Skin and Other Stories

by Roald Dahl

How would you get rid of a murder weapon without causing suspicion? Where would you hide a diamond where no one else would think of looking? What if you found out that the tattoo on your back was worth over a million dollars? You will discover that just about anything is possible in a Roald Dahl story, and here are eleven of his very best.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Horror, Fantasy, Classics, Young Adult, Thriller

224 pages, Paperback

First published February 3, 2000

About the author

Roald Dahl was a beloved British author, poet, screenwriter, and wartime fighter pilot, best known for his enchanting and often darkly humorous children's books that have captivated generations of readers around the world. Born in Llandaff, Wales, to Norwegian parents, Dahl led a life marked by adventure, tragedy, creativity, and enduring literary success. His vivid imagination and distinctive storytelling style have made him one of the most celebrated children's authors in modern literature.
Before becoming a writer, Dahl lived a life filled with excitement and hardship. He served as a Royal Air Force pilot during World War II, surviving a near-fatal crash in the Libyan desert. His wartime experiences and travels deeply influenced his storytelling, often infusing his works with a sense of danger, resilience, and the triumph of the underdog. After the war, he began writing for both adults and children, showing a rare versatility that spanned genres and age groups.
Dahl's children's books are known for their playful use of language, unforgettable characters, and a deep sense of justice, often pitting clever children against cruel or foolish adults. Some of his most iconic titles include Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, The BFG, James and the Giant Peach, Fantastic Mr Fox, and The Witches. These works are filled with fantastical elements and moral undertones, empowering young readers to challenge authority, think independently, and believe in the impossible.
Equally acclaimed for his work for adults, Dahl wrote numerous short stories characterized by their macabre twists and dark humor. His stories were frequently published in magazines such as The New Yorker and later compiled into bestselling collections like Someone Like You and Kiss Kiss. He also wrote screenplays, including the James Bond film You Only Live Twice and the adaptation of Ian Fleming's Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
Despite his literary success, Dahl was a complex and sometimes controversial figure, known for his strong opinions and difficult personality. Nonetheless, his books continue to be treasured for their wit, originality, and the sense of wonder they inspire. Many of his stories have been adapted into successful films, stage plays, and television specials, further cementing his legacy.
Dahl's impact on children's literature is immeasurable. His ability to connect with young readers through a mix of irreverence, heart, and imagination has made his stories timeless. Even after his death, his books remain in print and continue to be read by millions of children worldwide. His writing not only entertains but also encourages curiosity, courage, and compassion.
Roald Dahl's work lives on as a testament to the power of storytelling and the magic of a truly original voice. He remains a towering figure in literature whose creations continue to spark joy, mischief, and inspiration across generations.

Reviews

[Mariah Roze · Rating 3 out of 5]

My goal is to read as many Roald Dahl books as I can this year. Also, I am doing this as a buddy read with a Goodreads' friend that is also doing the same challenge.

This book is filled with eleven short stories that Roald Dahl wrote. They were all good, but none of them were fantastic. I had no drive to read this book. I was able to set it down and forget about it. Compared to Roald Dahl's other work, I don't believe this to be anywhere near his best stuff.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a nasty person. And so are you - in a secret sort of way. That's why we get along together."

Wowzers! I loved this collection of short stories! From the author who brought us Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory, Jame's Giant Peach, Matilda, The BFG (Big Friendly Giant) and more. This collection of stories was published after the death of Roald Dahl and brings together a perfectly wonderful batch of fun written for adults rather than children.

Within the pages of Skin are the answers to many of life's mysteries such as how to catch pheasants with raisins and where to look for early works of art by famous painters.

I absolutely loved SKIN and highly recommend it to all my twisted friends.

[Kye Alfred Hillig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dahl shows his true colors in this incredible grouping of short stories. The man, as it turns out, is a sicko like the rest of us. His adult work is disturbing in a way that continues to rattle your cage while he laughs at us from beyond the grave. His brilliance and striking gift for plotting always comes around full-circle to slap you in the face. He is an unpretentious author who chooses always to be modest while remaining vivid. I am going to hold strong that his gift was not truly for children but instead for those of us who grew up to love him more.

