The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me

Dahl (1916-1990) was a British writer whose children’s books are among the most-read and highly praised in the world. The stories feature exceptional children, whimsical situations, cruel antagonists, and kind-hearted protectors. They’re laced with strange happenings and sometimes contain moments of violence, but always end in victory for the morally good characters and comeuppance for the bad characters.

Dahl also wrote stories for adult readers; both these and his children’s books are noted for their dark moments and sense of the macabre. Dahl’s life gave him plenty of material for such musings. In school, he had bullies and tyrannical schoolmasters, but also played pranks on such people. During World War II, Dahl served in the British Royal Air Force in Greece and North Africa, where he witnessed carnage and became a flying ace with at least five kills of his own. Dahl also served at the British Embassy in Washington DC, where he learned spycraft and befriended Ian Fleming, author of the James Bond thrillers.

Dahl’s books are known for their amusingly inventive words. “Scrumdiddlyumptious,” a word for “super delicious” from Dahl’s book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, can even be found in the Oxford Dictionary. In The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me, he offers several new, playful words to the lexicon, including “Geraneous,” a flower-eating type of giraffe. He invents more than 20 imaginary candies, with names like Frothblowers, Tummyticklers, and Sugar Snorters.

The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me is illustrated with light-hearted sketches by award-winning writer-artist Quentin Blake, who did drawings for 18 of Dahl’s 43 children’s books. Much like Dahl’s writing, Blake’s drawings are “anarchic, moral, infinitely subversive, sometimes vicious, socially acute, sparse when he has to be, exuberantly lavish in the details when he feels like it” (“Biography.” Quentin Blake Official Website, 2023). Examples of Blake’s art are available on his official website.

Thirteen of Dahl’s books have been adapted into feature films, including Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (released in 1971, and later readapted as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in 2005), James and the Giant Peach (1996), Matilda (released in 1996, and later readapted as a Netflix musical in 2022), and Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009). Dahl either wrote or co-wrote four screenplays, including two based on books by Ian Fleming. He also wrote for television, and many of his stories have been adapted as shows. For 30 years, he was married to Oscar-winning actress Patricia Neal, with whom he had five children.

Dahl’s books have sold over 300 million copies worldwide in more than 60 languages. In 2021, his estate earned more money than any other deceased celebrity (Freeman, Abigail. “The Highest-Paid Dead Celebrities 2021.” Forbes, 30 Oct. 2021). His works regularly occupy lists of best children’s books, and the Roald Dahl Funny Prize awards similar work—humorous children’s fiction. A landmark plaza in the city center of Cardiff, Wales, where Dahl spent his youth, also commemorates him for his works.