Spy, fighter pilot, inventor, chocolate connoisseur, anti-Semite. The writer Roald Dahl (1916-1990) is one of the most beloved and unsurpassed storytellers of the 20th century, whether he is describing Charlie’s chocolate factory or the adventures of Matilda (his books are published by Psychogios). His books have sold in the millions and have been made into movies — Netflix bought the rights to his work for about $500 million — but he remains one of the most controversial authors. His 1983 commentary about Jews in The New Statesman magazine will never be forgotten, in which he said that “even a bastard like Hitler wouldn’t bother them unnecessarily”. However, that was not all, and that is why his heirs felt obligated to have a public apology for this side of the author permanently on their website.

Now a new biography that has divided critics joins two already published (Jeremy Treglone and Donald Sturrock). Matthew Dennison’s “Roald Dahl, Teller of Surprises” describes what a complex man he was (The Washington Post), but avoids being frank about the dark pages of his life (The New York Times). Denison describes the great controversies that dominated his personal life and the tragedies that befell him (two of his children died, his wife suffered a stroke at the age of 39, he almost died during World War II), but he also shows how well he knew his young readers. “They love to scare. They love suspense. They love action. They like ghosts,” he said, avoiding didactics in his books. “There are very few messages in my books. Their goal is to teach children to read books.”