[Troy Blackford · Rating 5 out of 5]

It took me a number of years from the first time someone recommended Roald Dahl's adult, dark short fiction to me and the time I finally got one of his books and read it, but my word. This was one of the most engaging, unsettling, delightful, and unexpected works of short fiction I have ever encountered. I had no suspicion that Dahl had these kinds of works in his oeuvre, and now that I know, you can rest assured I will keep reading them. This was a literary treat. I was delighted at the mystery, the otherworldliness, the glee of creation, and the richness of character and situation I found in the covers of this book. Highly, highly recommended.

[Stephen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I actually received this book through a kind of secret santa/book exchange last holiday season. I was excited to receive it, though, as it was billed as Roald Dahl writes short stories for adults, which, I guess, is what it was.

I grew up on Dahl. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Charlie and The Great Glass Elevator, James and the Giant Peach, and The Witches were all staples of my early reading years, so I was excited to see what happened when this imagination was applied to some more mature themes.

Unfortunately, my answer is that it wasn't applied very well. The writing seemed weak and timid, although there were brief instances of brilliant imagery. Perhaps the biggest problem I had, though, is the structure of the stories.

It's as though Dahl wasn't quite certain of what to do with a short story. Tales of this nature typically involve introduction, conflict, action, and (sometimes) resolution. The majority of the stories in this collection, though, (I'd say 80%) hardly made it past the conflict stage. You met the characters, the plot line gets introduced, and then the story ends. The conflict is typically a twist of some sort, and ending the story on this twist just makes the story feel like a cliffhanger. The problem is that nothing feels resolved or even acted upon. It's like watching a play with three acts but they only show you Act I. The effect is ultimately disappointing.

The stories, although billed as "macabre," are simply more imaginative (and occasionally mildly sinister) than anything, and they do show a degree of promise, but in the end, they are lacking.

[Javi Appreciates Art · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

Esta obra es la primera que leo de Roald Dahl.

Si bien muchos de los relatos me gustaron en mayor o menor medida, otros no me terminaron de convencer o cuyos desenlaces no me parecieron atractivos.

A pesar de que no esperaba nada terrorífico ni nada muy adulto, considero que el título "relatos escalofriantes" es bastante pretencioso para lo que realmente ocurre en las páginas de este libro.

Sin embargo, Dahl es un gran cuentista, y en esta obra se hace notar. Nos presenta situaciones cotidianas y personajes variopintos, con una historia detrás normalmente original y fuera de convencionalismos.

Unos relatos me gustaron muchísimo, otros no tanto y otros pocos nada o casi nada, pero mis favoritos fueron los siguientes:

- Tatuaje
- Cordero asado
- La máquina del sonido
- El deseo
- Apuestas

[Kaethe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not a fan of the quiet literary novel. I like stories in which things happen. New, different, interesting things. Dahl is in my top five of short story writers along with Daphne DuMaurier who was also a Hitchcock fave, as well as three other people I'll have to think very carefully about. Guy de Maupassant and Edgar Allen Poe and Rod Serling come to mind immediately.

[shameeka alexis · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's Dahl. What more should I say?!

[Takoneando entre libros · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buenísima recopilación de Cuentos del autor. Lo he leído en una edición de Alfaguara juvenil, imagino que es un tipo de historias que es muy apta para esos jóvenes que aún no han llegado a la edad adulta, pero que han dejado atrás la niñez y necesitan otro tipo de historias.
Mención especial para el relato "Cordero asado", del que Alfred Hitchcock hizo un episodio de su serie y en el cual se basó Pedro Almodovar para una película.
Genial Roald.

