Status
Available
Call number
Genres
Publication
Penguin Books (1991), 176 pages
Description
"Roald Dahl is one of the few writers I know whose work can accurately be described as addictive." -- Irish Times The sweet scents of rural life infuse this beautifully crafted collection of Roald Dahl's country stories, but there is always something unexpected lurking in the undergrowth. Whether it is taking a troublesome cow to be mated with a prime • dealing with a rat-infested hayrick; learning the ways and means of maggot farming; or describing the fine art of poaching pheasants using nothing but raisins and sleeping pills, Roald Dahl brings his stories of everyday country folk and their strange passions wonderfully to life. Lacing each tale with dollops of humor and adding a sprinkling of the sinister, Dahl ensures that this short story collection celebrates the sweet mysteries of life. "All the stories sparkle with vibrant characters, humorous dialogue, and sly rustic lore and cunning." -- Sunday Express "A sophisticated account of village life. The rural characters are molded by Dahl's dark, inquisitive imagination. Compelling and very funny." -- Time Out… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member tripleblessings
Stories of rural life, and Claud, a cunning man with a flair for deception and illicit earnings: poaching, rat catching, racing greyhounds, maggot breeding, antiques... Strange but fascinating, with Dahl's usual twist endings. Includes: Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life; Parson's Pleasure; the Ratcatcher;
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Rummins; Mr. Hoddy; Mr. Feasey; The Champion of the World. Show Less
LibraryThing member eleanor_eader
I had read most of the stories in this collection before, although not recently enough to mind that they had been anthologised more than once… Dahl is always a canny, enjoyable read. This isn’t, though, the strongest collection; Lamb to the Slaughter, The Wonderful Tale of Henry Sugar, Kiss,
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Kiss and Tales of the Unexpected all outstrip this collection easily… this is rather a ‘bottom of the barrel’ offering, and the scrapings are not even unique. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone who hadn’t read all the other things he’s written first, and then not to anyone who wanted something different. Show Less
LibraryThing member Whisper1
Continuing the quest I began in 2009 to read all of Roald Dahl's books, I found this book tucked away on my library shelf.
This is a book of transition from Dahl's works for "children" to a mature set of tales for "adults."
Dahl enjoyed writing this series of seven short stories which were penned at
The title of the book is the first story and is a rather bawdy tale of a local farmer who breeds his bull with heifers with a 98% success rate of producing heifers.
My favorite is "Parson's Pleasure" wherein a slimy antique dealer attempts to take advantage of farmers by paying little for their treasures which he then re-sells at a much higher amount.
In this book you find various and sundry characters who are out to pull a fast trick and in the end the table is turned. Some stories are rather dark and include tales of rat catchers, greyhound racing, maggots and poaching.
Dahl writes with his usual flair for the absurd and, once again he shines through with his unique ability to poke fun at the not-so nice qualities of human beings.
While I felt some of the stories were mediocre and not on the par of his other books, still, I recommend this to those, like me, who are in awe of the quirky, quacky, creative and intelligent writings of this fascinating man.
This is a book of transition from Dahl's works for "children" to a mature set of tales for "adults."
Dahl enjoyed writing this series of seven short stories which were penned at
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a pleasant, leisurely time in his life when he was thirty years old and returned from WWII to the idyllic Buckinghamshire country side home of his family, As he wrote each one, he sent them off to American magazines for publication.The title of the book is the first story and is a rather bawdy tale of a local farmer who breeds his bull with heifers with a 98% success rate of producing heifers.
My favorite is "Parson's Pleasure" wherein a slimy antique dealer attempts to take advantage of farmers by paying little for their treasures which he then re-sells at a much higher amount.
In this book you find various and sundry characters who are out to pull a fast trick and in the end the table is turned. Some stories are rather dark and include tales of rat catchers, greyhound racing, maggots and poaching.
Dahl writes with his usual flair for the absurd and, once again he shines through with his unique ability to poke fun at the not-so nice qualities of human beings.
While I felt some of the stories were mediocre and not on the par of his other books, still, I recommend this to those, like me, who are in awe of the quirky, quacky, creative and intelligent writings of this fascinating man.
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LibraryThing member PickledOnion42
This collection is comprised of seven of Roald Dahl's agrestic short stories: the eponymous 'Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life', as well as 'Parson's Pleasure', 'The Ratcatcher', 'Rummins', 'Mr Hoddy', 'Mr Feasey', and 'The Champion of the World'; each displaying an aspect of country life and each, in
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their own strange way, dismantling the concept of the bucolic British paradise. The characters (reused throughout the collection) are endowed with simplistic yet real personalities, and the situations constructed around them are wonderfully crafted and playfully irreverent, displaying an expert blend of both the silly and the sinister. An undemanding read and an altogether superb collection. Show Less
LibraryThing member kittyjay
Most people are familiar with Roald Dahl's children's books, but the man proves himself equally adept at writing for adults. Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life is a collection of rural short stories, most revolving around a friend, poacher, and gambler, Claud. Amongst the bits of country wisdom (pointing a
Dahl's humor is understated and he is perfectly content to play up the comic potential of his neighbors, including Claud, while the narrator is an interested bystander.
The last story, regarding Claud's grand plan to hit a new record with the most pheasants poached in one night, ends on a side-splitting note. Dahl's true gift is in the description of his characters and the visual imagery. The characters absolutely sparkle.
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heifer toward the sun will always result in a heifer calf, while pointing it away will give you a bull calf) and farcical situations arising from Claud's latest get-rich-scheme of substituting a ringer in for a losing greyhound is a grim story of what's under the hayrick and a disgusting ratcatcher who resembles the vermin he catches in more way than one.Dahl's humor is understated and he is perfectly content to play up the comic potential of his neighbors, including Claud, while the narrator is an interested bystander.
The last story, regarding Claud's grand plan to hit a new record with the most pheasants poached in one night, ends on a side-splitting note. Dahl's true gift is in the description of his characters and the visual imagery. The characters absolutely sparkle.
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LibraryThing member nebula21
Collection of short stories about a group of country characters. I didn't enjoy it as much as some of the other Roald Dahl short stories that I have read in the past. However it is a good collection and I would recommend it.
LibraryThing member lydiasbooks
Just couldn't get into this book. I like his children's stuff though.
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1989
Physical description
176 p.; 5.08 inches
ISBN
0140118470 / 9780140118476