Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
31st out of 59 books
—
16 voters
Storyteller: The Authorized Biography of Roald Dahl
In his lifetime Roald Dahl pushed children's literature into uncharted territory, and today his popularity around the globe continues to grow, with millions of his books sold every year. But the man behind the mesmerizing stories has remained largely an enigma. A single-minded adventurer and an eternal child who gave us the iconic Willy Wonka and Matilda Wormwood, Dahl was...more
Hardcover, 655 pages
Published
September 14th 2010
by Simon & Schuster
(first published 2010)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
1,631)
Prior to reading this book the only thing I knew about Roald Dahl's personal life was that had married Patricia Neal. His fame as a children's author did not fit with this nor my image of him (from book jackets) with his aloof aristocratic bearing. This book describes the reality of his amazing life. Now I see how it all fits.
The book, in covering Dahl from his roots in England and Norway to his death in 1990, is excellent. Author, Donald Sturrock, assembled a lot of known and new material and p...more
The book, in covering Dahl from his roots in England and Norway to his death in 1990, is excellent. Author, Donald Sturrock, assembled a lot of known and new material and p...more
1 like · like · see review
view all 3 comments
A very wise man (my Dad) once told me that a good way of knowing if you liked someone was to think about how you would feel about getting stuck in a lift with them. If the idea would not phase you or you think that you would get on quite nicely, you probably think they're ok. If on the other hand, the idea makes you shudder, then he or she is most probably someone you would prefer to avoid. I loved pretty much all of Roald Dahl's children's fiction growing up but having read his biography, I thi...more
As a big fan of 'Boy' and 'Going Solo', it was fascinating to read more about Roald Dahl's adult life, including his work in the United States during World War 2, particularly his espionage work for the British government alongside his pal Ian Fleming. Donald Sturrock has created a meticulously researched biography, where he disputes long-held truths about Dahl's life, often stories spun by Dahl, the master story-teller himself.
Even though it is a commonly-held assumption that Dahl was a bit gru...more
Even though it is a commonly-held assumption that Dahl was a bit gru...more
A a huge fan of Roald Dahl's children's books, I was very excited to read his autobiography and learn more about this fantical author. Sturrock covers all the details and includes as many viewpoints from friends and family members of Dahl. He has organized his chapters loosely in chronoglical order, but has orgnaized them by mood and change in Dahl's life, which often leads to skipping about in the timeline. Additionally, Sturrock includes himself a bit too much in the book when the reader cares...more
Sep 12, 2010
Laura
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Laura by:
Bettie
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Reviewers welcomed a new biography of Dahl on the twentieth anniversary of his death. Even though Sturrock's is not the first, his access to the Dahl family and their archives helps him to deliver a more thorough book on the children's author than has yet been attempted. Critics tended to agree that Sturrock has made great use of the new material, balancing the daffy, avuncular Dahl of the books with the very dark man he proved to be in real life. But some reviewers felt that the book's prose wa...more
I have always been a huge fan of Roald Dahl, but after reading his biography I am even more in awe of the author that he was. Here are a few of the fascinating things I learned about him:
- He hobnobbed with Vice President Wallace and even visited Hyde Park with President Franklin D. Roosevelt
- He had many illicit affairs with older women when he was in his twenties
- He wrote the screen play for the James Bond film "You Only Live Twice"
- He was a British spy
- He was married to a famous American a...more
- He hobnobbed with Vice President Wallace and even visited Hyde Park with President Franklin D. Roosevelt
- He had many illicit affairs with older women when he was in his twenties
- He wrote the screen play for the James Bond film "You Only Live Twice"
- He was a British spy
- He was married to a famous American a...more
For an authorized biography, this book does a good job of showing both the good and the not-so-good sides of Roald Dahl. Even had Dahl not become a bestselling, beloved children's author, his life would have been a fascinating one. Poor in Britain to Norwegian parents, he flew a fighter pilot in the early days of World War II, was a spy in Washington for the remainder, married a famous actress, and helped pioneer medical advances after tragedy struck his own family.
Sturrock doesn't hesitate to s...more
Sturrock doesn't hesitate to s...more
When I was 10, and a huge fan of books like The BFG and The Witches, my mother sat me down and explained, in rather age-inappropriate detail, the saga of Roald Dahl and Patricia Neal, her near-death experience, how he'd nursed her back to health, and then had the nerve to cheat on her and leave her for a younger woman.
At the time, I had no idea why my mother was following the love life of my favorite children's author. But then I read Sturrock's biography, and learned about the carefully choreog...more
At the time, I had no idea why my mother was following the love life of my favorite children's author. But then I read Sturrock's biography, and learned about the carefully choreog...more
Hands down the best book I have read the past year. Dahl lived an enigmatic, fascinating life with time served spying for the British, as a decorated RAF pilot, and a frequent dinner guest of many A-list celebrities and big wig politicos including the President and Vice President of the United States. In addition to his infamous children's work, Dahl was a prolific writer of adult short stories, may having to do with the war and some with dark and subvertly sexual messages.