[Georgette]

Beloved children author Roald Dahl wrote a series of delightful, dark humour for teen readers and eleven of them are compiled in Skin and Other Stories. [return][return]Dahl once said, "The success to a short story is simple, it must have a beginning, a middle and an end. The reader must never want to put it down."[return][return]There is no reason to put down this book too early. A single story, if not the entire book, is short enough to finish in one sitting.[return][return]Take for instance, the story "Skin", where an old man finds that the tattoo on his back is worth well over a million pounds because the one who did it for him is now a famous painter. He received offers for it but how do you sell something that's etched into your skin?[return][return]Creative murder is the theme for "Lamb to the Slaughter". Mary Maloney didn't take the news that her husband is dumping her ver well, so she kills him... with a frozen leg of lamb that the police never found. Although they did have a very nice dinner while at the scene of the crime.[return][return]In "The Sound Machine", a man named Klausner invents a most remarkable machine. It can detect the sound of plants crying. That's probably enough to make anyone seem mad.[return][return]And the whimsy continues - a child who decided that certain colours in the carpet will certainly eat him, a surgeon who received a diamond as a gift and has to hide it somewhere, and so on.[return][return]A few of these stories start with a lot of preface before it gets to the point, which is usually rather short and turns the entire story around. Oh, the characters here don't usually do the morally right thing. They do something unexpected, if not blatantly wrong.[return][return]One could say Dahl has a sick mind, but the rest of us would love the irony. After the first couple of stories, I found myself already anticipating what kind of twist of he has in store next.[return][return]Some younger children will need some of the stories here explained to them, but teens and adults should enjoy it just fine.[return][return](2006)

[Tanya · Rating 3 out of 5]

Skin · ★★★★
An old man, unemployed and reduced to panhandling after the war, is walking the streets of Paris, when he passes an art gallery and sees a painting by Chaïm Soutine. He realizes that this is a young man he knew thirty years before, now in high demand; he happens to own an early work by the artist, and several people make bids and some unusual proposals for it—could this be the end of his financial worries? Eerie, macabre, and all but missing Dahl’s usual touch of humor, this was a chilling favorite.

Lamb to the Slaughter · ★★★★★
A pregnant wife about to be abandoned by her police officer husband kills him in the spur of the moment with a frozen leg of mutton, and it’s the perfect crime. I read this story in English class in middle or early high school and never forgot it… but couldn’t remember the title or author. This was such a great surprise, and it was just as great as I remembered it, a perfect blend of black humor and horror.

The Sound Machine · ★★★½
An eccentric man obsessed with sound constructs an apparatus which is able to make vibrations that are beyond the human ear heard, and he excitedly decides to test it to hear sounds of nature. It’s up to the reader to decide whether his device actually worked or if it simply triggered his lunacy, but I sure will never look at a lawn or flower bouquet the same way again.

An African Story · ★★
An odd story within an even odder story, set in the Kenyan Highlands and involving the mystery of milk vanishing out of an old man’s cow overnight. It was a bizarre and cruel tale, and I’m not sure what the point of the framing story was—it was just as bizarre as the main one, and quite elaborate, yet we never return to it.

Gallopping Foxley · ★★★½
A man in his early 60’s, very set in, and content with, his commuting routine, finds his mornings disrupted by a new arrival on his habitual train—a man, he comes to realize, who used to torment him at school. Some of the scenes the narrator remembers once he finally places the face he found so inexplicably disagreeable as soon as he first set eyes on it are straight out of Dahl’s own childhood, and knowing that he actually experienced it made this story feel a lot more immediate. The ending came as an anti-climatic but fun surprise after such a dark and uncomfortable tale, I couldn’t help but chuckle.

The Wish · ★★★★½
The opening of this very short tale about an imaginative boy playing a quickly escalating variation of “the floor is lava” took me straight back to the way I, too, would pick at my scabs with glee and single-minded focus, and become absorbed in lonely made-up games with equally made-up high stakes. The Wish is childhood, distilled, but with a Dahlian twist: Who would ever have thought that a boy walking along a carpet determined to only step on the yellow parts could become so chilling when his imagination runs away from him?

