Short stories by Robert Shearman
Listing 4 stories.
The characters found in jokes are forced to act out the jokes every time they are told.
Years after a man’s detested godchild has died, the godchild’s father invites the man to stay with him and his wife in the countryside, where he witnesses strange things happening in the gardens where the godchild’s statue lies.
Growing up, a girl and her brother perform a ritual with her dolls in the woods. Now an adult, the woman marries and must introduce her new husband to the ritual.
An adult male's father randomly acquires the habit of thumb sucking. When his father later invites him to attend a social gathering, he is horrified as he witnesses the guests' inexplicable, taboo activities.