While it's not a replacement for reading the complete works of Roald Dahl, this book is a lovely tribute to him and a good selection of his works. Personal tributes from some people who knew him well combine with excerpts from his longer books and full-text of some of his shorter works, including some items previously unpublished.

What a lovely collection of samples and snippets and sometimes full poems/short stories by Roald Dahl. It is nicely divided into four themes: Animals; Magic; Family, Friends and Foes; and Matters of Importance. Through these areas, we get a good glimpse at the diversity of Dahl’s writings, all of which are accompanied by lovely illustrations by Quentin Blake for the most part, but also by Raymond Briggs, Babette Cole, Posy Simmonds and Ralph Steadman.

Wikipedia citation

Lavishly produced and illustrated in full-color, it features artwork by such prominent illustrators as Quentin Blake, Lane Smith, and Raymond Briggs. Roald Dahl was a British novelist, short story writer and screenwriter of Norwegian descent, who rose to prominence in the 1940's with works for both children and adults, and became one of the world's bestselling authors.

As with any Dahl creation, there are many dark and twisted happenings in this collection with many characters meeting rather unfortunate ends. I remember being horrified by Dahl's version of "The Three Little Pigs". Because of this, I would not recommend this for sensitive readers. Best fit for those who already enjoy Dahl's humor and story-telling style. His first children's book was The Gremlins, about mischievous little creatures that were part of RAF folklore. The book was commissioned by Walt Disney for a film that was never made, and published in 1943. Dahl went on to create some of the best-loved children's stories of the 20th century, such as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda and James and the Giant Peach. The book includes a large volume of illustrations by Quentin Blake, with some specially commissioned for the project and some appearing for the first time in colour. A selection of guest illustrators including Raymond Briggs and Ralph Steadman add visual variety to the extracts. The book also includes an excerpt from an interview given by Dahl and many letters exchanged between Dahl and family members, including Ophelia Dahl.Contains short stories, extracts from longer fiction, rhymes, and memoirs, as well as unpublished poetry and letters