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A review by viiemzee
Kiss Kiss by Roald Dahl
5.0
Most people in talk to about Roald Dahl tell me that they’ve never read his adult stuff, preferring to stick to his feel-good, very well-written children’s novels. To these people I say, all well and good. His children’s books are incredibly good and I do recommend them to anyone and everyone of any age group regardless, but his adult short stories are a thing to be reckoned with, and should really be given a chance too.
I’ve previously tried to write a review to another of Dahl’s collections – Skin and other stories – but I think that since I did that I’ve become a bit of a better reviewer, so I’m going to try and give this collection a bit more justice.
There are 11 short stories in this particular collection. Most of the stories have very adult themes – adultery, death, horror, reincarnation. The way that the stories are written, in Dahl’s peculiar fashion, means that there isn’t any kind of coarse language or language that would make people particularly uncomfortable, but the themes are very obviously not intended or aimed for children to read.
(The first time I read this collection I was thirteen years old, so maybe that explains a lot about me as a person now…)
What I especially love about Dahl’s writing in this collection is that it requires a lot of inferences and reading between the lines to figure out what has happened in the story. Dahl very rarely gives you a straight-up ending, but gives you all the necessary clues and hints needed for you to get to the end of the story all on your own, without him having to spell it out for you. I particularly like this about the stories because it feels like you’re actually watching a TV show. You know that moment when something is about to happen and you suddenly feel yourself piecing all the story together and a moment of realization just dawns over you? That’s the feeling you get when you’re reading Dahl’s short stories – he makes you feel as if you’ve come to the conclusion on your own even though all the hints he dropped were right there.
My favourite stories from this are difficult to chose, but maybe my top three have to be The Way Up to Heaven (which is about a wife who hates being late and a husband who seems to always try to make her late for things), Edward the Conqueror (the story of a cat who is thought to be a reincarnation of Liszt, the famous composer), and Pig (the story of a young man who has never tasted meat before and encounters a pig slaughter house on his journey around the world).
All in all, I’d give this book a 5/5. It’s full of beautifully written stories, short enough to keep your attention but long enough to reveal a very intricately woven story. The best part about it is how quickly you can get through a story but feel like it’s been resolved and closed without leaving a bad taste in your mouth (except for maybe The Landlady).
Read this book on a stormy day with a mug of something hot, as that is honestly the emotion that Dahl conveys in me often. Or maybe on a plane ride when you have to find something to occupy your time with. You won’t be disappointed.
I’ve previously tried to write a review to another of Dahl’s collections – Skin and other stories – but I think that since I did that I’ve become a bit of a better reviewer, so I’m going to try and give this collection a bit more justice.
There are 11 short stories in this particular collection. Most of the stories have very adult themes – adultery, death, horror, reincarnation. The way that the stories are written, in Dahl’s peculiar fashion, means that there isn’t any kind of coarse language or language that would make people particularly uncomfortable, but the themes are very obviously not intended or aimed for children to read.
(The first time I read this collection I was thirteen years old, so maybe that explains a lot about me as a person now…)
What I especially love about Dahl’s writing in this collection is that it requires a lot of inferences and reading between the lines to figure out what has happened in the story. Dahl very rarely gives you a straight-up ending, but gives you all the necessary clues and hints needed for you to get to the end of the story all on your own, without him having to spell it out for you. I particularly like this about the stories because it feels like you’re actually watching a TV show. You know that moment when something is about to happen and you suddenly feel yourself piecing all the story together and a moment of realization just dawns over you? That’s the feeling you get when you’re reading Dahl’s short stories – he makes you feel as if you’ve come to the conclusion on your own even though all the hints he dropped were right there.
My favourite stories from this are difficult to chose, but maybe my top three have to be The Way Up to Heaven (which is about a wife who hates being late and a husband who seems to always try to make her late for things), Edward the Conqueror (the story of a cat who is thought to be a reincarnation of Liszt, the famous composer), and Pig (the story of a young man who has never tasted meat before and encounters a pig slaughter house on his journey around the world).
All in all, I’d give this book a 5/5. It’s full of beautifully written stories, short enough to keep your attention but long enough to reveal a very intricately woven story. The best part about it is how quickly you can get through a story but feel like it’s been resolved and closed without leaving a bad taste in your mouth (except for maybe The Landlady).
Read this book on a stormy day with a mug of something hot, as that is honestly the emotion that Dahl conveys in me often. Or maybe on a plane ride when you have to find something to occupy your time with. You won’t be disappointed.