Roald Dahl
bibliography
Bookshelf with stacks of books by Roald Dahl
Bookshelf with stacks of books by Roald Dahl
Novels↙19
Collections↙13
Poems↙3
Scripts↙12
Books edited↙1
Non-fiction↙9
References and footnotes

Roald Dahl (1916–1990) was a British author and scriptwriter,[1] and "the most popular writer of children's books since Enid Blyton", according to Philip Howard, the literary editor of The Times.[2] He was raised by his Norwegian mother, who took him on annual trips to Norway, where she told him the stories of trolls and witches present in the dark Scandinavian fables. Dahl was influenced by the stories, and returned to many of the themes in his children's books.[3] His mother also nurtured a passion in the young Dahl for reading and literature.[4]

Dahl left the Repton School in Derby England in 1934, and he did not go to college. Instead, he took a job in East Africa to sell oil.[5] During this time World War II started and Dahl became a pilot in the Royal Air Force (RAF). Before engaging in active service he crashed in the Libyan desert and was seriously injured. After recovering, he joined his company and was responsible for shooting down several enemy aircraft, however ultimately effects of his injuries made him unfit to fly. He was posted to Washington as an assistant air attaché, ostensibly a diplomatic post, but which also included espionage and propaganda work.[6] In 1942 the writer C. S. Forester asked him to provide details of his experiences in North Africa which Forester hoped to use in an article in The Saturday Evening Post. Instead of the notes which Forester expected, Dahl sent a finished story for which he was paid $900. In 1943 Dahl wrote his first story for children titled: “The Gremlins.” This story was also intended for Walt Disney, who was interested in turning it into a film.[7] This was Dahl's first children's book published, though it was originally not written as such.[8] Dahl continued to write short stories, although these were all aimed at the adult market. Dahl worked for periodicals as a short story contributor. Other stories were sold to magazines and newspapers, and were later compiled into collections, the first of which was published in 1946.[9] Dahl began to make up bedtime stories for the children, and these formed the basis of several of his stories.[10][11] His first novel intentionally written for children, James and the Giant Peach, was published in 1961,[12] which was followed, along with others, by Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (1964), Fantastic Mr Fox (1970), Danny, the Champion of the World (1975), The BFG (1982) and Matilda in 1988.[13]

Dahl's first script was for a stage work, The Honeys, which appeared on Broadway in 1955. He followed this with a television script, "Lamb to the Slaughter", for the Alfred Hitchcock Presents series. He also co-wrote screenplays for film, including for You Only Live Twice (1967) and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968).[14][15] In 1982 Dahl published the first of three editions of poems—all aimed at children. The following year he edited a book of ghost stories.[16] He also wrote several works of non-fiction, including three autobiographies, a cookery book, a safety leaflet for the British railways and a book on measles, which was about the death of his daughter Olivia from measles encephalitis.[16][17]

As at 2019, Dahl's works have been translated into 63 languages and have sold more than 200 million books worldwide.[18][19] Dahl was known as “The World’s No. 1 Story-teller” due to how his books celebrate nonsense, imagination, and creativity. It is because of this that his books are still popular with children.[20] His awards for contribution to literature include the 1983 World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement, and the British Book Awards' Children's Author of the Year in 1990. In 2008 The Times placed Dahl 16th on its list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945".[21] He has been referred to by The Independent as "one of the greatest storytellers for children of the 20th century".[22] On his death in 1990, Howard considered him "one of the most widely read and influential writers of our generation".[2]

