Complete Short Stories

Later known for his immortal children’s books, including Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach, and The BFG, Dahl also had a genius for adult short fiction, which he wrote throughout his life. Whether fictionalizing his dramatic exploits as a Royal Air Force pilot during World War II or concocting the ingeniously plotted fables that were dramatized on television as Tales of the Unexpected, Dahl was brilliant at provoking in his readers the overwhelming desire to know what happens next—and at satisfying that desire in ways that feel both surprising and inevitable.

Filled with devilish plot twists, his tales display a tantalizing blend of macabre humor and the absurdly grotesque. From “The Landlady,” about an unusual boardinghouse that features a small but very permanent clientele, to “Pig,” a brutally funny look at vegetarianism, to “Man from the South,” in which a fanatical gambler does his betting with hammer, nails, and a butcher’s knife, Dahl’s creations amuse and shock us in equal measure, gleefully reminding us of what might lurk beneath the surface of the ordinary.

Contains 51 stories (order varies by edition):

From Kiss Kiss Landlady William and Mary The Way Up to Heaven Parson's Pleasure Mrs. Bixby and the Colonel's Coat Royal Jelly Georgy Porgy Genesis and Catastrophe Edward the Conqueror Pig Champion of the World

From Over to You Death of an Old, Old Man An African Story A Piece of Cake Madame Rosette Katina Yesterday Was Beautiful They Shall Not Grow Old Beware of the Dog Only This Someone Like You

From Switch Bitch Visitor Great Switcheroo Last Act Bitch

From Someone Like You Taste Lamb to the Slaughter Man from the South The Soldier My Lady Love, My Dove Dip in the Pool Galloping Foxley Skin Poison Wish Neck Sound Machine Nunc Dimittis Great Automatic Grammatizator Claud's Dog Ratcatcher Rummins Mr Hoddy Mr Feasey

Eight Further Tales of the Unexpected The umbrella man -- Mr Botibol --
Vengeance is Mine Inc. --
The butler --
Ah, sweet mystery of life --
Bookseller Hitchhiker The surgeon