Roald Dahl: Short Stories and Biography

Roald Dahl: Short Stories and Life Highlights

The Way Up to Heaven

The story features Mrs. Foster, a wealthy New York woman living in a six-floor house on East 62nd Street, and her husband, Mr. Eugene Foster. Mrs. Foster suffers from an "almost pathological fear of missing a train, a plane, a boat, or even a theatre curtain."

She is planning to fly to Paris to visit her daughter and grandchildren. Mr. Foster, a retired businessman, seems to deliberately delay their departure, exacerbating Mrs. Foster's anxiety. He intends to stay at his club while she is away, and their servants are given six weeks off with half-pay.

The next day, Mrs. Foster is terrified of being late. She expresses her worries to the butler, Walker, who assures her she will make her flight. Despite her fears, she arrives at the airport on time, only to find that flights are delayed due to bad weather. The car has already left, and she is forced to wait. Eventually, her flight is postponed until 11 am the following day. She calls her husband, returns home, and spends the night there.

Mrs. Foster, tired of waiting for her husband, ultimately decides to leave, trapping her husband in a lift.

Lamb to the Slaughter

Mr. Maloney, a policeman, and his pregnant wife, Mary, live a comfortable life. Every evening, they share a special supper routine: drinks followed by a meal. However, one day is different. Mr. Maloney has his drinks but refuses supper. He announces that he is leaving her permanently. In a moment of shock, Mary hits him on the back of the head with a frozen leg of lamb. He falls to the floor, dead.

Mary, realizing the gravity of her situation, begins to think strategically to avoid prison. She puts the lamb in the oven, goes to the grocer's, and upon returning, feigns shock at finding her husband dead. She cries genuinely.

She calls the police, and two of her husband's colleagues, Charlie and Jack, arrive. She tells them she had briefly gone to the grocer's and found him dead upon her return.

Later, Mary offers them drinks and suggests they eat the cooked lamb. Jack and Charlie eat the lamb and vegetables in the kitchen, discussing the likely location of the murder weapon, while Mary laughs in the other room.

Roald Dahl: A Brief Biography

Roald Dahl was a Welsh-born British novelist, short-story writer, and screenwriter of Norwegian descent. He was famous as a writer for both children and adults. Among his most popular books are *Charlie and the Chocolate Factory*, *James and the Giant Peach*, *Matilda*, *The Witches*, and *Tales of the Unexpected*.

Early Life and Family:

• In 1920, when Roald was three, his seven-year-old sister, Astra, died of appendicitis.
• About a month later, his father died of pneumonia at the age of 57.
• His mother decided to remain in the United Kingdom, honoring her late husband's wish for their children to be educated in British schools.

Education and Personal Life:

• He was sent to various boarding schools in England.
• Dahl was very tall, reaching 1.98 meters (6 ft 6 in) as an adult, and was a good athlete.
• He became interested in photography.
• During his school years, Cadbury, a chocolate company, occasionally sent boxes of new chocolates for the students to test.
• He married the actress Patricia Neal.

Roald Dahl died in November 1990 at the age of 74 from a rare blood disease.