Lamb to the Slaughter(1953)

Roald Dahl

"The room was warm and clean, the curtains drawn, the two table lamps alight – hers and the one by the empty chair opposite..."

Lamb to the Slaughter (1953) is a short story by Roald Dahl. It was initially rejected, along with four other stories, by The New Yorker, but was ultimately published in Harper's Magazine in September 1953. It was adapted for an episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents and starred Barbara Bel Geddes. Originally broadcast on April 13, 1958, it was one of only 17 AHP episodes directed by Hitchcock himself. The story was subsequently adapted for Dahl's British TV series Tales of the Unexpected. Dahl also included it in his short story compilation Someone Like You.

Lamb to the Slaughter demonstrates Dahl's fascination with horror (including elements of black comedy), a theme that would influence both his in adult fiction as well as his children stories.