The Shack

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An illustration for the short story 'Sredni Vashtar' by 'Saki' aka Hector Hugh Munro. The story's main plot revolves around a young sickly boy, Conradin, who is constantly harassed by his care taker. His only joy is hidden in the old shack near the back of the garden. There he keeps a hen and a ferret that he believes is an unimaginably powerful god. After his aunt sells the hen to spite him he prays to his ferret god to smite his caretaker. She is murdered by the ferret, Sredni Vashtar, according to the boy's constant prayers. The kid eats toast. The end.

Oil on printmaking paper, 140 lb.