The word caddie comes from the French word le cadet, meaning the boy. In Europe in the 18th century, caddies carried water to houses. The first mention of caddies carrying golf clubs* is in 1857. Now, caddies are not boys, and both men and women can be caddies. The caddie supports the golf player in many ways. The caddie is in charge of carrying the golf player's bag and cleaning the golf balls. The caddie also has to find where the golf ball is for the player after the player hits it. The caddie must know the golf course* well so he or she can give advice to the player. Caddies make a difference between winning and losing in a game.

Roald Dahl was born in 1916 in Wales. Dahl's parents were Norwegian, and Dahl was named after the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen. His first language was Norwegian, which he spoke at home with his parents and his sisters (Astri, Alfhild, Else, and Asta). In1920, when Dahl was three years old, his seven-year-old sister, Astri, died and weeks later, his father died too at the age of 57. However, Dahl's mother did not go back to Norway and stayed in Wales. It was because her husband Harald had wanted their children to be educated in British schools, which he considered the world's best. Dahl went to St. Peter's, a boarding school, but his time at St. Peter's was unpleasant. He was very homesick and unhappy. Dahl later wrote about his time at St. Peter's in his autobiography Boy: Tales of Childhood.