What is your favourite Roald Dahl story?

Question

Take your pick, kids' or adults', whatever!

For the record, I'm a big fan of Royal Jelly (not one to read while pregnant or breastfeeding), Skin and William and Mary. I'd love to remain with just a brain and an eyeball!

I also like Matilda and I used to *love* Fantastic Mr. Fox when I was little :-)

I'm surprised that no-one's mentioned his grown-up books yet! No Tales of the Unexpected fans?

Answer 1

Hey hey Sunday Girl, how you been ? I really love the "Kiss Kiss" short stories book, read that when i was a kid, loved it. Especially the "Edward the Conqueror" story and "Parson's Pleasure". The story about Hitler "Genesis and Catastrophe: A True Story" is scary man !!! Was going to forget the Twits !

Answer 2

Can't pick just one (sorry). So many brilliant memories from the childrens ones: I love The Witches (because of that really scary picture of the Grand High Witch), George's Marvellous Medicine (because it really made my mum laugh when we read it together) and Matilda (I used to have it on audiobook and I think I wore the tape out). The BFG is also very cool.
I haven't read much of his stuff for adults, but some of the Tales of the Unexpected stories are quite good, like the guy with the snake in his bed, the one about Hitler's mum and the one about the guy who makes a machine that can hear plants.

Answer 3

Of Dahl's Children's books, I'd say that "Matilda" is my favourite. I really like that the central character is smart and loves books. Prior to Matilda, the clever kid in a story was usually the swotty one to be made fun off - but with Matilda, Roald Dahl proved that an intelligent hero or heroine can be engaging and endearing. In many ways she is the forerunner or Hermione Granger, in that she is a girl with ordinary parents, loves learning, and discovers she has magical powers when she goes to school. Without Matilda, we might never have had such characters as Artemis Fowl or Justin Thyme.

Of Roald Dahl's adult stories, I would choose "Henry Sugar". I really loved the concept of somehow being able to train yourself to see through things ... develop a sort of x-ray vision. The story was so believably told that it seemed almost possible. This was made more convincing by Dahl NOT opting for the sensational twist-style ending he usually chose, but, again, something that seemed likely, and grounded the whole tale in reality.

When Roald Dahl was at his most popular, he wrote stuff that no other children's writer had dared to do before, and it was this, in my opinion, that endeared him to young readers. He always remembered what THEY wanted, and refused to be bullied into writing something too tame by his cautious editors.

One favourite anecdote is about the time the American publisher of "The Big Friendly Giant" tried to persuade him to cut the "whizzpopping" scene where the giant shows how happy he feels by creatively passing wind! The editor, knowing Dahl wouldn't agree to drop the scene for reasons of taste, suggested that the scene was "isolated" and didn't tie in with anthing else in the plot. The result was that Dahl agreed, and promptly added another scene at the end of the book where The BFG displays his whizzpopping skills to the queen at Buckingham Palace! What panache! The editor now found he had two whizzpopping scenes, but, as the original plot arc was no longer isolated, knew he was beaten and decided to proceed with the book!

In retrospect it's easy to see what a true genius he was. Unfortunately, these days, as a result perhaps, far too many new children's authors feel that simply inserting the words "snot" or "fart" on every other page is enough to keep young readers happy. What they frequently fail to grasp is the style and sophistication with which Roald Dahl managed to shock parents and delight children simultaneously!

Answer 4

Wow, BRILLIANT question. I'm a huge Dahl fan. My boyfriend thinks I'm joking because I said I wanted Roald Dahl books for Christmas. It's really hard to pick a favourite. I love Matilda and The Witches. I've never read My Uncle Oswald, but it's next on my list to read as my other half's recommended it.

Take care fellow Dahl fans, xx

:)

Answer 5

I love Roald Dahl! My favorite books are Matilda, BFG, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Answer 6

Matilda was my favorite book for the longest time. I must have read it a hundred times. When I was younger, I didn't realize the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was a book, so when the remake came out, I finally read the book. It was great. The movie will always be my favorite but the remake falls short of the standard left by the first.

Answer 7

Definitely the BFG. I find it so bizarre that the tiny, skinny, speccy little girl in the book turned into the model Sophie Dahl.

I like RD's recollections of his youth in Boy... and, of course, I like Tales of the Unexpected!

Re: "Little red riding...'she whipped a pistol from her knickers' - it's an entangled story with the three little pigs!" YES! I remember a teacher reading that to us in class. We all fell off our chairs laughing.

George's Marvellous Medicine. I remember reading that when I was verrrrrrrrry small. I then created a 'marvellous medicine' of my own, with every ingredient I could find, in my dad's whisky jug. He wasn't pleased.

Charlie and the Choc Factory/Great Glass Elevator were outstanding. Matilda was fun.

Answer 8

I think the best collection of short stories by Roald Dahl is'Over to You' first publisherd in 1945 and based on his experiences as a fighter pilot. The best story in the book is 'A piece of cake'. A really clever evocation of the delerium and halucination of a fighter pilot suffering from burns. All the stories have a eerie and unsettling feel to them.

Answer 9

Charlie and the chocolate factory, Matilda, James and the Giant Peach, and Danny the Champion of the World

Answer 10

ive always thought Roald Dahls books were good my favorite has to be the twits that was a hilarious story i also liked the witches and the film was good im a bit older now but if i had the books id read them i have willy wonka and the witches films though there brilliant