title: Boy: Tales of Childhood
author:  Roald Dahl 
description: <b>Roald Dahl</b>(1916-1990) was born in Wales of Norwegian parents. He spent his childhood in England and, at age eighteen, went to work for the Shell Oil Company in Africa. When World War II broke out, he joined the Royal Air Force and became a fighter pilot. At the age of twenty-six he moved to Washington, D.C., and it was there he began to write. His first short story, which recounted his adventures in the war, was bought byThe Saturday Evening Post, and so began a long and illustrious career.<br /><br />After establishing himself as a writer for adults, Roald Dahl began writing childrens stories in 1960 while living in England with his family. His first stories were written as entertainment for his own children, to whom many of his books are dedicated.<br /><br />Roald Dahl is now considered one of the most beloved storytellers of our time. Although he passed away in 1990, his popularity continues to increase as his fantastic novels, includingJames and the Giant Peach,Matilda,The BFG, andCharlie and the Chocolate Factory, delight an ever-growing legion of fans.<br /><br />Learn more about Roald Dahl on the official Roald Dahl Web site:<b>www.roalddahl.com</b>
zlib_text: ##### ABOUT ROALD DAHL
  
  
  Roald Dahl was born in 1916 in Wales of Norwegian parents. He was educated in
  England before starting work for the Shell Oil Company in Africa. He began
  writing after a ‘monumental bash on the head’ sustained as an RAF fighter
  pilot during the Second World War. Roald Dahl is one of the most successful
  and well known of all children’s writers. His books, which are read by
  children the world over, include _James and the Giant Peach, Charlie and the
  Chocolate Factory, The Magic Finger, Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator,
  Fantastic Mr Fox, Matilda, The Twits, The BFG_ and _The Witches_ , winner of
  the 1983 Whitbread Award. Roald Dahl died in 1990 at the age of seventy-four.
  
  
  
  
  
  ![brand Image for Skin And Other Stories](../images/brand.jpg)
  
  
  
  
  
  ## Skin
  
  
  That year – 1946 – winter was a long time going. Although it was April, a
  freezing wind blew through the streets of the city, and overhead the snow
  clouds moved across the sky.
  
  
  The old man who was called Driol