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#RoaldDahlDay: 15 genius pieces of life advice from his books
It's Roald Dahl Day today - to mark what would have been his hundredth birthday - and people of all ages are celebrating the life and works of one of the world's most beloved authors.
His books weren't just full of wonderful and interesting stories - they taught life lessons, which stayed with many long after they read them.
From Matilda, who bravely stuck up for herself to the BFG, who showed looks aren't everything and sometimes the best friendships are the unorthodox and unexpected, the characters, and the advice they imparted, are timeless.
Here is a reminder of some of the best quotes and life lessons from his works.
1. "A person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly. You can have a wonky nose and a crooked mouth and a double chin and stick-out teeth, but if you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely." - The Twits
2. "Never do anything by halves if you want to get away with it. Be outrageous. Go the whole hog." - Matilda
3. "A little nonsense now and then, is relished by the wisest men." – Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator
4. "So please, oh please, we beg, we pray Go throw your TV set away And in its place you can install A lovely bookshelf on the wall…" - Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
5. "Don't gobblefunk around with words." - The BFG
6. "It doesn’t matter who you are or what you look like, so long as somebody loves you." - The Witches
7. "All you do is to look/ at a page in this book/ because that’s where we always will be. No book ever ends/ when it’s full of your friends". - The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me
10. "You can fake a mouth-smile any time you want, simply by moving your lips. I’ve also learned that a real mouth-smile always has an eye-smile to go with it. So watch out, I say, when someone smiles at you but his eyes stay the same. It’s sure to be a phony." - Danny the Champion of the World
11. "And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don't believe in magic will never find it." - The Minpins
12. "If I were a headmaster I would get rid of the history teacher and get a chocolate teacher instead." - Roald Dahl Cookbook
13. “So Matilda’s strong young mind continued to grow, nurtured by the voices of all those authors who had sent their books out into the world like ships on the sea. These books gave Matilda a hopeful and comforting message: You are not alone.” - Matilda
14. "Some people when they have taken too much and have been driven beyond the point of endurance, simply crumble and give up. There are others, though they are not many, who will for some reason always be unconquerable. You meet them in time of war and also in time of peace. They have an indomitable spirit and nothing, neither pain nor torture nor threat of death, will cause them to give up." - The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More
15. "When writing about oneself, one must strive to be truthful. Truth is more important than modesty." - Boy: Tales of Childhood