Strawberry Spring
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| "Strawberry Spring" | |
| Author | Stephen King |
|---|---|
| Country |  USA |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Horror, |
| Published in | Night Shift |
| Publisher | Doubleday |
| Media type | Print (Paperback) |
| Publication date | 1978 |
Strawberry Spring is a horror genre short story by Stephen King, first published in the 1978 compilation Night Shift. It employs a twist ending.
Contents |
[edit] Setting
Strawberry Spring takes place on at the fictional New Sharon College.
[edit] Plot summary
An unnamed narrator sees the words "Springheel Jack" in a newspaper, which leads him to recount a time, about eight years ago, when he was at New Sharon College. His recollections are nostalgic, almost melancholy. It was 1968 when the strawberry spring, a ‘false’ spring, much like an Indian summer, broke. It brought a thick fog, which covered the campus at nighttime, providing perfect cover for a serial killer called ‘Springheel Jack.’ The body of a girl was found in a parking lot, the first murder in a series. Several more students are murdered during the strawberry spring, and the narrator describes the reactions of the college community throughout this time; the contradicting rumors that are spread about the victims ("she was ugly but cute... she was a lesbian who had been murdered by her boyfriend" [1]), the blind panic of police and security guards (including a humorous anecdote about a student who passed out in the parking lot, only to be bagged and taken to the morgue by the security guard who found him) and the feelings of suspicions among students. No reliable suspects are found.
Eight years later, a new strawberry spring has arrived again, and so has "Springheel Jack", who took another victim at New Sharon College the previous night. The narrator can’t remember where he was last night - the last thing he remembers is turning on his headlights to find his way through the "lovely creeping fog" [2] By the end, it is implied that he is the murderer.
[edit] References
- ^ Stephen King. "Strawberry Spring." In "Night Shift". (USA: Doubleday, 1990) pp228
- ^ Stephen King. "Strawberry Spring." pp236
