Thomas F. (hardtack) - , reviewed on 10/27/2024 + 2686 more book reviews

I've read a number of Dahl's children books and enjoyed them. But I didn't connect with (like?) any of these stories----which are not children's stories---except for one. One of the stories, the longest one, was a thinly disguised tribute to himself.

The one story I connected with was "A Piece of Cake." Perhaps that was because I was also in the military, a USMC officer who served in Viet Nam. But I was a "ground-pounder" and not a pilot. The Marines did ask me if I wanted to train as a pilot, and I quickly told them no. I figured if the bullets were flying and you needed to "hit the dirt" for cover, that wasn't a good thing to do if you were in a plane.

The back of the book lists the children's charity Dalh created with his book royalties. I'm glad he did, as that might be his way of seeking redemption for the total jerk he was early in life. To discover what I mean, read "The Irregulars : Roald Dahl and the British Spy Ring in Wartime Washington" by Jennet Conant. His despicable behavior had nothing to do with spying, but with his behavior with women, even those related to his friends.

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