L' univers de Roald Dahl [Roald Dahl's universe] (review)

To mark the 90th anniversary of his birth, a group of French children's books specialists proposed to explore the literary universe of Roald Dahl (1916–90), the internationally acclaimed Norwegian-Welsh children's book author. The contributions collected in this volume, prefaced by Dahl's wife, Felicity, approach the work of the creator of the Gremlins and many other children's book heroes from various angles.

The first five articles grant a panoramic view of Dahl's children's book production. They revisit Charley and the Chocolate Factory and Matilda, and underline Dahl's humour as well as his commitment to the child reader. The second section looks at the publication, reception and translation of his books for children, focusing on French and Taiwanese examples. The seven contributions to the third section are dedicated to the colourful biography of the pilot, scriptwriter and novelist who discovered his talent for children's literature through his own kids. Quentin Blake's look back at his prolonged collaboration with Dahl, whose books he illustrated, grants fascinating insight into Dahl's creative process. The final section, which presents various ways of using Dahl's texts in classroom settings, is followed by a summary of the conference on which the book is based. A bibliography rounds off this valuable and multifaceted volume.