Customer Reviews
Not what I expected! - By: Bookworm, 09 Aug 2007 
I expected a dull plod through the life of a writer - but no! this book is a wonderful, engaging, lively trip through the highlights & lowlights of a man who led an extraordinary life. He has a lovely style of phrase which is warm & engaging enabling the reader to clearly see & feel the events unfolding across the pages.
There are many memorable moments, but the one that has stayed with me long after I finished the book was his account of being a fighter pilot. None of the heroics that are usually foundin war stories, but observations & comments that were very moving due to their honesty.
Brill for child and adult alike - By: , 23 Jul 2003 I first read this book when I was about 10 years old. I had always been a fan of Roald Dahl & his stories & this was no exception.
I can honestly say I lost count of the amount of times I have re-read this book (I think last time was only last year & I am now 19!). It was an easy to read book that a child could manage, but it made me aware of some very adult issues - caning children, the birth of the motor car, the wonders of Africa & the shocks of War. At ten years old I knew nothing of these things apart from those which I readin this book. But these issues wern't boring to me, they were entertaining & funny & enjoyable to read.
The idea of Africa was the one which stayed with me. When I finished 6th form I decided to visit the Africa that was written aboutin Going Solo.
Although it wasn't the only factor, I think this book was the spark which set me on this idea & so I shall never forget it. Thankyou Roald Dahl!
A peek into the life of our children's favourite author - By: stacey.stamp@btinternet.com, 03 Oct 2001 A funny, sometimes moving account of the childhood & later life of Roald Dahl.
For those of you who are huge fans of all those great characters such as Charlie, Matilda & the BFG, take a closer look at the heart & mind of their creator Roald Dahl.
Roald's biography unfoldsin a intimate down to earth style which almost gives you the impression he is telling his story, off the record, just to you.
Boy/Going Solo is a book which will have you holding your breath, laughing out loud & reaching for the tissues before the last page is turned & will definitely leave you wanting to read more.
This is a must read book - By: , 07 Apr 2001 As it says on the book - "Roald Dahl's life was as funny, bizarre, fightening & exciting as the stories he wrote" This is 100% true. From being 6 at school to 10 at boarding schoolin Boy he goes onto being a Hawker Hurricane pilot flyingin Greece & the Western desertin 1942. This is an amazing read & it is a book that you will read again & again.
compellingly gruesome! - By: Mrs. K. A. Wheatley, 20 Nov 2000 Having read this book it is easy to see where Dahl got the more macabre ideas for his childrens books. Intensely readable & totally fascinating. His real life makes for a better story than any of the made up things he wrote. Although it is written for children it is never patronising & I would have no hesitationin recommending it to anyone of any age.
