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Roald Dahl was a famous British Author, Novelist, Screenwriter, and Fighter Pilot. Before starting his writing career, he served in the Air Force and was a part of World War 2. Dahl was an intelligence agent and a flying ace.
He was known as one of the greatest storytellers of children. In his whole writing career, he wrote 19 books for children. In 1953, he married actress Patricia Neal and published his best-selling story collection called Someone Like You.
Later, in 1961, he published the book James and the Giant Peach which became popular in a short time. He also released another highly successful work Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in 1964 which was later adapted for movies.
Here we will take a quick look at the struggles of Roald Dahl and how he begins his writing career. So, without wasting further moments, let’s begin.
Roald’s Early Life
Roald was born on 13 September 1916 in Llandaff, South Wales. His parents were Norwegian and as a child, he spent his summer vacations visiting his grandparents in Oslo. At the age of 4, Dahl lost his father.
He received his primary education at Llandaff Cathedral School. Dahl was a mischievous and rambunctious child. He once played a practical joke in school for which his principal gave him a harsh beating.
Because of the harsh beating, his mother decided to enroll him at St. Peter’s, a British Boarding School. His time in St. Peters is completely discussed in his autobiography called “Boy: Tales of Childhood”.
Life in Repton School
Later in 1929, Dahl was shifted to Repton School (a private school with a reputation for academic excellence) in Derbyshire. In this school, his writing skills were noticed by his English teacher who said: “I have never met anybody who so persistently writes words meaning the exact opposite of what is intended.”
While Dahl was studying at Repton, the chocolate company “Cadbury” would send chocolate boxes there to get tasted. This is where Dahl took inspiration for “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” one of his notable works which he published in 1963.
In 1932, Dahl graduated from Repton. He then went on an expedition to Newfoundland. There he took a job with the Shell Oil Company in Tanzania, Africa. He continued his job till 1939 and then he joined the Royal Air Force.
Dahl as a Fighter Pilot
He became a World War II fighter pilot after training in Nairobi, Kenya. Dahl crash landed in Alexandria, Egypt, while serving in the Mediterranean. Because of the plane crash, he got many serious skull, spine, and hip injuries.
To recover completely Dahl went through 2 spinal surgeries and a hip replacement. Later, he was transferred to Washington D.C where he got a job as an assistant air attache. In 1953, he married Patricia Neal and their marriage remained for 30 years.
Dahl had 5 children with Patricia, but they got divorced as their marriage was filled with unfortunate incidents. He faced the horrible accident of his 4-month-old son and the death of his 7 years old daughter.
Because of all the unfortunate incidents, Dahl considered it better to leave Patricia. After the divorce, he married Felicity Crosland. During this time, Roald thought of his writing skills and started writing novels. Soon he became famous for his writing work and generating amazing revenue.
Roald Dahl Books
Dahl wrote books for more than a decade. He almost wrote 19 books for children in a light genre. Besides the popularity, these books faced some controversy as parents and critics do not like the portrayal of children’s harsh revenge on adult wrongdoers.
In his defense, Dahl claimed that kids have a more crude sense of humor than adults and he was trying to appeal to his readers. Some of his famous books are
- James and the Giant Peach – 1961
- Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – 1964
- Fantastic Mr. Fox – 1970
- The BFG – 1982
- The Witches – 1983
- Matilda – 1988 and many more
All of his books gain popularity but Charlie and the Chocolate Factory became the favorite of both young and adults. That’s why it is adapted into the movie in two parts. The first movie part was released under the name “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” in the year 1971.
While the second part was released in the year 2005 under the same name “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”. Both the parts were commercially successful and liked by both critics and the audience.