7 ms·

Although known for his children’s books, his writing for adults is hilarious. The children’s books have a dark edge to them, but the adult writing is fully suff

by hnbear 3y ago

Although known for his children’s books, his writing for adults is hilarious. The children’s books have a dark edge to them, but the adult writing is fully suffused with it. They definitely adult, very dark, and let his twisted humor run riot. Well worth the read, they had me in tears. The New Yorker has a nice over view: https://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/roald-dahls-twisted-overlooked-stories-for-adults https://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/roald-dahls-twis...

morkalork 3y ago
Someone Like You is a favourite. Everybody jinks..
ndsipa_pomu 3y ago
I love his adult writing style and recently enjoyed the quadruple of Wes Anderson shorts/TV plays that are available on Netflix if you know to look for them. The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar The Rat Catcher The Swan Poison (Put in order of my enjoyment of them)
- vmilner 3y ago
  I’ve loved Henry Sugar since the 70s but assumed any video adaptation would make a mess of it - thankfully the Wes Anderson film is wonderful.
  - ndsipa_pomu 3y ago
    I thoroughly enjoyed it, but then I like Wes Anderson's style. I've similarly been a Dahl fan since the 70s and almost grew up on Tales of the Unexpected. The theme tune is certainly memorable. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075592/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075592/
  - JEzra100 3y ago
    While I enjoyed the Anderson adaptation, it failed to convey the essential part of the story which captured my imagination as a child: the idea presented at the very end of the story that everything the reader had read was real, true. That Henry Sugar had in fact existed, as a person, and Roald Dahl was contacted to tell his story and spread the word. Ultimately, by stylizing the story as a play, tearing down the fourth wall constantly, it removes that essential bit of verisimilitude. Still enjoyable, amazing acting, charming plots, but less MAGICAL. Excerpt: “But how do I … happen to know all this? And how did I come to write the story in the first place? I will tell you. Soon after Henry's death, John Winston telephoned me from Switzerland. He introduced himself simply as the head of a company calling itself ORPHANAGES S.A., and asked me if I would come out to Lausanne to see him with a view to writing a brief history of the organization. I don't know how he got hold of my name. He probably had a list of writers and stuck a pin into it. He would pay me well, he said. And he added. "A remarkable man has died recently. His name was Henry Sugar. I think people ought to know a bit about what he has done."In my ignorance, I asked whether the story was really interesting enough to merit being put on paper. "All right," said the man who now controlled one hundred and forty-four million pounds. "Forget it. I'll ask someone else. There are plenty of writers around." That needled me. "No," I said. "Wait. Could you at least tell me who this Henry Sugar was and what he did? I've never even heard of him." In five minutes on the phone, John Winston told me something about Henry Sugar's secret career. It was secret no longer. Henry was dead and would never gamble again. I listened, enthralled. "I'll be on the next plane," I said.” …. “ "One last question," I said. "You keep calling him Henry Sugar. And yet you tell me that wasn't his name. Don't you want me to say who he really was when I do the story?" "No," John Winston said. "Max and I promised never to reveal it. Oh, it'll probably leak out sooner or later. After all, he was from a fairly well-known English family. But I'd appreciate it if you don't try to find out. Just call him plain Mr Henry Sugar." And that is what I have done.”
