This Is The Most Terrifying Children’s Book Author Of All Time

You may not have realized it at the time, but so many of your favorite childhood stories might have started in the mind of a magnificent British author named Roald Dahl. James and the Giant Peach, Matilda, The BFG, and so many more were stories whipped up in his whimsical brain. Of course, we adore all of the 20-odd books he wrote for kids.

But we would be remiss not to point out that — for as much as he was skilled at crafting appealing fantasy — Dahl was also a master of working in the perfect amount of darkness. I recall feeling particularly squeamish as a kid reaching the description of the witches in The Witches. "The brilliant snake's eyes that were set so deep in that dreadful rotting worm-eaten face glared unblinkingly at the witches who sat facing her," he wrote of the Grand High Witch. That was the image on the back of my eyelids when I tried to fall asleep at night for months thereafter.

The BFG hits theaters on July 1, and while we're looking forward to seeing the big friendly giant, we're also psyched about all the creepy little details sure to sneak their way into the film. To that effect, we've pulled together some of our favorite freaky moments from earlier Dahl books and films — and it must be said that, to this day, they still send a little shiver down our spines.