Amongst all the heaviness of the Ukraine war, the cost of living crisis and the earthquake tragedy in Turkey and Syria, the prime minister took a couple of minutes to give his thoughts about Roald Dahl and his books. He said ‘the books should be preserved and not airbrushed.’
This is referring to the publisher’s decision to change some of the language used in the books. The words ‘fat’ and ‘weird’ are now not allowed. This is simply a form of quiet censorship and also I think underestimates the reading power of children. Dahl’s books can be subversive and scary as well as hilariously funny and sometimes rather vulgar. Children adore them. They recognise what is real and what is not and they love that frisson of danger that some of the stories offer.
By all accounts Roald Dahl was a very unpleasant person: racist, bigoted, anti-Semitic and very controlling of the women in his life. He was however a great writer with an incredible imagination. Nobody has to read these books or buy them for their children or grandchildren but they should not be tampered with by some sensitivity reader (a new term I have learnt of late!) Philip Pullman, he of The Dark Materials fame, said that if the books become unacceptable then they could simply be allowed to go out of print. I find that a better option but my original copies will sit firmly on their bookshelf.