    - ndsipa_pomu 3y ago
      Don't they cover that bit at the end?
      - Jtsummers 3y ago
        Yes, they did.
- philshem 3y ago
  “The Champion of the World” is the 1959 New Yorker piece that is the precursor to “Danny the Champion of the World”. I’m a subscriber, but, without searching too hard, haven’t found a find non-scanned text. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1959/01/31/the-champion-of-the-world https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1959/01/31/the-champion-o...
- Lio 3y ago
  I was dreading what Netflix were going to do with the Dahl books. I was sure they would balls them up and make them, for want of a better word, ...Netflixy. Wes Anderson[1] is just a perfect fit though. The shorts are so, so good. Everything about them is spot on. The casting, the sets, everything. I couldn't imagine anyone doing a better job and I hope they do more. Of the current run, I'd pick The Swan myself but I reorder my favourites every time I rewatch them. - 1. My bias is that I've never seen a Wes Anderson film I didn't think was magic.
  - ndsipa_pomu 3y ago
    > My bias is that I've never seen a Wes Anderson film I didn't think was magic Me too - I think he's getting better over time though and I'd love to see more Dahl adaptations by him. He really lets the writing shine through.
  - gs17 3y ago
    Can you tell me what you liked so much about The Swan? It was my least favorite by a huge margin and I'm genuinely interested to hear the opposite opinion.
    - Lio 3y ago
      Good question. I think because it reminds me of a stage production the most of all the shorts. I'm not sure I'm articulate enough to really explain this but the deliberate, stylistic break in reality brings me back to being read stories as a kid. It's like in Princess Bride when the granddad stop narrating to ask Kevin if he's getting too excited. Or Jim Henson taking off a puppet to break character. He'd just drop that muppet on the table. The listening kids don't care, they can see it's just a toy. When he puts it on his hand again, it comes back to life. That break in the narrative just enhances the effect. Kids don't care when it's laying limp on the table. They instinctively know it's the story teller that brings it to life. Wes Anderson does that, over and over, like with the doors opening in a hedge to had props to the actors. I know that's an affectation, and one that's easy to over do, but Wes Anderson nails it IMHO.
  - emmelaich 3y ago
- ekaryotic 3y ago
  if you weren't aware henry sugar has an accurate description of a remote viewing experience, popularised by the cia's declassified project stargate. If it's not a true story it might as well be.
technothrasher 3y ago
I would say he is more known for his children's books. But he's pretty well known for his adult stories as well. He was such a tragically flawed person, and was clearly unhappy and unsatisfied most of his life. This is a lot of what makes his writing so deliciously and darkly humorous, but the actual tale of his life has always been depressing to me rather than funny.
golem14 3y ago
I’m rather fond of his autobiographies, “Boy” and “Going Solo”, the latter having a great audiobook recording by Andrew Sachs I believe.

