What child is not completely enamored by the stories written by Roald Dahl? For that matter, what adult does not have a special place in their heart for his audacious, fantastical, magical, whimsical tales? Charlie & The Chocolate Factory, James & The Giant Peach, Fantastic Mister Fox, Matilda. To name only a few. Not to mention his equally magnificent fiction / nonfiction for adults.Here is a chance for a behind-the-scenes look into this storyteller's world. What was this man's childhood like to have the imagination necessary for such grandeur stories? What were his formative years like? His family? Friends? In his teenage years, did he know he wanted to be a writer?Boy: Tales of Childhood answer these tantalizing inquiries, and more. Readers learn of seven-year-old Roald's personal adventures with the candy shoppe down the street, which no doubt inspired Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory, and a woman whom owns the shoppe that shares similarities with characters featured in The Magic Finger, even Matilda. Aside from that, it is a historically accurate look at life in England/Wales in the early twentieth century, from the onset of automobiles to the questionable medical practices to English boarding schools to the economical industry at the time. He is raised by two loving parents in Norway, until the death of his sister Astri, followed soon thereafter by his late father (likely attributable to the grief over his favorite daughter). He attends Llandaff Cathedral School for two years, until his tencious mother, raising him and his siblings alone and determined to follow her late husband's wishes that his children have an English prepatory education ("The very best is the world"), sends Roald Dahl to St. Peter's in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset. His mother and siblings (two from his late father's first marriage, three sisters with his own mother, minus Astri, making four!) remained in nearby Wales.At nine years old, boarding school was understandable a lonely, intimidating experience. From his memories of the Headmaster and Floor Matron, readers are given the undeniable inspiration for what became the novel Matilda.The role of the headmaster continues to be central in Roald's life when he begins Public School at thirteen, this time at Repton near Derby. His family had relocated to Kent by then. More anecdotes of his early years are told, often endearing, always hilarious. As a photographer (amateur) myself, I was inordinately thrilled to learn of his affinity for it. He was also an unexpected captain for Fives (similar to handball) and Squash during these years.At Repton, Roald and his classmates were given boxes of chocolates from The Cadbury Corporation, in exchange for their feedback on each piece. A fine marketing test group strategy by them, but, better yet, another childhood memory that contributed to Charlie & The Chocolate Factory!At eighteen, opting out of university, Roald begins prosperous career at The Shell Company in England. Two years later, the company reassigns him to a post in East Africa, to his delight. Unfortunately, a few short years later, in 1939, World War II dawns, relocating Roald again, this time to Nairobi, then all over The Mediterranean, serving as a Royal Air Force pilot. Alas, as the author promises, that is another story (later published as Going Solo). Going Solo Included in this are personal portraits of Roald at various ages (an adorable child,an ambitious teenager, a handsome and charming young man), family photographs, places he lived, attended for his early education, visited, etcetera. Of course, for everything else there are the iconic sketches and doodles by Quentin Blake (readers will remember the same hand that illustrated all their favorite children's stories). For twenty years, from 1925 to 1945, his mother conscientiously saved Roald's more than six hundred letters to her, equally diligently, lovingly written year after year. A priceless archive, especially for a writer such as himself, given to him as a gift on his mother's deathbed. Parts of these are interlaced between the text (thus exhibiting young Roald's evolving penmanship), colorfully but authentically supplementing, telling a tale almost as grand as the fiction he wrote for decades. This was such a pleasure, as Roald Dahl is one of my favorite children's book authors. Many share my sentiments. May he rest in peace.
