I remember reading the SCARY STORIES series when I was a kid. The stories would fascinate me while the imagery was…imaginative is the best word that comes to mind. There was one picture above all others that disturbed me and that could be found in SCARY STORIES 3: MORE TALES TO CHILL YOUR BONES. I am not certain but I believe the story is titled "The Room." All I have based on it was that it came right after the story about the girl that had been raised by wolves.
I remember that I was reading it in third grade (I had to be eight) and I refused to let my friend have it because the stories themselves were captivating. When I turned to the next page though and the slanted eyes and crooked smile of the woman caught my attention my heart began pounding and I quickly closed it; passing the book over to my friend with a shaky voice.
It took me years to be able to face my fear and look back at the illustration and even now I have a troubling time staring at it for too long. Believe me though that it's a memory that's never faded.
UNK SEZ: Crooked smile? Are you thinking of this story from SCARY STORIES 3 entitled "The Dream"?….
Oh, I know this one! The story is called "The Dream," and isn't that creepy on its own, but with the illustration Mike is talking about, it's freakin' haunting. Excellent trauma!
Of course you could probably find someone who was traumatized by every single story/illustration in every single one of those books. For me, "The Scarecrow" and "The Dead Arm" ("Hand"?) are shudder-inducers still.
So there was this episode of Tales from the Crypt where Ed Begley, Jr. played a traveling salesman and Tim Curry played each family member (the Ma, the Pa & the daughter) at one of the homes he visited.  The daughter portrayed by Mr. Curry looks EXACTLY like this picture!! I know this is about as random as it gets, but I just thought I'd throw it out there to see if anyone else notices the resemblance.Â
Geez, I thought I was the only one traumatized by these books… it's kind of comforting.
Oh and that woman in the illustration… there was a girl I knew in high school that sort of looked like her. True story… she scared me. Her mouth wasn't as wide though, so I guess that gives her some semblance of humanity.
I remembered that it was titled 'The Dream' a day after writing it. But yep, that's the one. Jeez, even looking at that image now it sent a chill up my spine.Â
I agree Vicar that every illustration must have frightened someone out there. The style is very unique and manages to draw you in in a way that few other children's books ever could.
And Phantom, if it's any consolation I had a teacher in high school that looked like her later on. I used to tell people she was a means of a higher power telling me I needed to face my fears. Judging by the fact that my heart is pounding a bit looking at that picture I guess it didn't work so well…
That's one freaky picture.