Sturrock actually knew...more
Sturrock actually knew...more
Having read all of Dahl's autobiographical work (Boy, Going Solo, that How I Became A Writer bit in Henry Sugar), it was eye opening to read his biography.
Sturrock had access to Dahl's remaining family, and more importantly, his archives. Most of the real action in Dahl's life took place when he was tucked away in a caravan by himself with a blanket and a heater, writing his wonderful stories, for adults, then for children.
When not in his caravan, he looked after his family, took a keen intere...more
Sturrock had access to Dahl's remaining family, and more importantly, his archives. Most of the real action in Dahl's life took place when he was tucked away in a caravan by himself with a blanket and a heater, writing his wonderful stories, for adults, then for children.
When not in his caravan, he looked after his family, took a keen intere...more
I had no idea Roald Dahl led such a fascinating life, fighting in the air battle for Athens, mixing with the most powerful American politicians, and circulating amongst the Hollywood gliterati. For most of his life, it seems he was least famous for writing children's books.
It's no shock that he had a challenging childhood given his kids vs. adults approach to children's lit, but his life was full of more trials than imaginable. Yet he approached many of them with such directness and intensity...more
It's no shock that he had a challenging childhood given his kids vs. adults approach to children's lit, but his life was full of more trials than imaginable. Yet he approached many of them with such directness and intensity...more
I read James and the Giant Peach seven times when I was in second grade.
I have since read (and re-read) every one of his books for children.
The the very first day I ever read the newspaper, when I was nine I found his obituary.
And I cried. For a long time.
Dahl had a huge impact on my formative reading years, I had every reason to be excited about this new biography.
Donald Sturrock had unparalleled access to Dahl's letters, private files, and family members for this biography and, boy oh boy,...more
I have since read (and re-read) every one of his books for children.
The the very first day I ever read the newspaper, when I was nine I found his obituary.
And I cried. For a long time.
Dahl had a huge impact on my formative reading years, I had every reason to be excited about this new biography.
Donald Sturrock had unparalleled access to Dahl's letters, private files, and family members for this biography and, boy oh boy,...more
What I love about biographies is the tiny glimpse you get of the author as a person and not necessarily a writer (for the most part I only read the biographies of writers, I don't know why). For that reason I prefer to read them after the subject has already died :-) Dahl was an intriguing character-bigger than life at times, and incredibly, horrifically petty at others. I guess these biographies help remind me to not place my writer idols on a pedestal-they are only human and have the same foib...more
I love Roald Dahl's books for children, so this was fascinating reading. His life is as interesting as his books, and reveals the roots of many of the themes you notice recurring in his work - orphaned children, adults that range from the malevolent, to the benign and childlike.
But it's a 500-pager, so I would not necessarily recommend reading this book unless you're a big fan. But in its defense, it's also a wonderful memoir that has shades of the expat life, world war II tales in the RAF, Was...more
But it's a 500-pager, so I would not necessarily recommend reading this book unless you're a big fan. But in its defense, it's also a wonderful memoir that has shades of the expat life, world war II tales in the RAF, Was...more
Roald Dahl was my favourite author as a child so I found this biography really interesting.
It gives a great insight into the man behind the amazing books, he had a hugely varied life, from his boarding school days to marrying and divorcing a Hollywood film star.
I couldn't recommend this book enough, even if you weren't a fan of his children's books, the story of his life is worth reading. For those who are a fan of his children's books, this biography shows where Roald Dahl got some of his insp...more
It gives a great insight into the man behind the amazing books, he had a hugely varied life, from his boarding school days to marrying and divorcing a Hollywood film star.
I couldn't recommend this book enough, even if you weren't a fan of his children's books, the story of his life is worth reading. For those who are a fan of his children's books, this biography shows where Roald Dahl got some of his insp...more
An extraordinary person who lived an extraordinary life on his own terms. He never intended to be a children's literature writer, however it was what he eventually became, and he transformed the genre of children's fiction. He really wanted to be a writer of adult fiction, respected in literary circles. He wrote short stories and movie scripts, most of which were rejected as too grotesque for general readers of magazines like "The New Yorker". Initially charming and charismatic, he would eventua...more
I find I read biographies with the same bad habit that afflicts my daily life--a readiness to judge a person in the whole based on an instance of behaviour or speech. It's an entrenched habit that only grace will erode (but that's another story).
In the case of Donald Sturrock's "Storyteller: The life of Roald Dahl" that bad habit could lead to neurological trauma. Let me explain…
If it's a biography's job to distil the essence of man, his life, almost as an argument made, then this book fails. Be...more
In the case of Donald Sturrock's "Storyteller: The life of Roald Dahl" that bad habit could lead to neurological trauma. Let me explain…
If it's a biography's job to distil the essence of man, his life, almost as an argument made, then this book fails. Be...more
A thoroughly well researched and very engaging biography of this most fascinating man. Dahl is clearly a brilliant subject for biography, having had an utterly fascinating life packed full of incident, tragedy and success and Sturrock makes good use of this. It's a page-turninng read, a broad sweep of a fascinating life with plenty of telling details including quotations from personal correspondence. It's clear from Sturrock's work what a bundle of contradictions Dahl was, giving plenty of food...more
Brilliant biography of Roald Dahl’s incredible life. This book works as the definitive Dahl biography for a number of reasons: Donald Sturrock knew Dahl personally so has a good insight into the man himself, the author had access to the Dahl library (including letters) so is able to probe many details that would not have been apparent to typical biographers, and Sturrock doesn’t skimp on the detail (for the most part), good or bad. The absolute best thing about this book is Sturrock referencing...more
I sure know a whole lot more about Roald Dahl!