The Surgeon · ★★★★
After saving a Saudi Arabian prince’s life, a surgeon receives a very valuable diamond as a token of gratitude, but where to put it while he’s away for the weekend? It’s Friday night and the banks are closed, but his wife comes up with an ingenious hiding place that surely no burglar would consider… a rather atypically innocent story with a happy resolution, especially considering that it was first published in Playboy magazine.

Dip in the Pool · ★★★½
On a cruise ship, there is a betting pool wherein passengers try to correctly guess the number of miles the ship will travel that day, within ten miles above or below the captain’s own guess. On a suddenly stormy day, a passenger places a huge bet on “low field”, but when he wakes up to bright blue skies and realizes that he will lose years of savings, he makes a rash decision to ensure he’ll still win. I saw the deliciously macabre ending coming from several nautical miles away, but still very much enjoyed the voyage to get there.

Champion of the World · ★★★
An early version of Dahl’s children’s novel Danny, Champion of the World. In this adult tale, Claud has spent many months poaching expensively raised pheasants on the property of an arrogant, self-made local entrepreneur, until he one day invites along a friend, who comes up with an ingenious plan to denude the whole property of birds just ahead of the annual hunting season. It works like a charm… they just didn’t quite think their scheme all the way through. The ending makes this one.

Beware of the Dog · ★★★½
A RAF pilot is flying himself back across the Channel from German-occupied France, having just lost a leg from a cannon shell. He bails out of the plane when he realizes that he’s delirious and close to unconsciousness due to the blood loss, and awakens in a hospital bed in Brighton… but things don’t quite add up. A little predictable, perhaps, but it was just bite-sized and fast-paced enough to still make for an enjoyable war-time thriller that I might’ve rated higher if the ending hadn’t been both so spelled-out yet abrupt.

My Lady Love, My Dove · ★★
A wealthy, mismatched couple (the wife a contemptuous and unpleasant harpy, the husband a cowardly push-over) have invited a younger couple, new to the neighborhood and very good bridge-players, over for a game—but as the hosts cross over the bounds of decency and decide to eavesdrop on their guests, it turns out that not everything about the young couple is as it seems… and their deception may give the wife some ideas of her own.

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

My life divides itself into three periods: reading Roald Dahl myself as a kid, not reading Roald Dahl at all, and reading Roald Dahl to my kids. It's in the last period that I've come to the deepest appreciation of his books. Seeing your daughter cry with joy at the end of Matilda, or your son transfixed by the long descriptive passages in Danny Champion of the World, you see Dahl's magic at work - his ability to speak directly and intensely to the imaginations of children, to enter their dreams like the BFG.

I had never read Dahl's works for grown-ups so I was curious to pick this up from the library. His vivid and eccentric imagination is much in evidence in these stories, which often operate on the frontiers of believability but are told with such conviction and brilliance that he gets away with it.

There are foreshadowings of Dahl's later works - most obviously in The Champion of the World, which includes the pivotal poaching scene from Danny Champion of the World, but minus the father-son relationship which is at the heart of that book. In Galloping Foxley, Dahl revisits his miserable time at Repton, a set of experiences he mines time and again throughout his oeuvre, and finally lays to rest in autobiographical form in Boy. In the short story, the scars are rawer and there is less humour - however, the boyhood narrative is cleverly framed to suggest the lifelong impact such experiences may have, with a killer ending.

Many of the stories are highly unpredictable but full of suspense, making them exciting to read. You can see two or three obvious endings, but Dahl goes for a fourth you hadn't anticipated. Some - like the title story, Skin - are brilliant miniatures. Many of the stories centre around a character who has an utterly crazy idea - it might be born out of greed, desperation, curiosity or a desire for revenge. We read on to see how on earth the idea will be carried out and whether the plotter will get away with it. Probably my favourite Roald Dahl book as a child was George's Marvellous Medicine and my favourite parts of it were those in which George is simply putting one thing into the pot after another. What would read like a shopping list in the hands of another writer is enthralling when Dahl does it.

