Roald Dahl
Roald Dahl (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a British novelist, poet, screenwriter, short-story writer and wartime fighter pilot. He was best known for his children's novels.
Early life
Dahl was born on 13 September 1916 in Llandaff, Cardiff, Wales to Norwegian parents.[1] He was educated in England, Llandaff Cathedral School, and then worked in Africa for the Shell Oil Company.[2] In the Second World War, he was an RAF fighter pilot. It was after an air-crash and "a monumental bash on the head" that he began to write. The crash was the subject of his first published story, "Shot Down Over Libya".He wrote Matilda and The Twits
Writing
He wanted to become an adult book writer but ended up as a children's book writer. He had a tragic life since his father and oldest sister both died when he was young. Roald Dahl said that the key to his success rested in sympathizing with children and realizing that to children, parents and school teachers are the enemy.
Dahl wrote many famous children's stories and adult horror stories.[3] Many of his books and stories have been made into films and television shows all over the world. Among his most popular books are Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach, Matilda, The Witches, The BFG, and Kiss Kiss. Many of his children's books have pictures drawn by Quentin Blake.
Personal life and death
Dahl was married to Patricia Neal from 1953 until they divorced in 1983. They had four daughters (one of whom died before them) and a son. Dahl was married to Felicity Crosland from 1983 until his death. He lived in Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire. He died on 23 November 1990 in Oxford, from myelodysplastic syndrome, aged 74.
Model Sophie Dahl is his granddaughter.
There is a Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre in Great Missenden.[4]
Books
| Title | Year | Scope | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Gremlins | 1943 | Children | |
| Sometime Never: A Fable for Supermen | 1948 | Adult | |
| James and the Giant Peach | 1961 | Children | |
| Charlie and the Chocolate Factory | 1964 | Children | |
| The Magic Finger | 1966 | Children | Short book |
| Fantastic Mr Fox | 1970 | Children | Short book |
| Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator | 1972 | Children | Sequel to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory |
| Danny, the Champion of the World | 1975 | Children | |
| The Enormous Crocodile | 1978 | Children | Short book |
| My Uncle Oswald | 1979 | Adult | |
| The Twits | 1980 | Children | Short book |
| George's Marvellous Medicine | 1981 | Children | Short book |
| The BFG | 1982 | Children | |
| The Witches | 1983 | Children | |
| The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me | 1985 | Children | Short book |
| Matilda | 1988 | Children | |
| Esio Trot | 1990 | Children | Short book |
| The Vicar of Nibbleswick | 1991 | Children | Short book |
| The Minpins | 1991 | Children | Short book |
Poems
- Revolting Rhymes (Children)
- Dirty Beasts (Children)
- Rhyme Stew (Adult)
Non-Fiction
Roald Dahl Media
Dahl at age 10 with his sisters Alfhild, Else and Asta. Cardiff, 1927.
Mrs Pratchett's former sweet shop in Llandaff, Cardiff, has a blue plaque dedicated to Dahl. His autobiography Boy: Tales of Childhood recalls the prank he and his friends played on her in a jar of gobstoppers.
Dahl attended Repton School in Derbyshire from 1929 to 1934
Dahl's leather flying helmet on display in the Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre in Great Missenden
Dahl was flying a Gloster Gladiator when he crash landed in Libya
A Hawker Hurricane Mk 1, the aircraft type in which Dahl engaged in aerial combat over Greece
Patricia Neal and Roald Dahl
Dahl (age 72) signing books in Amsterdam, Netherlands (October 1988).
Roald Dahl's vardo in the garden of his home, Gipsy House, in Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire, where he wrote Danny, the Champion of the World in 1975.
.jpg)
References
- ↑ Philip Howard, "Roald Dahl" (1916–1990)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004
- ↑ Shavick, Andrea (1997). Roald Dahl The Champion Storyteller. OXFORD: Oxford University Press. pp. 14. ISBN 9780199119615.
- ↑ "Roald Dahl (British author) -- Britannica Online Encyclopedia". britannica.com. Retrieved on 26 July 2010.
- ↑ Barrett, Hathcock (Aug 2017). [EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=b6h&AN=15317094&site=brc-live "Roald Dahl"]. Roald Dahl: 1 – via Biography Reference Center.
{{cite journal}}: Check|url=value (help)
Other websites
- Lua error in Module:Official_website at line 90: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).