From simply being a looming character who brought forth some of my favorite stories growing up, the Roald Dahl I know of now is more real, but not any less extraordinary.
Anyone who picks this up will, I'm sure, begin this 600 page saga hoping very much to like the man its about, and, with a few bumps in the road, they'll not be disappointed. Roald Dahl led an exciting life, but he was by no means perfect. I liked reading of his strong personality,...more
From simply being a looming character who brought forth some of my favorite stories growing up, the Roald Dahl I know of now is more real, but not any less extraordinary.
Anyone who picks this up will, I'm sure, begin this 600 page saga hoping very much to like the man its about, and, with a few bumps in the road, they'll not be disappointed. Roald Dahl led an exciting life, but he was by no means perfect. I liked reading of his strong personality,...more
Reviewed by Theresa L. Stowell for TeensReadToo.com
Anyone who has loved Roald Dahl's quirky voice in books like CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, THE BFG, or THE WITCHES will enjoy this biography of the classic children's author. Sturrock captures Dahl's life from childhood through war service to his romantic liaisons and his brilliant literary career. This biography uses sources that have not been previously accessed, and as a result, the volume is richer, fuller, and more comprehensive than o...more
Anyone who has loved Roald Dahl's quirky voice in books like CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, THE BFG, or THE WITCHES will enjoy this biography of the classic children's author. Sturrock captures Dahl's life from childhood through war service to his romantic liaisons and his brilliant literary career. This biography uses sources that have not been previously accessed, and as a result, the volume is richer, fuller, and more comprehensive than o...more
(Reprinted from the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography [cclapcenter.com]. I am the original author of this essay, as well as the owner of CCLaP; it is not being reprinted illegally.)
If you're anything like me, you mostly only know British author Roald Dahl through his deliciously dark children's tale Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, as well as maybe a handful of other Young Adult titles like James and the Giant Peach, Matilda and The Witches, all of which have been made into major H...more
If you're anything like me, you mostly only know British author Roald Dahl through his deliciously dark children's tale Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, as well as maybe a handful of other Young Adult titles like James and the Giant Peach, Matilda and The Witches, all of which have been made into major H...more
I heard about this book on NPR, and I LOVE Dahl, both his macabre adult stories and his quirky, well-beloved children's books, but I didn't know much about the man's life. Now I can say that I know a lot about his childhood, his romantic interludes, his relationship with mentors, and his pugnacious relationship with publishers, editors and agents. There are two main problems with the book, in my opinion. One: it is too long, with too many quotes from letters and interviews that add nothing to th...more
This book tells the reader everything they ever wanted to know about the Roald Dahl and his epic genius. The author takes us well beyond the Chocolate Factory which Dahl is best known for and digs deep to find what made the man whose imagination conceived of the fantastical tale to begin with.
The book is well written and engaging, difficult to put down once you've started reading. A must - read for anyone happens to enjoy Dahl's work!
The book is well written and engaging, difficult to put down once you've started reading. A must - read for anyone happens to enjoy Dahl's work!
What a fascinating life he lead! The biographer had remarkable access to him and his family and it shows. Sometimes he had too much access. The book is a bit long and detailed and if it had been an even slightly less interesting subject, this would have been a big problem.
Luckily for the author, this was entirely not the case. Very little deals with his children story career, but boy, what else it does deal with.
Luckily for the author, this was entirely not the case. Very little deals with his children story career, but boy, what else it does deal with.
Having grown up on Roald Dahl's fanciful children's stories I was excited to read about the man behind them. And really surprised at what a crusty man he actually was! I was blown away by his life story, told with humour (the excerpts from his letters were priceless) and reverence. I read one review complaining that the author inserted himself too much in the narrative and that consequently he jumped around chronologically. I didn't find this to be the case- the author only met Dahl in 1985, 5 y...more
My children enjoyed Dahl's books when they were growing up, so I was interested in learning more about him in this biography. He led a very full and varied life, with writing for children near the end of his career. This book was written by a friend, who seemed to have alot of insight into why Dahl acted the way he did, and how those actions were reflected in his writing.
I really liked this biography of Roald Dahl and think it is a 3.5 book. After having read and taught so many of his books, it was neat to learn the story behind the creator. I was shocked by the sheer number of tragedies in Dahl's life. It was also very interesting to learn the myths he cultivated about himself, even in his autobiographies.
Tossing and tumbling through this book, I felt as if I had journeyed with the amazing author, crashing my plane into the Moroccan desert, stumbling through my first novels and playing the intellectual bully. Clocking in at over 800 pages, this does not appear to be a quick read, but it was surprisingly light and lively reading!
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
