Only a few of these stories selected from Dahl's adult anthologies may be compelling to young readers. These include a macabre tale of a murderous wife, a page-turner about a missing diamond, and a funny entry about a pair of hapless pheasant poachers. But the vast majority of these selections feature adult protagonists with adult concerns, which may limit the volume's audience.

These bizarre, fascinating, and sophisticated short stories, selected from Dahl's body of adult writings, are the perfect foil for the traditional tomes used in high-school English classes. Full of irony and unexpected twists, they smack of the master's touch--every word carefully chosen, characters fully fleshed out in only a few pages, the sense of place immediate. Readers of Skin can easily imagine the derelict's large tattoo, signed in red ink by a now-famous artist, as well as the poor man's future. An Africa few will ever know is the backdrop for An African Story, about tortuous revenge. Interestingly, some of the stories seem to have given rise to current urban legends: in Lamb to the Slaughter, a young wife who kills her philandering husband with a frozen leg of lamb feeds the luscious murder weapon to the police. These 13 stories offer teens a superbly crafted, satisfying read that will meet an English teacher's demand for quality as well as a student's desire for intrigue and brevity.

This volume collects 11 of the master storyteller's short stories, many of which first appeared in <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">Someone Like You, and also includes "The Surgeon," originally published in <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">Playboy in 1986. Ages 12-up. <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">(Jan.)