Thanks To British Playwright And Novelist, Dodie Smith, Cruella Deville Is A Household Name. She First Wrote This Villain Above All Villains In The 101 Dalmatians, A Childrens Novel, No Less! This Names Root Word Of "cruel" Comes As No Surpirse, But What Might Be A Surprise Is How Hardy The Children Of 1956 Must Have Been To Take This Story On In Their Stride.