Roald Dahl : Collected Stories (Everyman's Library)

Includes the stories "Poison" and "The Ratcatcher," soon to be short films from Wes Anderson on Netflix The only hardcover edition of Roald Dahl’s stories for adults, the Collected Stories amply showcases his singular gifts as a fabulist and a born storyteller. • “An ingenious imagination, a fascination with odd and ordinary detail . . . are the first strengths of Dahl’s storytelling.”— NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW Later known for his immortal children’s books, including Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach, and The BFG, Dahl also had a genius for adult short fiction, which he wrote throughout his life. Whether fictionalizing his dramatic exploits as a Royal Air Force pilot during World War II or concocting the ingeniously plotted fables that were dramatized on television as Tales of the Unexpected , Dahl was brilliant at provoking in his readers the overwhelming desire to know what happens next—and at satisfying that desire in ways that feel both surprising and inevitable. Filled with devilish plot twists, his tales display a tantalizing blend of macabre humor and the absurdly grotesque. From “The Landlady,” about an unusual boardinghouse that features a small but very permanent clientele, to “Pig,” a brutally funny look at vegetarianism, to “Man from the South,” in which a fanatical gambler does his betting with hammer, nails, and a butcher’s knife, Dahl’s creations amuse and shock us in equal measure, gleefully reminding us of what might lurk beneath the surface of the ordinary. Everyman's Library pursues the highest production standards, printing on acid-free cream-colored paper, with full-cloth cases with two-color foil stamping, decorative endpapers, silk ribbon markers, European-style half-round spines, and a full-color illustrated jacket. Contemporary Classics include an introduction, a select bibliography, and a chronology of the author's life and times. The Collected Short Stories of Roald Dahl is a 1991 short story collection for adults by Roald Dahl. The collection containing tales of macabre malevolence comprises many of Dahl's stories seen in the television series Tales of the Unexpected and previously collected in Someone Like You (1953), Kiss, Kiss (1960), Twenty-Nine Kisses from Roald Dahl (1969), Switch Bitch (1974), and Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life: The Country Stories of Roald Dahl (1989). Contains 51 stories (order varies by edition): From [Kiss Kiss](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL16248853W/Kiss_Kiss) [Landlady](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504259W/Landlady) [William and Mary](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504266W/William_and_Mary) [The Way Up to Heaven](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504268W/The_Way_Up_to_Heaven) [Parson's Pleasure](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL8318648W/Parson's_Pleasure) [Mrs. Bixby and the Colonel's Coat](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL3985404W/Mrs._Bixby_and_the_Colonel's_Coat) [Royal Jelly](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504271W/Royal_Jelly) [Georgy Porgy](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504272W/Georgy_Porgy) [Genesis and Catastrophe](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504273W/Genesis_and_Catastrophe) [Edward the Conqueror](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504274W/Edward_the_Conqueror) [Pig](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504275W/Pig) [Champion of the World](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504277W/Champion_of_the_World) From [Over to You](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL45867W/Over_to_You) [Death of an Old, Old Man](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504282W/Death_of_an_Old_Old_Man) [An African Story](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504280W/An_African_Story) [A Piece of Cake](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504283W/A_Piece_of_Cake) [Madame Rosette](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504284W/Madame_Rosette) [Katina](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504285W/Katina) [Yesterday Was Beautiful](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504287W/Yesterday_Was_Beautiful) [They Shall Not Grow Old](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504289W/They_Shall_Not_Grow_Old) [Beware of the Dog](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504290W/Beware_of_the_Dog) [Only This](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504291W/Only_This) [Someone Like You](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL15348115W/Someone_Like_You) From [Switch Bitch](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL45873W/Switch_Bitch) [Visitor](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504386W/The_Visitor) [Great Switcheroo](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL15091023W/The_Great_Switcheroo) [Last Act](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504394W/The_Last_Act) [Bitch](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504401W/Bitch) From [Someone Like You](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL45868W/Someone_Like_You) [Taste](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL15091200W/Taste) [Lamb to the Slaughter](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504418W/Lamb_to_the_Slaughter) [Man from the South](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504421W/Man_from_the_South) [The Soldier](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504424W/The_Soldier) [My Lady Love, My Dove](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504441W/My_Lady_Love_My_Dove) [Dip in the Pool](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504442W/Dip_in_the_Pool) [Galloping Foxley](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504444W/Galloping_Foxley) [Skin](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504460W/Skin) [Poison](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504477W/Poison) [Wish](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504494W/The_Wish) [Neck](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504509W/Neck) [Sound Machine](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL8318678W/The_Sound_Machine) [Nunc Dimittis](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504524W/Nunc_Dimittis) [Great Automatic Grammatizator](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504542W/The_Great_Automatic_Grammatizator) Claud's Dog [Ratcatcher](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504625W/The_Ratcatcher) [Rummins](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504633W/Rummins) [Mr Hoddy](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504639W/Mr_Hoddy) [Mr Feasey](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504641W/Mr_Feasey) Eight Further Tales of the Unexpected The umbrella man -- Mr Botibol -- Vengeance is Mine Inc. -- The butler -- Ah, sweet mystery of life -- [Bookseller](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504708W/The_Bookseller) [Hitchhiker](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20504711W/The_Hitchhiker) The surgeon (Book Jacket Status: Jacketed)

