Are you a serious Dahl collector? Richard Walker is the author of several guides to Dahl first editions, and he’s recently posted an article to his website with information about how to identify each of these prized volumes. If you want to check whether you’ve got a first edition, you should definitely check it out!
Author: Kris
Roald Dahl Stories – with Andy Copps and John Kirk
Here’s Mr. Twit with a very special message for you!
Two special storytellers will perform two of Roald Dahl’s beloved stories on July 15th, 2020. You can register to attend at the links below!
Roald Dahl Stories – ‘Billy and the Minpins’ with Andy Copps
James and the Giant Peach, with Taika and Friends
I hope you all watched and enjoyed the recent ten part video series where Taika Waititi and friends read the entirety of James and the Giant Peach. This was a fundraiser for Partners in Health, and you should head over and donate!
First four videos below, with the rest over on YouTube!
“Gremlins… A Warning!”
I’ve recently tracked down yet another version of Dahl’s Gremlins, this time a short story called “Gremlins… A Warning!” from the April 11, 1943 issue of This Week Magazine. Based on the timing, I’m fairly certain this was published as part of a concerted marketing push to keep the public interested in the Gremlins characters while Disney continued to struggle with the planned film production. It’s interesting to see that this version is credited to Dahl directly (as opposed to Cosmopolitan’s story five months earlier, which used the pseudonym “Pegasus”).
Roald Dahl… movie reviewer?!
Today I learned that Roald Dahl wrote, on at least one occasion, a published movie review! His review of the 1964 British neo noir drama film Séance on a Wet Afternoon was called “The Painful Pleasure of Suspense” and was published in the December 1964 issue of LIFE Magazine. You can go here to read the complete text.
I have to say, I winced a few times while reading that review. Not because of his opinion of the film (which he loved), but because some of the comments seem particular pointed for someone married to a movie star actress. For example, “fine actors of only moderate fame will make far better films than glamorous world-famous stars of only moderate ability.”
I mean, OUCH. Poor Patricia Neal!
Playing the “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” Board Game
In 1978, Knopf books made a rare foray into board games, publishing Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: A Game. I was fortunate enough to find a copy of this on Ebay a while back, and recently I coerced a group of friends into playing it for the first time.
Perhaps unsurprisingly (since it was created by a book publishing house), the game is entirely made up of cardboard and it fits neatly on a bookshelf. The game features Joseph Schindelman illustrations and artwork throughout. The cover unfolds into the game board and all of the needed game pieces pop out. Instead of dice, there are 22 numbered tiles that players select from to determine their next move. There are also five Golden tickets, five cards for each of the children, and six player chips that move around the board (the children plus Mr. Wonka). You win the game if you hold the Charlie card as the Charlie chip reaches the Television Chocolate Room.
You guys… the rules are complicated. We read them multiple times and it was still confusing. (Granted, we were drinking wine, but still.) It was also a much slower game than I expected. First there’s a setup phase where you draw Golden Tickets and claim children. Then there’s the tour phase, where Mr. Wonka and the children sloooowly progress through the factory. At each of the rooms, one of the naughty children disappears and is removed from the game. No child can move in front of Mr. Wonka, and he has to stop at each of the rooms until all of the children have joined him. So the game effectively resets at each of the rooms, and basically none of the gameplay until “The Nut Room” actually matters. Most of what you’re doing is just swapping child cards around. Whenever someone finds a Golden Ticket (which can happen at any time during the game), that player can claim the lowest numbered child card from someone else as long as its token is not “safe” (ie on a space with a dot the same colour as it). In addition to that, whenever a child chip lands on a Switch space OR lands on the same space as Willy Wonka (if he’s not in one of the rooms), the player can switch child cards with any other player (again, as long as that child’s token isn’t “safe”). Oh, and every time you run out of number cards you have to collect them all, mix them up, and put them back in the pot. So it’s a lot of stopping and starting, swapping child cards, and consulting the rules repeatedly – and really none of it actually matters until the very end. Not the most satisfying of games I’ve ever played, to tell you the truth.
That said, my friend Rory certainly enjoyed when he won!
So in summary: As a piece of Dahl memorabilia, I love this game. The illustrations and typography are gorgeous (I’ve always loved Schindelman’s slightly grotesque style), and the design of game board and pieces is very clever. If you’re a Dahl collector, you should definitely try to get your hands on a copy. As a playable board game though, it leaves a lot to be desired. The rules are overly complicated, and I can’t really picture any kids enjoying it. (I guess that’s why it was never republished!)
George’s Marvelous Math?!
Whoops! A school in Rome, NY, USA is in trouble after a recent math test question attracted the ire of commenters on social media.
The superintendent was forced to make a statement clarifying that the question was tied to a book the students were also reading for English class, Roald Dahl’s George’s Marvelous Medicine. I can definitely see where parents might have gotten concerned!
Roald Dahl’s nature journal My Year republished after decades out of print
My Year, which Dahl wrote shortly before his death in 1990, has been out of print since 1998. Packed with illustrations by Quentin Blake, it deals with everything from the changing seasons to the pranks he pulled as a child on unsuspecting passers-by, moving through the months of the year as Dahl documents the flora and fauna around his house in Great Missenden in Buckinghamshire. The Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre has collaborated with Penguin Random House and the Roald Dahl Story Company to bring the book back into print.
Head over to The Guardian to read more!
September 13 is Roald Dahl Day 2018!
This Thursday, September 13th, will be Roald Dahl’s 102nd birthday, so it’s time to celebrate! The official Dahl site has loads of ideas for activities:
- Attend the James and the Giant Weekend event at London’s Natural History Museum
- Download your 2018 Roald Dahl Day Party Pack, with everything you need to host a marvellous party
- How about hosting a Dahlicious Dress Up Day and raising money for Roald Dahl’s Marvellous Children’s Charity?
- Watch the 2018 Roald Dahl Day Show on Puffin Virtually Live!
Willy Wonka: Former child star pops up on Jeopardy! in the US
Wow! Did you see that Paris Themmen – aka Mike Teevee from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory – popped up on Jeopardy! in the US last month? He always did love television. 🙂