Roald Dahl Children's Books

It always surprises me just how many classic children's books Roald Dahl was able to produce during his writing life. None of his books follow the same pattern or formula, yet so many of his novels remain popular to this day. I think the key to the success of all of the best Roald Dahl children's books is that they don't talk down to children. Instead, the child character is usually very capable and often undertakes an adventure that changes the lives of adults.

Roald Dahl is often criticised (by adults) of being crass, but I have only come across a few children who have failed to enjoy at least one Roald Dahl novel. Rather than finding his humour and take on the world to be out of kilter with their way of thinking, children seem to embrace Roald Dahl's irreverance, recognising a kindred spirit - a child in an adult's body.

From conversations I've had with children ranging from age 7 to age 11, these seem to be some of the most popular Roald Dahl books: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Twits, George's Marvellous Medicine, James and the Giant Peach, and Matilda. Lots of Roald Dahl's other stories are also mentioned, but these were the titles that cropped up again and again.

Many children also talked about enjoying the movie versions of some of the Roald Dahl stories. The Tim Burton version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The Witches were particular favourites.

Some of those I spoke to also mentioned receiving books by Roald Dahl as gifts for either a birthday or Christmas. A really good way of giving such a present is to purchase a Roald Dahl collection or a Roald Dahl treasury. But I'm sure that even single volumes of Roald Dahl's books for children would go down a treat.

Roald Dahl Collection

A Roald Dahl collection – a box containing all of his most well-loved children’s books – would make a fantastic Christmas present or birthday gift. Last Christmas I purchased a Roald Dahl collection for one of my nephews. He absolutely loved it. Nearly a year has passed and he is still getting great pleasure from the gift. Not only does he enjoy reading these Roald Dahl books on his own, but he also looks forward to hearing these stories read to him at bedtimes. Of all the Roald Dahl books in the collection, his favourite novel was James and the Giant Peach, but he also really liked George’s Marvellous Medicine, Fantastic Mr Fox and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

I haven’t come across a child who hasn’t enjoyed at least one Roald Dahl story. Lots of adults can’t see the appeal, but they’re not meant to! Roald Dahl wrote the books for children, and it is children who adore his stories. The great thing about Roald Dahl books is that you can read them more than once. The stories are not ruined by knowing the endings.

There are several Roald Dahl collections on the market. Most contain about ten books. These are usually Roald Dahl’s most well-known stories. In addition to these novels mentioned above, the collections often contain: Danny the Champion of the World, The Twits, Esio Trot, The Witches, Matilda and The BFG.

Of course, you could always assemble your own Roald Dahl collection by purchasing your favourite Roald Dahl children’s books and presenting them in a box of your choice. However, this may work out more expensive than buying a ready made Roald Dahl collection.

So, if you can think what to buy for a child this Christmas, you could do a lot worse than getting them a Roald Dahl collection or a Roald Dahl treasury.

10 Roald Dahl Facts

Here are 10 facts about Roald Dahl, the great author of the some of the most well-loved children's books of all time.

• Roald Dahl's birthplace was Llandaff in Wales. He was born on September 13, 1916.
• Roald Dahl could speak three languages - English, Norwegian and Swahili.
• He was really tall. His height was 6 foot 5 inches and he was really good at sport. At school he played football and rugby. I bet he would have been good at basketball too!
• Roald Dahl was a fighter pilot and he fought in World War Two.
• His favourite colour in the whole world was yellow.
• Roald Dahl went to several boarding schools. He was often homesick and, as a result, he didn't really enjoy school.
• Sophie was the name of Roald Dahl's mother.
• Roald Dahl had bluey grey eyes. When he was younger, he had brown hair, but it went grey as he got older.
• Roald Dahl died in 1990.
• Roald Dahl was the author of lots of fantastic children's books. Here are some of his most popular stories: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator, Esio Trot, Matilda, James and the Giant Peach, Fantastic Mr Fox, Danny the Champion of the World, George's Marvellous Medicine, The Enormous Crocodile and The Witches (to name just a few).

Roald Dahl books remain popular among children and adults alike. Schools often hold Roald Dahl days and children are often asked to find Roald Dahl facts as part of an author study or as homework. I hope these facts about Roald Dahl are helpful.