Novels

Dahl's novels
Title[16][17][23][24][25] Year of first
publication		 First edition publisher Scope
The Gremlins 1943 Random House, New York Children
Sometime Never: A Fable for Supermen[lower-alpha 1] 1948 Charles Scribner's Sons, New York Adult
James and the Giant Peach 1961 Alfred A. Knopf, New York Children
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory 1964 Alfred A. Knopf, New York Children
The Magic Finger 1966 Harper & Row, New York Children
Fantastic Mr Fox 1970 Alfred A. Knopf, New York Children
Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator 1972 Alfred A. Knopf, New York Children
Danny, the Champion of the World 1975 Alfred A. Knopf, New York Children
The Enormous Crocodile 1978 Alfred A. Knopf, New York Children
My Uncle Oswald 1979 Michael Joseph, London Adult
The Twits 1980 Jonathan Cape, London Children
George's Marvellous Medicine 1981 Jonathan Cape, London Children
The BFG 1982 Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York Children
The Witches 1983 Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York Children
The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me 1985 Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York Children
Matilda 1988 Viking Kestrel, New York Children
Esio Trot 1990 Jonathan Cape, London Children
The Vicar of Nibbleswicke 1991 Century, London Children
The Minpins 1991 Jonathan Cape, London Children

Short story collections

Dahl's short story collections
Title[16][24][25][27] Year of first publication First edition publisher Scope
Over to You: Ten Stories of Flyers and Flying 1946 Reynal & Hitchcock, New York Adult
Someone Like You 1953 Alfred A. Knopf, New York Adult
Kiss Kiss 1960 Alfred A. Knopf, New York Adult
Twenty-Nine Kisses from Roald Dahl[lower-alpha 2] 1969 Michael Joseph, London Adult
Switch Bitch 1974 Alfred A. Knopf, New York Adult
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More 1977 Jonathan Cape, London Adult
The Best of Roald Dahl 1978 Vintage Books, New York Adult
Tales of the Unexpected 1979 Michael Joseph, London Adult
More Tales of the Unexpected 1980 Michael Joseph, London Adult
A Roald Dahl Selection: Nine Short Stories 1980 Longmans, London Adult
Two Fables 1986 Viking Press, London Adult
Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life: The Country Stories of Roald Dahl 1989 Michael Joseph, London Adult
The Roald Dahl Treasury 1997 Jonathan Cape, London Children
Madness:Tales of Fear and Unreason 2016 Michael Joseph, London Adult
Lust:Tales of Craving and Desire 2016 Michael Joseph, London Adult
Cruelty:Tales of Malice and Greed 2016 Michael Joseph, London Adult
Deception:Tales of Intrigue and Lies 2016 Michael Joseph, London Adult

Scripts

Many of Dahl's works were used as the basis for films or television programmes. The following are where he is credited as the writer of the performed script.[11][29]

Dahl's scripts
Title[11][14][15][29] Year of first
publication or production		 First edition publisher,
where relevant		 Media Notes
The Honeys 1955 – Stage work Produced at the Longacre Theatre on Broadway.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: "Lamb to the Slaughter" 1958 – Television script
Way Out: "William and Mary" 1961 – Television script Also introduced by Dahl on CBS
You Only Live Twice 1967 – Film script With Jack Bloom
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang 1968 – Film script With Ken Hughes
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory 1971 – Film script
The Night Digger – Film script
The BFG: Plays for Children 1976 Puffin Books, London Stage work
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: A Play Puffin Books, London Stage work
James and the Giant Peach: A Play 1982 Puffin Books, London Stage work
Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator: A Play 1984 Allen & Unwin, London Stage work
Fantastic Mr Fox: A Play 1987 Puffin Books, London Stage work

Poems

Dahl's poetry
Title[14][30] Year of first
publication		 First edition publisher
Revolting Rhymes 1982 Jonathan Cape, (London)
Dirty Beasts 1983 Jonathan Cape, (London)
Rhyme Stew 1989 Jonathan Cape, (London)
Songs and Verse 2005 Jonathan Cape, (London)
Vile Verses 2005 Viking Juvenile, (New York)

Books edited

Dahl's work as an editor
Title[16] Year of first
publication		 First edition publisher Description Notes
Roald Dahl's Book of Ghost Stories 1983 Jonathan Cape, London Adult; short story collection Editor only

