Roald Dahl
British children's author
Died when: 74 years 71 days (890 months)Star Sign: Virgo
Roald Dahl (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a British novelist, short-story writer, poet, screenwriter, and wartime fighter ace of Norwegian descent.His books have sold more than 250 million copies worldwide.
Dahl has been called "one of the greatest storytellers for children of the 20th century".Dahl was born in Wales to affluent Norwegian immigrant parents, and spent most of his life in England.
He served in the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War.He became a fighter pilot and, subsequently, an intelligence officer, rising to the rank of acting wing commander.
He rose to prominence as a writer in the 1940s with works for children and for adults, and he became one of the world's best-selling authors.
His awards for contribution to literature include the 1983 World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement and the British Book Awards' Children's Author of the Year in 1990.
Dahl and his work have been criticised for racial stereotypes, misogyny and anti-semitism, the latter contradicted by those who knew him.
In 2008, The Times placed Dahl 16th on its list of "The 50 Greatest British Writers Since 1945".In 2021, Forbes ranked him the top-earning dead celebrity.
Dahl's short stories are known for their unexpected endings, and his children's books for their unsentimental, macabre, often darkly comic mood, featuring villainous adult enemies of the child characters.
His children's books champion the kindhearted and feature an underlying warm sentiment.His works for children include James and the Giant Peach, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, The Witches, Fantastic Mr Fox, The BFG, The Twits, George's Marvellous Medicine and Danny, the Champion of the World.
His works for older audiences include the short story collections Tales of the Unexpected and The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More.
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