Five-year old Matilda longs for her parents to be good and loving and understanding, but they are none of these things. They are perfectly horrid to her. Matilda invents a game of punishing them each time they treat her badly and she soon discovers she has supernatural powers.

In Boy, Roald Dahl recounts his days as a child growing up in England. From his years as a prankster at boarding school to his envious position as a chocolate tester for Cadbury's, Roald Dahl's boyhood was as full of excitement and the unexpected as are his world-famous, best-selling books. Packed with anecdotes— some funny, some painful, all interesting— this is a book that's sure to please.

The classic tale of fantasy, this delightful masterpiece depicts all sorts of characters: greedy, selfish, obnoxious, compassionate, loveable, and generous. Recounting the adventures of four children bent on having their own way, the story's moralistic factor becomes uproariously apparent early on.

James's aunts call him names, beat and starve him and make his life a misery. If only his parents hadn't been eaten by an escaped rhinoceros, he wouldn't be in this mess. But one day he meets a man who gives him a bag of magic crocodile tongues and so begins the adventure of his dreams.

These eighteen tales of the macabre show Dahl's dark brilliance as a short-story writer. They are wicked (as an old man attracts the attentions of those more interested in his skin than his wellbeing), shocking (as distasteful bets are made - a daughter's hand on the identity of a glass of claret, a finger risked for a Cadillac) and blackly humorous (as a cuckolded husband receives a chance to take his revenge out on his wife's neck). "Someone Like You" is as devilishly ingenious and suspenseful as writing gets.

《小乔治的神奇魔药》也是达尔作品中惹来最多争议的一篇。故事中小乔治有一个十分讨厌的姥姥，不但脾气十分暴烈，而且总是变了法儿地折磨小孩。于是小乔治把家里所有有毒的物品和在一起，配制出一种神奇的魔药，好好地整治了姥姥。故事中配制魔药的过程奇趣无比，惹人爆笑。可是由于这种魔药是用来对付姥姥的，所以不少评价者认为这样的安排有违伦理。特别是当小乔治最后把姥姥变没了的时候，妈妈看来也无所谓，爸爸甚至笑着说：“如果一天到晚脾气太坏，就会发生这样的事。” 不过，与评论者的角度不同，小读者们完全被故事的奇趣和幽默征服了，他们给这个故事以极高的评价。故事的奇思妙想也给其他的艺术家带来了启发，他们还将这个故事编成奇幻的童话剧，并取得了成功。 阅读这样的故事，需要一种游戏心态。