by hnbear 3y ago

morkalork 3y ago

Someone Like You is a favourite. Everybody jinks..

ndsipa_pomu 3y ago

I love his adult writing style and recently enjoyed the quadruple of Wes Anderson shorts/TV plays that are available on Netflix if you know to look for them. The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar The Rat Catcher The Swan Poison (Put in order of my enjoyment of them)

vmilner 3y ago
I’ve loved Henry Sugar since the 70s but assumed any video adaptation would make a mess of it - thankfully the Wes Anderson film is wonderful.
- ndsipa_pomu 3y ago
  I thoroughly enjoyed it, but then I like Wes Anderson's style. I've similarly been a Dahl fan since the 70s and almost grew up on Tales of the Unexpected. The theme tune is certainly memorable. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075592/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075592/
- JEzra100 3y ago
  While I enjoyed the Anderson adaptation, it failed to convey the essential part of the story which captured my imagination as a child: the idea presented at the very end of the story that everything the reader had read was real, true. That Henry Sugar had in fact existed, as a person, and Roald Dahl was contacted to tell his story and spread the word. Ultimately, by stylizing the story as a play, tearing down the fourth wall constantly, it removes that essential bit of verisimilitude. Still enjoyable, amazing acting, charming plots, but less MAGICAL. Excerpt: “But how do I … happen to know all this? And how did I come to write the story in the first place? I will tell you. Soon after Henry's death, John Winston telephoned me from Switzerland. He introduced himself simply as the head of a company calling itself ORPHANAGES S.A., and asked me if I would come out to Lausanne to see him with a view to writing a brief history of the organization. I don't know how he got hold of my name. He probably had a list of writers and stuck a pin into it. He would pay me well, he said. And he added. "A remarkable man has died recently. His name was Henry Sugar. I think people ought to know a bit about what he has done."In my ignorance, I asked whether the story was really interesting enough to merit being put on paper. "All right," said the man who now controlled one hundred and forty-four million pounds. "Forget it. I'll ask someone else. There are plenty of writers around." That needled me. "No," I said. "Wait. Could you at least tell me who this Henry Sugar was and what he did? I've never even heard of him." In five minutes on the phone, John Winston told me something about Henry Sugar's secret career. It was secret no longer. Henry was dead and would never gamble again. I listened, enthralled. "I'll be on the next plane," I said.” …. “ "One last question," I said. "You keep calling him Henry Sugar. And yet you tell me that wasn't his name. Don't you want me to say who he really was when I do the story?" "No," John Winston said. "Max and I promised never to reveal it. Oh, it'll probably leak out sooner or later. After all, he was from a fairly well-known English family. But I'd appreciate it if you don't try to find out. Just call him plain Mr Henry Sugar." And that is what I have done.”
  - ndsipa_pomu 3y ago
    Don't they cover that bit at the end?
    - Jtsummers 3y ago
      Yes, they did.
philshem 3y ago
“The Champion of the World” is the 1959 New Yorker piece that is the precursor to “Danny the Champion of the World”. I’m a subscriber, but, without searching too hard, haven’t found a find non-scanned text. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1959/01/31/the-champion-of-the-world https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1959/01/31/the-champion-o...
Lio 3y ago
I was dreading what Netflix were going to do with the Dahl books. I was sure they would balls them up and make them, for want of a better word, ...Netflixy. Wes Anderson[1] is just a perfect fit though. The shorts are so, so good. Everything about them is spot on. The casting, the sets, everything. I couldn't imagine anyone doing a better job and I hope they do more. Of the current run, I'd pick The Swan myself but I reorder my favourites every time I rewatch them. - 1. My bias is that I've never seen a Wes Anderson film I didn't think was magic.
- ndsipa_pomu 3y ago
  > My bias is that I've never seen a Wes Anderson film I didn't think was magic Me too - I think he's getting better over time though and I'd love to see more Dahl adaptations by him. He really lets the writing shine through.
- gs17 3y ago
  Can you tell me what you liked so much about The Swan? It was my least favorite by a huge margin and I'm genuinely interested to hear the opposite opinion.
  - Lio 3y ago
    Good question. I think because it reminds me of a stage production the most of all the shorts. I'm not sure I'm articulate enough to really explain this but the deliberate, stylistic break in reality brings me back to being read stories as a kid. It's like in Princess Bride when the granddad stop narrating to ask Kevin if he's getting too excited. Or Jim Henson taking off a puppet to break character. He'd just drop that muppet on the table. The listening kids don't care, they can see it's just a toy. When he puts it on his hand again, it comes back to life. That break in the narrative just enhances the effect. Kids don't care when it's laying limp on the table. They instinctively know it's the story teller that brings it to life. Wes Anderson does that, over and over, like with the doors opening in a hedge to had props to the actors. I know that's an affectation, and one that's easy to over do, but Wes Anderson nails it IMHO.
- emmelaich 3y ago
ekaryotic 3y ago
if you weren't aware henry sugar has an accurate description of a remote viewing experience, popularised by the cia's declassified project stargate. If it's not a true story it might as well be.

technothrasher 3y ago

I would say he is more known for his children's books. But he's pretty well known for his adult stories as well. He was such a tragically flawed person, and was clearly unhappy and unsatisfied most of his life. This is a lot of what makes his writing so deliciously and darkly humorous, but the actual tale of his life has always been depressing to me rather than funny.

golem14 3y ago

I’m rather fond of his autobiographies, “Boy” and “Going Solo”, the latter having a great audiobook recording by Andrew Sachs I believe.