Those Who Don’t Believe in Magic Will Never Find It

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Recommended: The life and works of roald dahl

Like many great books and stories, there is a plot, characters, theme, irony, and every other literary term one was taught in high school English class. The placement and choosing of such things, however, is what separates good books from bad ones. Without theme, characterization, diction, and the many other parts that make up a book, there would be no feel for the story and certainly no excitement to carry on with the reading. Roald Dahl included all of the above, which brought his children’s stories to life. Through characterization and conflict, Roald Dahl provides the reader with a feel for the characters and enthusiasm to read.

Roald Dahl, born in Llandaff, Wales on September 13th, 1916, was the son of Harald and Sofie Dahl. From the beginning of his life Roald had bad luck, with the death of his father, and his oldest sister, Astri, when he was just three. His mom was then left to raise six children. Dahl’s mother, however, became an inspiration and a role model for him, to which he based the grandmother in his children’s story, The Witches on his mom (Roald Dahl Biography "Childhood"). Dahl’s schooling took place at St. Peter’s prep school in Weston-Super-Mare, UK. School was not one of Dahl’s favorite things to do, but it served as a purpose for him to find some of the characters in his children’s book, such as “Ms. Trunchball” from Matilda. After St. Peter’s, Dahl completed his schooling at Repton at the age of fourteen.

After finishing school here, Roald went on to something bigger and better, The Public Schools Exploring Society, who journeyed to Newfoundland. He then started to work for Shell as a salesman in Dar es Salaam. (Roald Dahl Biography "War & Adventure") Roald Dahl’s writing career began when a friend of ...

... middle of paper ...

...ed children to read, and led them to love it.

Works Cited

"Characterization." Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition. HarperCollins Publishers. 29 March 2011. Web.

Dahl, Roald. Matilda. New York, N.Y., U.S.A.: Puffin, 1990. Print.

Jo. "Matilda – Roald Dahl « The Book Jotter." The Book Jotter. Web. 25 Mar. 2011.

"Roald Dahl Biography "Childhood"" Roald Dahl - The Official Web Site. Penguin Group, Inc., 03 Dec. 2003. Web. 29 March 2011.

"Roald Dahl Biography "War & Adventure"" Roald Dahl - The Official Web Site. Penguin Group, Inc., 03 Dec. 2003. Web. 29 March 2011.

“Roald Dahl Biography "Husband & Father"" Roald Dahl - The Official Web Site. Penguin Group, Inc., 03 Dec. 2003. Web. 29 March 2011.

“Roald Dahl Biography "The Story Continues"" Roald Dahl - The Official Web Site. Penguin Group, Inc., 03 Dec. 2003. Web. 29 March 2011.

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