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alannajane's review against another edition
4.0
Incredibly fun little book of short stories from RD life. I enjoyed every word.
curlypip's review against another edition
4.0
I can’t believe I’d never read this before. Having recently visited his home in Great Missenden, it’s a timely read!
Wow… you can see the inspiration for Matilda, and Charlie and the Chocolate factory, and the idea behind plenty of other cruel adults. Reading about the surgeries and broken noses etc had me cringing in sympathy.
Wow… you can see the inspiration for Matilda, and Charlie and the Chocolate factory, and the idea behind plenty of other cruel adults. Reading about the surgeries and broken noses etc had me cringing in sympathy.
cathiedalziel's review against another edition
3.0
Roald Dahl's early childhood; incidents that shaped his life's memories. Told with the same wit that he uses in writing his novels. I always like finding out what makes an author think the way he does and to hear the stories that help to shape their views on life. It seems Dahl was born with a way of viewing life that allowed him to see the magic and humor in events most of us would view as hard, annoying, even tragic. He truly is blessed with a funny bone and the humility to see the lighter side of life.
humanignorance's review against another edition
4.0
A very entertaining memoir, chock full of lively writing and very entertaining anecdotes.
donnaadouglas's review against another edition
4.0
A wonderful autobiography from one of my all-time favourite writers. Dahl's richly descriptive recollections of his childhood clearly demonstrate the origins for many of his stories - his love of sweets influencing 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory', and his boarding school's Matron influencing Matilda's Miss Trunchbull are two obvious examples.
A lovely read that harks back to a lost time in Britain's history, as well as in Dahl's life. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.
A lovely read that harks back to a lost time in Britain's history, as well as in Dahl's life. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.
ashley_choo's review against another edition
5.0
I only read a few chapters years ago, and past-Ashley was terribly impatient, and only read books that had magic, talking animals, and witches in it, which were basically all of his children's novels, which still entrances me today. But, I was lucky enough to be invited by a close friend to a secret book sale, and I spotted this book and the sequel, Going Solo, and decided to add it to my Roald Dahl collection.
Boy, am I glad I did. After all these years, I could still remember the story with the dead mouse in the Gobstopper jar, which really says a lot about Roald Dahl's brilliant writing and stories, because I have the memory of a goldfish.
These stories have shown me the beautiful mind behind my favourite childhood stories, and I wish that he were still alive today, so I could thank him for inspiring me to be a writer.
Boy, am I glad I did. After all these years, I could still remember the story with the dead mouse in the Gobstopper jar, which really says a lot about Roald Dahl's brilliant writing and stories, because I have the memory of a goldfish.
These stories have shown me the beautiful mind behind my favourite childhood stories, and I wish that he were still alive today, so I could thank him for inspiring me to be a writer.