Roald Dahl
...(1964), Roald Dahl is also the author of three full-length works for early adolescents. It is of this group of young people that Dahl once said, " 'If my books can help children become readers, then I feel I have accomplished something important' " (West). Dahl's books for adolescents have caught the attention of young people and adults alike. The view of society revealed through his books--his implied criticism of adults and his contempt for social institutions--has made his works popular with adolescents. This same view has brought mixed reactions from critics.
The variety of audiences that Dahl successfully wrote for throughout his career demonstrates his ability to appeal to specific groups of readers. Ironically, Roald Dahl wrote extensively for adults and children before he attempted to write books for young adults. His writing career began when Cecil Scott Forester interviewed him for the Saturday Evening Post and submitted Dahl's fictionalized account of his adventures in the Royal Air Force to the newspaper (Pendergast). In 1943, Dahl wrote his first children's story, The Gremlins, for Walt Disney, who wanted to make it into a film. Although it was never produced, Disney later published the story, complete with Disney's illustrations (West). After The Gremlins, Dahl left the field of children's literature and began writing short stories for adults. Although they were "generally macabre in nature, his stories won praise for their vivid details, carefully constructed plots, and surprise endings" (West). However, when he began to have difficulty coming up with new plots, Dahl decided to return to writing children's books. His first novel was James and the Giant Peach (1961), and his last was The Vicar of Nibbleswicke, published posthumously in 1991 (Bulaong). Dahl emphasized the importance of children's authors having experience with children when he...
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