The only hardcover edition of Roald Dahl’s stories for adults, the Collected Stories amply showcases his singular gifts as a fabulist and a born storyteller.

Later known for his immortal children’s books, including Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach, and The BFG, Dahl also had a genius for adult short fiction, which he wrote throughout his life. Whether fictionalizing his dramatic exploits as a Royal Air Force pilot during World War II or concocting the ingeniously plotted fables that were dramatized on television as Tales of the Unexpected, Dahl was brilliant at provoking in his readers the overwhelming desire to know what happens next—and at satisfying that desire in ways that feel both surprising and inevitable.

Filled with devilish plot twists, his tales display a tantalizing blend of macabre humor and the absurdly grotesque. From “The Landlady,” about an unusual boardinghouse that features a small but very permanent clientele, to “Pig,” a brutally funny look at vegetarianism, to “Man from the South,” in which a fanatical gambler does his betting with hammer, nails, and a butcher’s knife, Dahl’s creations amuse and shock us in equal measure, gleefully reminding us of what might lurk beneath the surface of the ordinary.

An African story -- Only this -- Katina -- Beware of the dog -- They shall not grow old -- Someone like you -- Death of an old old man -- Madame Rosette -- A piece of cake -- Yesterday was beautiful -- Nunc Dimittis -- Skin -- Man from the South -- The soldier -- The sound machine -- Mr Botibol -- Vengeance is Mine Inc. -- The wish -- Poison -- Taste -- Dip in the pool -- The great automatic grammatizator -- Claud's dog: The ratcatcher ; Rummins ; Mr Hoddy ; Mr Feasey -- My lady love, my dove -- Neck -- Lamb to the slaughter -- Galloping Foxley -- Edward the Conqueror -- The way up to Heaven -- William and Mary -- Parson's pleasure -- George Porgy -- Mrs. Bixby and the Colonel's coat -- Royal jelly -- The champion of the world -- Genesis and catastrophe -- Pig -- The landlady -- The visitor -- The last act -- The great switcheroo -- The butler -- Bitch -- Ah, sweet mystery of life -- The hitchhiker -- The umbrella man -- The bookseller -- The surgeon. Filled with devilish plot twists, [the author's] tales display a tantalizing blend of macabre humor and the absurdly grotesque. From "The Landlady," about an unusual boardinghouse that features a small but very permanent clientele, to "Pig," a brutally funny look at vegetarianism, to "Man from the South," in which a fanatical gambler does his betting with hammer, nails, and a butcher's knife, [in this novel, the author's] creations amuse and shock us in equal measure, gleefully reminding us of what might lurk beneath the surface of the ordinary.-Dust jacket