1950's 'The Mindworm' is a creepy bit of science fiction horror. The Mindworm was born because his unmarried parents were a little too close to an atomic test before mating. His mother dumped him at a foundling home where the boy lived until he was taken in by alcoholic Mimi Berryman and her husband.

The Mindworm is a telepath, but he's no altruistic Professor Xavier. He hits the road, wearing a Boy Scout uniform. Over the years he wanders, killing people, feeding on their emotions. We get to know only a few of his victims.

The Mindworm slips up, so he has to kill eight people at once before he can escape. He winds up in a small place with quite a few Eastern European immigrants.

Notes: Here 'native-American' means a person born in the USA. Calling indigenous people 'Native Americans' started in the 1960s. This story takes place before birth control pills were available and an unmarried woman who got pregnant was a scandal. ( )

A mutant human, created by an atomic bomb test, tries to survive on his own. Kornbluth does some interesting things in this one. ( )