand door is even darker. The flowers brought by Mrs. Fruit are on the table, but they are wilted and red. Mr. Spider's abdomen is larger, his mouth the same colour as the door stain. Repeated pages, Mr. Spider's arms moving. His hands now pull faintly visible grey threads through both doors.]
KNOCK KNOCK. WHO IS IT, MR. SPIDER?
[Image: Open door; a large fly in baggy overalls and a small fly in the same overalls. Both are crying.]
IT'S MR. HORSE, AND HE'S BROUGHT YOU HIS SON.
[Image: Close up of fly's face]
MR. SPIDER WANTS MORE.
[Image: Same room, smeared with dark reds and browns. Mr. Spider's abdomen is extremely large, stained in red. The grey threads are now very visible.]
[Images: Mr. Spider looks at the reader. His hands are in a different position on every page.]
2nd to last page
[Image: Close up of right-hand door, stained, ink seeping from the edges. It has a cutaway panel that leads to the page behind it.]
MR. SPIDER WANTS ANOTHER GUEST FOR DINNER. IT IS POLITE TO KNOCK.