I am very fond of reading books about children’s bitter experiences. Perhaps I believe in American psychologist, Erik Fromm’s belief that “ to understand children, we, adults, try to think like a child again.”Unfortunately, not all adults are aware of this fact. That’s why the main purpose of literature is to educate people about life, basically about children life. I have read some books about children. I can hardly ever forget Angela’s Ashes by Frank McCourt ( 5 stars ), The Butcher’s Boy by Patrick McCabe ( 3 stars ), Torey Hayden’s books such as The Innocent Child and its sequel The Tiger’s Child ( I was so generous to fault to give both 5 stars at that time when I was not yet critical on Good Reads. ) I also cried over the classical books such as Charles Dicken’s Oliver Twist and David Copperfield. Even Beloved by Toni Morrison, one of my favorite fictional writers , punched my chest although the character is a young teen-ager gives eerie feelings. For local books, one is the Connecting the Dots by Gojo Cruz ( 5 stars ) which author swept me off my feet. ( laughs ) Such books are awash in the same theme: human cruelty in children, perhaps, out of ignorance. This book of Road Dahl is one of the books above. This may be intended to make readers laugh. Of course, I did. However, the real highlight of this , even Dahl admitted it at the end of the story, is his miserable experiences as a student in the hands of his school head masters, teachers, and matrons. ( or you’d rather I put it bluntly , under the rotten educational system in Britain at that time ) Dahl narrated how he was such a poor innocent child . He was an archetype of educational upbringing. He had been beaten many times. So had his classmates. He had been humiliated and treated unfairly. So had his classmates. Admittedly, I abandoned myself to his said stories. If I had been his classmate at that time, I would have been so defiant that I could have been booted out. ( laughs ) So , the title of this book fits all the stories- Boys: Tales of Childhood. I always want to be an active advocate for children’s rights, particularly for their education. Like Dahl, I was also a victim of wrong education from teachers who may have been ignorant of child psychology. As a teacher now , I believe in teaching students based on their individualism. The good thing about this is that Road Dahl was still able to make us laugh despite those harboring ill-feelings. He was like a friend I have just made, sharing his ala Thomas-Sawyer stories. The atmosphere he built was so amiable that I felt sympathy for him. In addition, reading it was so easy unlike the other autobiographies or novels about children which require higher level of thinking. He narrated his stories age by age and every sentence is well-written. Since it is a children book, I hope young readers take precious lessons from it. And I do not think that it should be banned from the hands of young readers just like of what happened to his Charllie and the Chocolate Factory which received negative criticism. Duty on their distorted realities! ^^Road Dahl said in his preface that an autobiography for him is full of all sorts of boring details. If I take him for his words, what he meant to say I believe is like what the famous American writer, William Arthur Ward, said: “The adventure of life is to learn. The purpose of life is to grow. The nature of life is to change. The challenge of life is to overcome. The essence of life is to care. The opportunity of like is to serve. The secret of life is to dare. The spice of life is to befriend. The beauty of life is to give.”Yippee! ^^
What do You think about Boy: Tales Of Childhood (2001)?
This was one of those eye openers for me as a child; I read Boy countless times (and back home still have the well worn edition from 1986). The concept of an autobiography was so new and radical, at a time when reading was all make believe and fiction; it 'really happened', it wasn't made up! Rather, a magical book that opened up another world, glimpsing a life I would never experience. His remembrances of childhood and school life are frank, vivid and frequently horrific. In particular, his account of the unexpected removal of his adenoids has vividly stuck with me to this day, since I read it the first time (starkly imprinted as I too had my adenoids removed as a child and the graphic depiction freaked me out entirely). Tales of life at boarding school, fagging, the cane, chocolate and tuck boxes, a memorable car trip and a general air of menace exposed a truly different way of life.Reading it now, I'm struck by how brief and narrow it is. It just seemed so much bigger as a child (much like headmasters, I guess). Still, I enjoyed revisiting it immensely. It's also great to pick out those glimpses of future Dahl stories and characters. This is a truly great book for kids to read and discover, even more so as we move further away from the era depicted. Dahl says near the beginning that everything is true but it really doesn't matter either way. It's all story-telling magic. Well worth reading, whatever your age. Now, on to his later years...
—Andy
I read this in year 7 for English and I loved it. Me, I normally hate school books. But this one was different, I really liked this one. It was just so interesting. I can still remember half the stuff that happened in the book. That is how much it stuck with me. I recommend this to fans of Roald Dahl and even non fans, this book is different from all his other work. Good different...I still recommend it, the things that happen and how he describes it is just... That is the only word to describe the book.Such a sparkly review...
—Sita Sargeant
Roald Dahl was one of my favorite authors as a child and still is. In Boy: Tales of Childhood, Roald Dahl talks about his most vivid childhood memories including family trips to Norway, plots against despised grown-ups, floggings at school and much more. His description and tales of certain adults are definitely entertaining and made me laugh a couple of times. I especially enjoyed reading about his visits to the glorious sweet-shop and all the amusing things his friend Thwaites used to say about various sweets.This book is a must-read for all Roald Dahl fans out there since it gives us a glimpse of his life at different stages as he was growing up.
—Maria