Non-fiction

Dahl's works of non-fiction
Title[16][17][11] Year of first
publication		 First edition publisher Scope Notes
Boy: Tales of Childhood 1984 Jonathan Cape, London Autobiography
Going Solo 1986 Jonathan Cape, London Autobiography
Measles, a Dangerous Illness 1988 Sandwell Health Authority Medical/Autobiographical About the death of his daughter Olivia from measles encephalitis
Memories with Food at Gipsy House 1991 Viking Press, London Cook book With Felicity Dahl; reissued in softcover in 1996 as Roald Dahl's Cookbook
Roald Dahl's Guide to Railway Safety 1991 British Railways Board, London Safety booklet
The Dahl Diary 1992 1991 Puffin Books, London Diary
My Year 1993 Jonathan Cape, London Autobiography
The Roald Dahl Diary 1997 1996 Puffin Books, London Diary
The Mildenhall Treasure 1999 Jonathan Cape, London History First published in book form in The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More before release in 1999 as a single title edition

Notes and references

Explanatory notes

  1. ↑ Also published as Some Time Never: A Fable for Supermen.[26]
  2. ↑ Comprises Someone Like You and Kiss Kiss.[28]

Citations

  1. ↑ "Obituary: Roald Dahl". The Times. 24 November 1990. p. 14.
  2. 1 2 Howard, Philip (24 November 1990). "Death silences Pied Piper of the macabre". The Times. p. 1.
  3. ↑ Sturrock 2010, pp. 60–62.
  4. ↑ Howard 2011.
  5. ↑ "Roald Dahl's Subversive Storytelling". The New Yorker. 4 July 2005. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
  6. ↑ Conant 2008, p. xvii.
  7. ↑ Royer, Sharon E. (1 September 1998). "Roald Dahl and Sociology 101". The ALAN Review. 26 (1). doi:10.21061/alan.v26i1.a.6.
  8. ↑ "The Gremlins: Background". Roald Dahl.
  9. ↑ Walker 2004, pp. 40–41.
  10. ↑ Sturrock 2010, pp. 350–51.
  11. 1 2 3 4 "Roald Dahl". Contemporary Authors. Gale. Retrieved 5 February 2016. (subscription required)
  12. ↑ Walker 2002, p. 12.
  13. ↑ Book and Magazine Collector 2005, pp. 20–27.
  14. 1 2 3 Walker 2002, p. 22–23.
  15. 1 2 "Roald Dahl". American Film Institute. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Roald Dahl, Published works" (PDF). Roald Dahl Museum. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 August 2009. Retrieved 12 February 2016.
  17. 1 2 3 Sturrock 2010, pp. 627–28.
  18. ↑ "Roald Dahl centenary: 'Tremendous things' promised for 2016". BBC. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
  19. ↑ "Oxford University Press to capture Roald Dahl's naughtiest language for the first time: World Book Day!". Cardiff Times. 7 March 2019.
  20. ↑ Spivey, Madeline (2020). "Roald Dahl and the Construction of Childhood: Writing the Child as Other". The Oswald Review.
  21. ↑ "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945". The Times. 5 January 2008. p. 11 (Section 3).
  22. ↑ "Once upon a time, there was a man who liked to make up stories ..." The Independent. 12 December 2010.
  23. ↑ Book and Magazine Collector 2005, pp. 17–30.
  24. 1 2 Grigsby 1994, p. 40.
  25. 1 2 Carrick 2002, pp. 37–38.
  26. ↑ Book and Magazine Collector 2005, p. 18.
  27. ↑ Dalby 1994, p. 15.
  28. ↑ Book and Magazine Collector 2005, p. 22.
  29. 1 2 "Roald Dahl". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 8 October 2016. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
  30. ↑ Walker, Richard (2020). "Roald Dahl – A Guide To Collecting his First Editions". Richard's Left Bank. Retrieved 24 August 2020. [Blog entry written in 2020, which updates material originally compiled by Walker in 2017.]

General and cited sources

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