Not all stories are of equal quality. A couple of them get all dressed up only to find they have nowhere particular to go. But the marks of Dahl's genius are obvious and this is a highly diverting and enjoyable collection.

[Mandy Bookstagram · Rating 5 out of 5]

Roald Dahl is most beloved and best known for his best-selling children's works: James and the Giant Peach, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, The Witches, Fantastic Mr. Fox, The BFG, The Twits and George's Marvelous Medicine.

I did some research on his birthday (September 13) and decided to order Skin, because I had never heard of it before. It is perfect for the Halloween season, and I am really pleased with its realism. His children's stories are, of course, a little magical, but his tales for adults are creepy in the I-Could-Actually-Imagine-This-Happening-And-Its-Super-Creepy-kind-of-way.

Skin And Other Stories is a perfect read for anyone wanting to get into the spirit of Halloween with scary stories, or anyone who wants a bit of light reading. Because it is a collection of short stories, they can be read individually (for those who like to read just a chapter before bed) or all-together in one sitting. The title hints at the element of creepy, suspenseful stories with strange twists, full of truly unexpected endings and twisted ideas that only someone with a mind of horror could conjure. I won't give much away, but I will say you will surely be surprised by the endings!

My favorite was the first, Skin, a tale illuminating the danger of owning one-of-a-kind-artwork: everyone will want it, for themselves. Trust no one.

The collection contains Dahl's short stories: Skin; Lamb to the Slaughter; The Sound Machine; An African Story; Galloping Foxley; The Wish; The Surgeon; Dip in the Pool; The Champion of the World; Beware of the Dog; My Lady Love, My Dove. It was first published in the May 17, 1952 issue of The New Yorker, and was later featured in the collection Skin and Other Stories, published in 2000.

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[Victor Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is exactly the kind of book I remember doing book reports on in high school. I never read these stories, but I remember the "genre" of "classic" short stories. I suppose all students of all time periods refer to the ways around a hundred years ago as "classic." Alas, I shall continue the tradition. I may have only ever read "The Landlady," which was not included in this collection. Nonetheless, it cemented in my mind, along with his Hollywood successes, Dahl's basic style. The dust jacket describes his claim to fame as "fiendishly clever short story collections for adults" and that does a fine job of summing him up.

My favorites were "Skin," "An African Story," and "The Champion of the World." The last one even borders on humorous, a charming story of hubris where the ending gotchya isn't creepy at all, but puts a wide smile on your face nonetheless. I am sure this kind of book is the perfect gateway to lead young adults into the world of adult literature, and will remain so for decades to come at least.

[Karlyflower *The Vampire Ninja, Luminescent Monster & Wendigo Nerd Goddess of Canada (according to The Hulk)* · Rating 4 out of 5]

My musings on Skin and Other Stories by Roald Dahl.

I never really know what to say about short stories, or in this case a short story compilation, they are such light, quick reading that they tend to leave little to no impression on me.

I must say though, if you are going to read a compilation of short stories you really should give Dahl's a go. Dark, eerie and lovely in traditional Dahl style. I am at a loss to which was favoured as I really enjoyed them all - although as a hunters daughter I found The Champion of the World highly amusing.

That's about all the musings I've got today. Read Roald Dahl.... that is all!

[Kenya | Reviews May Vary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I HATE collections of short stories. Hate. About once a year I give them "one more try." My one try this year should have just ended with Tyranny of Petticoats. But no. I discovered this little ditty by RD and just HAD to try it. It took me almost a month to read this 200 page book. And the determination of circus trainer.

As would be expected, I really like some stories and others were not even at my table, let alone my cup of tea.

I might try to review this book to see if I talk myself into more appreciation for the Collected Work.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up at the library as I was curious what sort of stories Roald Dahl wrote for adults, and I'm so glad I did. Every story was completely engaging from the first sentence, and had such a clever twist to it.

