The Twits

…by Roald Dahl.

Mr and Mrs Twit are two disgusting individuals. Mr Twit has a long shaggy beard and Mrs Twit has an ugly face due to a lifetime of being nasty and having nasty thoughts. They smell. They don’t wash. They fight. They play tricks on one another. They hate children. They trap birds to eat. And they have a family of four monkeys caged in their backyard to do their bidding. Eventually, the monkeys (Mugglewump and family) with the help of the Roly-Poly Bird and other birds get their revenge on the Twits in a very amusing way…giving them a taste of their own nasty medicine!

This is possibly the funniest Dahl book I’ve read so far and you can bet kids are going to love it. His description of the Twits, particularly Mr Twit is so disgustingly hilarious, you can practically hear kids squealing with delight and disgust. And his insight into some human characteristics is quite amazing. I loved his description of Mrs Twit as being ugly but not because she was born ugly. Rather, as Dahl puts it “If a person has ugly thoughts, it begins to show on the face” [p. 7]. And following that is a beautiful description of how a light shines out of a person with good thoughts despite physically not being attractive. I think it’s a wonderful thing to teach kids — that beauty is from within! And a special mention must be made to the illustrator Quentin Blake as well. His pictures are pretty funny and add to sensational writing. Finally, Dahl’s creativity shines through once again with terms such as ‘Muggle-wump’, ‘Hugtight glue’, Roly-Poly bird and a few others. It’s a brilliant book for a laugh…even as an adult!

I rate it a 5.

Until next time,

Cheers!!!

Fantastic Mr. Fox

…by Roald Dahl.

Mr Fox lives with his wife Mrs Fox and four children. He manages to feed his family by raiding the farms of Boggis, Bunce and Bean. Three mean farmers who keep chicken, duck and geese and turkey and cider respectively. Boggis, Bunce and Bean finally decide to end Mr Fox’s thieving ways and try several things. But in the end, Mr Fox along with his family and friends manages to outwit the three men.

There is no doubt that young children will enjoy this book. It has everything — action, adventure, humour and a moral as well. This book was adapted into a movie in 2009 as well. I haven’t seen the movie but while reading the book, I found myself holding my breath for Mr Fox and his family! It’s once again, a brilliantly crafted tale that should be read with and to kids. I rate it a 4.

Until next time,

Cheers!!!