{Review} Roald Dahl doubleheader! Revolting Rhymes & George's Marvelous Medicine

Revolting Rhymes by Roald Dahl
Published by Bantam Skylark (first published 1982)
Softcover, 54 pages
ISBN 0553153617
Genres: children's fiction, classics, fairy tales, fantasy, humor, magic, poetry, YA

3/5 stars: The little guy and I read this together in just a couple of sittings, the poetry being a nice change of pace from the prose we've been reading. Gabriel loved all of the big, full-color pictures, once again by the irresistible Quentin Blake. I had to do a little editing of... unpleasant words. Not as much as in The Twits, though there were a couple instances of the word "hag" and once of "slut". I certainly wasn't expecting the latter and am mildly irritated to have encountered it in a children's book, even one by Roald Dahl. All in all, though, nothing to get too worked up about. The stories themselves are amusing versions of the classic fairy tales Cinderella, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, The Three Little Pigs, Jack and the Beanstalk, Snow White, and Little Red Riding Hood. They have highly original twists (just wait til you meet Little Red) and were a fun and extra-bloodthirsty departure from the traditional stories. While the poems are entertaining and Gabriel and I enjoyed them, we both still prefer Dahl's entirely original books. There is a flair about the latter that any traditional tale is not going to be able to touch no matter how flamboyant the version. Revolting Rhymes is only fifty-some pages, so if you're a hardcore fan of Dahl or any of these tales, take an hour and read it! If you're not, skip it and go read The Witches instead.

George's Marvelous Medicine by Roald Dahl

Published by Puffin

Softcover, 96 pages

ISBN 0140346414

Genres: children's fiction, classics, fantasy, humor, magic, YA

4/5 stars: George Kranky is a young boy who lives on a nice but boring farm with his nice but boring parents. It seems nothing exciting ever happens and to make matters worse, his grandmother, who lives with them, is insufferable. Whenever George's parents are gone it's up to him to take care of her, and on this particular lonely Saturday morning, he has had enough. After being bossed around, instructed on how to grow down instead of up (as those who grow up become increasingly stupid) and on the merits of eating lots of slimy insects ("Caterpillars give you brains"), George begins to formulate a plan to get back at his grandmother. He will mix up the weirdest, most magical medicine he can muster and give it to her in place of her real medicine. The results are quite unexpected, though definitely magical, and have the added bonus of the Krankys quite possibly being rid of the old grouch forever (at least George hopes so after his parents swiftly help him resolve any ethical issues he has). This was so much fun to read and with all of the medicine mixing and stirring, there were lots of opportunities for miming the actions and keeping a small kid highly entertained. Gabriel is still talking about this story and really likes George, who is indeed a very sweet and imaginative character. As always, this book is complemented with the talents of Quentin Blake, though there are even more illustrations than usual. This made Gabriel extra happy because George is featured on almost every page. George's Marvelous Medicine is perfect for reading out loud because while the narration is already wonderful throughout, there are extra bits of humor tossed in specifically for the adult reader that make it hilarious. I'm sure Gabriel would agree that if you enjoy Roald Dahl, this is not a book to miss.

Mary Beth

{Review} The Witches by Roald Dahl

The Witches by Roald Dahl
Published by Scholastic, Inc. (first published 1983)
Softcover, 208 pages
ISBN 0590032496
Genres: children's fiction, classics, fantasy, humor, magic, YA

5/5 stars: As I've mentioned before, the wee one and I have started reading chapter books together before sleepytimes. I always give him the choice between 2 or 3 books and this is the very first one he chose. He has a long-standing fascination with witches, magic and all things deliciously "spooky". This was perfect. A little creepy, a little subversive, always wickedly good fun.

"A REAL WITCH gets the same pleasure from squelching a child as you get from eating a plateful of strawberries and thick cream.
"She reckons on doing away with one child a week. Anything less than that and she becomes grumpy.
"One child a week is fifty-two a year.
"Squish them and squiggle them and make them disappear.
"That is the motto of all witches."

After which comes a description of a typical child-entrapment with a helpful illustration by Quentin Blake. The characters are so much fun, my favorites, of course, being the little boy who narrates and his Grandmamma. They are spunky and charming and very memorable. While I don't want to give anything away, The Witches has perhaps the absolute sweetest ending I have ever encountered, and it made me just a little teary. I'm pretty sure Gabriel's favorite characters would be the witches themselves, and believe me, they were something. As it turns out, a witch has claws instead of fingernails, forcing her to always wear gloves. She is bald, meaning she must always wear a scritchy-scratchy wig (and oh! the things it does to her scalp!). She has extra-large nostrils with which to smell out children. The center of her eyes will change color and dance with fire and ice. She has no toes and has to force her squared feet into feminine pointy shoes. Her spit is "blue as a bilberry", Grandmamma explains. And The Grand High Witch? She can do powerful dark magic, frizzle witches whom she is annoyed with, transform her face with a flesh-like mask, and come up with a "giganticus plan for getting rrrid of every single child in the whole of Inkland!" Gabriel was in heaven the whole time we read this book, cuddling up even closer when the story got particularly spooky. We have been reading some fantastic children's literature, but none of it has quite measured up to The Witches. Both I and the wee one very highly recommend it!

Mary Beth

{Update} A New Baby! & {Review} Roald Dahl's The Twits

{about me} has been updated!

Welcome back! So much has happened this year and it is unbelievable August is here yet again. First of all, after our losses and much grief I am currently 29 weeks pregnant! Baby Iris is due in October and we couldn't be happier. Gabriel, who has recently turned four (I'm still feeling flabbergasted by this), is thrilled at the prospect of a baby sister and can't wait for her arrival.

My wee devil and I have always read picture books together, though recently we have begun to enjoy chapter books before sleepy-times as well. The other day we finished Roald Dahl's The Twits and here is what we thought...

The Twits by Roald Dahl

Published by Puffin Books, 1980

Softcover, 76 pages

ISBN 0141318309

Genres: animals, children's fiction, classics, fantasy, humor, YA

4/5 stars: Wickedly funny. The kiddo, who just turned 4, and I read this together and, as always, Dahl's quirky and utterly original narration combined with Quentin Blake's whimsical illustrations were a hit. Between Mrs. Twit's balloon-fueled flight into the sky, the talking monkey Muggle-Wump and his family, and their delicious revenge on the Twits, culminating in lots of upside-downness and THE DREADED SHRINKS, we're going to be hearing about this book for a long, long time. I did do a little light editing throughout the book as Mr. Dahl has a certain affection for the word "hag", which I don't want my child adding to his vocabulary at any point, and a few other phrases that a 4 year old might find a little too tempting to use in a not-so-joking manner. This wasn't a big issue, though, and certainly didn't affect how awesomely fun The Twits was to read aloud. Highly recommended by both myself and my wee devil!

Roald Dahl has become a fast favorite of my son's and I expect to enjoy many more rather wicked stories with him (and Iris!) in future. I am looking forward to this so very much. I thank you heartily for dropping in and hope the rest of your weekend is fabulous!

Mary Beth