Acid Tongued

My "Local History Project" is proving to be very interesting! I am finding out a lot more about the history of the town I live and some of the names of the estates of the town are not so random as they seem. Apparently there is evidence of people having lived and settled here back in Roman times. Here's me thinking that Milton Keynes was just this boom/commuter town that was created about40 years ago.. well hey, who knew. I've just finished one book on the history of Newport Pagnell - where they once found a body which had its bones filled with lead, and I have now moved on to the history of Stony Stratford - where Henry VIII stayed several times on his way to his hunting grounds.


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Someone like You - Roald Dahl

Just before I started my project I did manage to complete a very nice one by Roald Dahl. It is a selection of 18 tales by Dahl according to the front you need a broad mind[s] and nerves of steel to read them. Whenever I read his work I am always struck by the characters he writes and the calculated-ness ad shrewdness they have in going about their business. The way that their minds work always seems perfectly acceptable in the framework of the story his characters are in but outside them they would probably all be locked up for thinking what they do and acting like they do. His tales always have a dark edge on them which to me seems to contrast with his easy going writing style as he merrily hops and skips his way through remorseless murder and twisted reasoning. A lot of the tales seems to end at a point where you can fill in the blanks and they tend to leave you feeling like the hammer is going to fall just as Dahl puts the final full stop at the end of his final sentence. And... they are perfect the way they are.

Taste
The famous gourmet Mr Pratt lives up to his name (I am guessing his name is not just chosen randomly!). The host of a dinner party makes a bet with the gourmet in question and almost loses his most prized possession. The host has found an obscure wine somewhere and the gourmet thinks he can name it. However, the gourmet turns out to be playing with loaded dice and I do not think he will be attending the next dinner party.

Lamb to the Slaughter
Prim housewife does not like the fact that her husband says she is leaving her (has she not always taken care of his every whim and fancy?!). She kills him with the leg of lamb and then quietly waits for events to run their course. The policemen that come to investigate try not to let the trail go too cold.

Man from the South
A gentleman makes a bet with a young lad. The lad stands to gain a car and lose a finger - easy choice some would say. Before things get out of hand (sorry could not resist) the game comes to an end.

The Soldier
A man slowly loses his senses. The world becomes a strange place to him as everything around him seems to change faster than he can keep track of. Even his wife is not what she seems any more.

My Lady Love, My Dove
A long suffering husband with an overbearing wife and a game of cards. The possibilities are endless and the fun lasts till long into the night. A couple invite some friends over for a game of cards even though they do not like them much. Turns out they have every reason not to.

Dip in the Pool
A gentleman tries to tip the odds on the ship's pool in his favour. There is a bet on how many miles the ship will travel over a certain time frame and the man is determined to win. He takes a giant leap of faith.

Galloping Foxley
A man set in his ways, used to order and discipline finds his routine disturbed by and unexpected fellow commuter. He thinks he knows exactly what this guy is like but is proven wrong.

Skin
A young artist paints but does not sell to many. His older friend does a lot better at tattoo work. They combine their talents and create a very special work of art. Years later the young painter's work is much more "appreciated" and to the enjoyment of many (but not the old friend) the special work of art is brought to the market.

Poison
A snake seems to have taken refuge in a man's bed but for all their efforts no one can find it. The doctor advises going on holiday to de-stress the mind.
I have to say this I did not quite get this one. I went back at the end of it thinking I had missed some important clue?

The Wish
A young boy's imagination makes everyday things the adventure of a life time. A brilliant example of how Dahl gets into the mindset of a young boy and creates a wonderful world of make believe.

Neck
Rich man marries silly woman. A newspaper man is invited to come and stay with them for a weekend and is witness to a very interesting event. The woman gets her head stuck inside a statue (I believe it is a Henry Moore) and there is some debate between the butler and the gentleman on what the best tool is to release her from her predicament. The way the rich man is described and the way he acts are absolutely delicious!

The Sound Machine
A man invents a machine that can do a Dr Doolittle on anything. Not sure why you would want to, but he seems to be happy enough with it.

Nunc Dimittis
A cruel joke is played on an innocent woman. Our gentleman in this story is a bit of a pompous idiot who is not very good at reading the true character of people. He finds out that a painter has a very special way of treating his subjects and gets a work commissioned for a lady friend in order to get back at her. However, the stunt backfires and he is the one left on his own.... feeling ever so slightly queasy... actually, he's not really feeling that well at all.

The Great Automatic Grammatizator
it has finally happened.... someone had invented a machine that can replace all human involvement in writing a story. Well, almost all human involvement. Honestly, all you have to do is set a few parameters and the machine will do the rest. But is all what it seems?

The last couple of stories are in a separate section called Claude's Dog. They have a set of characters that recur in each of the stories and so create a little world of their own.
The Ratcatcher - a man who has a very particular way of catching rats.
Rummins - the missing are found in unexpected places.
Mr Hoddy - first tip of the day: when going courting, keep your fancy ideas to yourself!
Mr Feasey - second tip of the day: if you have a plan, get on with it and do not hedge your bets.


I always love reading Dahl. His stories are always unexpected and have twists that you do not see coming. I like the way he surprises his readers. He creates situations that are completely normal and then at the last minute on little thing puts all of it on its head and you are left with this weird but wonderful story.


The copy I have was apparently a Christmas gift for Paul back in 1988. I hope Paul enjoyed it as much as I did before it went to the charity shop where I picked it up earlier this year, 2010.


Title: Someone Like You
Author: Roald Dahl
270 pages
Penguin Books
ISBN nr 0-14-003074-3


Books to be read: 69
Books bought: 0
Library books read: 1 out of 4