Roald Dahl is one of my favorite childhood author and I was surprised when one of my bookclub member shared that he actually wrote adult books! I immediately went in search on the books he had written and OMG, I was in for a surprise.
Switch Bitch consists of four short stories. I read on wikipedia that these were works that Roald Dahl had written for the playboy magazines. Can you believed that?
Before I started reading the book, I had thought that it would be an erotica read but I am pleased to tell everyone that it is NOT. There are plots in each stories and although they are pretty dark, the plots are captivating and interesting enough to make me want to know more.
The Visitor
The first story in this book is about Uncle Oswald (fictional uncle of Roald Dahl). The author received a set of diaries written by Uncle Oswald and decided to publish them. In this story, Uncle Oswald was stranded in the desert when the fan belt of his car was cut off and lucky him got invited to a beautiful mansion by a man driving a Rolls Royce.
Oswald did sound like a very selfish man here but I can totally understand about the particularities on cleanliness. I myself couldn't stand those smelly humans (especially on a crowded train!) and also dirtied sheets in a hotel. And that hair on the poached eggs! I would definitely have asked for a refund for that.
I like how Roald Dahl twisted the story at the end and made us wonder who is the lady who actually visited Uncle Oswald that night. Was it the wife? The beautiful daughter? Or was it someone else. However based on the small introduction at the beginning of the story, it was understood that this was the last entry in Uncle Oswald's diary and nothing was ever heard from him after this. This made me wonder if the lady was who I thought to be.
Tell me what you think if you have read this story! I want to hear from others too!
The Great Switcheroo
This story didn't really leave much impression on me as it is mainly a story that fulfils a man's fantasy in exchanging wife for sex. However, it was done in a secret manner here without the wife realising that they were actually having sex with another man. It's pretty unbelievable but I guessed man do fantasized about it.
I like the tiny twist at the end of the story. It made me laugh out real loud.
The Last Act
Now this is one disturbing and sad story. This lady couldn't get over the death of her husband and was having thoughts of committing suicide. Luckily, the people around her were smart enough not to leave blades for her to do so. Things took a change when a friend called her up and asked her to work for her. She walked out of her depression once her mind was on other stuffs. I was smiling while reading about this.
But Roald Dahl didn't left her happy for long. Again, she was alone on a business trip and being alone brought up her depression again. What luck for her to find an old lover to chat with.
Then I got pissed at the lover.
I would say that this isn't a story everyone would loved because of the dark element and the unhappy ending.
Bitch
Uncle Oswald is back! This time he brought back a liquid that could drove a man wild and make senseless sex with another woman he first laid his eyes on.
Another fantasy of man spotted here. In this book, I also spotted some of the fantasy elements that could be found in Roald Dahl's children book but written as an adult version. This story is really interesting and I was laughing by the end of it at Uncle Oswald's retribution.
All in all, this is an interesting read but nothing something that everyone would like. I would not recommend you picking this up just because you are a fan of Roald Dahl. Pick it up only if you enjoy dark humor, fantasies and disturbing stories. I enjoyed it but still it is not a book for everyone.
No comments:
Post a Comment