Short Stories on Wednesday: Roald Dahl’s “Grown-up” Stories.

Roald Dahl figured quite prominently in my childhood reading line-up. Starting with Mathilda, I’ve read and loved most of his children’s books. Then I forgot all about him until a few years ago when someone gifted me a collection of his short stories for grown-ups. It was quite a revelation to me that the author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Fantastic Mr Fox had written these sinister tales. This week I read two of his short stories. Both these stories are by no means the best of Dahl, and that is saying something because these are really good. You could randomly pick up any of his short stories and be guaranteed a good read. Some of my favorite Dahl stories are, The Great Automatic Grammatizator , Skin and The Way Up to Heaven. I opted to review stories that are available online so you can read them, if you haven’t already.

Man from the South

The story begins with the narrator lounging by a pool in a hotel in Jamaica where he’s joined by an odd man of unknown nationality. Soon an American sailor and an English girl also take up seats beside them. The American offers Carlos, the stranger, a light from his cigarette lighter and brags about the lighter never failing to light up, even when it is windy. Carlos then suggests that they bet on it. A bizarre yet tempting bet. If the American manages to light his lighter ten consecutive times, Carlos will give him his brand new Cadillac, but should he lose, he must give up his little finger.

This story is titled The Smoker in some collections. It is classic Roald Dahl. Politically incorrect, bizarre and dark with an unexpected ending. Dahl doesn’t bother with setting or back story or in-depth characterizations.  You know as much as you need to know and no more. In a strange way, this is much more menacing. The character of Carlos, for instance, you can’t figure him out. He sometimes seems eccentric, sometimes sinister and sometimes just plain pathetic. This story, with its intriguing premise and clean structure, lends itself, very easily to adaptations and spin offs.  I’ve seen/read three different versions of it but the original still has the most impact.

Lamb to the Slaughter

Mary Maloney is pregnant and happily married to Patrick, a police detective. At least, she thinks she is happily married. Patrick, it seems, has other ideas. Here again, we are not really told what Patrick thinks but it is implied that he is about to walk out on Mary. The details are not provided because they don’t matter. Without any clear idea of what she’s about to do, Mary strikes Patrick on his head with a frozen leg of lamb.

This isn’t really a whodunit, more of a ‘is-she-going -to-get-away-with-it’. It’s a unique spin on the standard murder mystery and the sheer simplicity of the plot really works. Dahl deals with murder and its aftermath as if it were an interesting but inconsequential puzzle.

These stories are a great example of the writer’s skill. Dahl’s short stories, or what I’ve read of them, are all about the mundane turning macabre. Not for him the deserted houses and the dark alleys.  His sinister creations walk among us, living seemingly ordinary lives. Every time you read a story of his, you are expecting a shake up at the end and yet he still manages to shock you. 


Short Stories on Wednesday is hosted by Risa at http://breadcrumbreads.wordpress.com/
Roald dahl image from http://www.thirdplacebooks.com/event/roald-dahl-dahlathon