A literary delight. What an incredible storyteller.

[Daniel Perkins · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed these stories. They were entertaining and pretty fun! I don’t have much else to say about the book. Just that it’s was pretty good.

[SurDiablo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dark and amusing short stories which were captivating from beginning to end. My favorites were The Sound Machine, Galloping Foxley, Beware of the Dog and The Champion of the World.

[Pirita Susi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aivan muuta kuin mitä odotin aluksi!Dahlille tyypillisen veikeä kirjoitustyyli kyllä sopii tällaisiin synkempiinkin aiheisiin. Kansien sisältä löytyy parikin helmeä,kuten kokoelman nimikkonovelli Nahka.

[Jeraviz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Algunos relatos magníficos, otros parecen que están inacabados. Lo único seguro es que Roald Dahl era un maestro escribiendo e imaginando situaciones.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.4 stars

Skin - 4 stars
Lamb to the Slaughter - 5 stars
The Sound Machine - 5 stars
An African Story - 3 stars
Galloping Foxley - 3 stars
The Wish - 5 stars
The Surgeon - 5 stars
Dip in the Pool - 5 stars
The Champion of the World - 5 stars
Beware of the Dog - 5 stars
My Lady Love, My Dove - 3 stars

[Ken · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dahl's best known for he's children stories actually wrote plenty of short stories for adults, some were adapted for tv show 'Tales of the Unexpected' but these were shown nearly 40 years ago!

This collection includes 11 tales and all have their merits. My personal favorites includes Skin, Lamb to the Slaughter and Dip in the Pool.

More interestingly this collection includes The Champion of the World, written in the 50's this would later become the basis for Danny the Champion of the World

Anyone that grew up reading Dahl as a kid should certainly give this a read.

[Rand · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Skin" is amazing. Roald Dahl is a master of fiction, and these stories are some of his best works. They're from when he was still developing his craft, but are still tantalizingly mysterious.
The stories are varied in subject and theme. For example, the titular story "Skin" is about a man with a priceless tattoo on his back, while the short piece "The Wish" is a largely ambiguous story about a child's imagination gone wrong. Most of these stories have the signature Dahl twist ending, and almost all are handled very well in respect to exposition and plot. Some endings are so clouded it obscures the story itself, but this is largely not the case.

[Travis Marcum · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finished this awesome collection of short stories recently. Hard to chose a favorite as Dahl is a master at work in all of them. If I had to chose, I like “Lamb to the Slaughter” and “The Surgeon” best. Fun fact, my son’s 10th grade English class read “Lamb to the Slaughter” not long ago and he came home talking about how I would like it. He was right. #roalddahl #reading #whatyoureadingfor

[venla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aluksi ajattelin, että novellit ovat "tyhmiä", koska ne loppuivat niin pahasti kesken koko ajan. Mutta luettuani toisiksi viimeisen novellin Tie taivaaseen, oivalsin, että ehkä on parempi jättää novelleihin tulkinnanvaraa. 4/5 !

[Magnus Byrne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Has some pretty interesting short stories in it, some of them are a little bit more dark than Roald Dahl's standard fare, but they're still great. It's a quick read as well, and it's unlikely you'll want to put it down once you've started a short story.

[Natalie · Rating 2 out of 5]

There are short stories and then there are SHORT stories — the shortest one in this collection is 5 pages — and I just don’t think they were particularly interesting. Other than a couple that stuck out, they mostly fell flat and I was left wondering what the point was. Idk short stories are very very difficult to pull off — the shorter the story the tougher it gets to get your point across, and frankly we know Dahl is a talented author, but I get the sense he shines in longer form content.

I wouldn’t NOT recommend it but I wouldn’t recommend it

[Claire Trammell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely captivating. Each story mixing irony and social commentary, and there’s something so fantastical about Dahl’s writing and characterization. Nearly finished the book on one plane ride. Thanks, Roald!

[Leslie Garcia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Magnífico como todo lo escrito por Roald Dahl!