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View Full Version : Roald Dahl: The Omnibus


butterfly
03-15-02, 05:13 PM
Um alright, so anyone who remembers Roald Dahl from their childhood in books like the "BFG" or "James and the Giant Peach" is in for a shock if you read this book. It's a collection of short stories, but it's definitely NOT for kids. To be blunt, they are downright bizarre. A few of them are actually pretty clever and witty but a lot of them are also quite err....graphic shall we say? Maybe even vulgar. To be honest, a couple of them made me nauseous....especially the one about the rat-trapper, I won't tell you why. The ones at the beginning weren't too bad, I actually liked some of them, the first one called "Taste" was really good, one of those stories with a twist and an ending that makes you laugh out loud. But as the book progressed the stories just got weirder and weirder until, well I had to put it down. So yah, unless you have a really strong stomach and a zen for the extremely bizarre and obscure (and when I say bizarre, I mean REALLY bizarre!) DON'T read this book and no matter what, don't read it to your kids. If you're still curious to read what Dahl has to write for adults, then read the first 3-5 stories and then put it down.

Orpheus42
03-16-02, 10:47 AM
Hmm... I generally like Dahl's more bizzare stuff... ;)

butterfly
03-16-02, 10:15 PM
Bizarre is one thing....this was quite another. I don't know, maybe I'm just not cultured or smart enough to get it. Have you read that book?

Orpheus42
03-16-02, 11:10 PM
I don't think so, but I went on a Dahl kick when I was about 14 and may have read it and just don't remember exactly. After reading about 5 or 6 books in a row by the same guy, it starts to blend together. Something tells me I would remember it if I'd read this, though.

There are some pretty sick parts in James and the Giant Peach if you ask me, though.

butterfly
03-17-02, 02:31 AM
James and the Giant Peach??? :confused: Which parts were those?

Orpheus42
03-17-02, 12:34 PM
When the peach is rolling down the hill there's some messed up stuff going on.

butterfly
03-18-02, 01:04 AM
Hmmm.....I don't remember that, of course I haven't read that book since I was a kid, I'll have to check.