Matilda by Roald Dahl

 Matilda by Roald Dahl-240 pages

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Synopsis: Matilda is a sweet, exceptional young girl, but her parents think she's just a nuisance. She expects school to be different but there she has to face Miss Trunchbull, a kid-hating terror of a headmistress. When Matilda is attacked by the Trunchbull she suddenly discovers she has a remarkable power with which to fight back. It'll take a superhuman genius to give Miss Trunchbull what she deserves and Matilda may be just the one to do it!

Thoughts: This is our next Book to Movie Club selection. I've seen the movie a few times previously, but had yet to read the book. The book is an inspiring story about a precocious young girl with uncaring, mean parents who pay her little mind. Matilda must fend for herself a lot. She teaches herself how to read and goes to the local public library often. Pretty soon she's read all the children's books and starts reading adult classics. It's a book about family and the love we deserve. I rather enjoyed reading this and the movie is not so different from the book. 

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More by Roald Dahl

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More by Roald Dahl - 240 pages

This book contains seven stories by children's author Roald Dahl.  Six of the stories are fiction while the other two are rare nonfiction pieces by the author.  There are a variety of stories including fantasy (The Boy Who Talked to Animals), war fiction (Piece of Cake), magic realism (The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar), and a true story of treasure (The Mildenhall Treasure).  

I listened to this on audio and highly recommend that format.  The narrator does a great job of reading the stories.  While I didn't care for all the stories and one of them I found very disturbing (The Swan), I would still recommend this to fans of Roald Dahl.

 

The Witches by Roald Dahl

 

The Witches by Roald Dahl - 244 pages

Grandmama has told him everything there is to know about witches.  They hide in plain sight although they must wear disguises to cover their bald heads, clawed fingers, and squared-off feet with no toes.  They are also deadly dangerous to children.  It is their sole purpose to get rid of children.

While on vacation, he accidentally runs into the witches of England having their annual meeting.  At the meeting, the Grand High Witch shares her evil plan to turn all the children of England into mice.  Will he be able to stop them?


I listened to this on audio and enjoyed the story.  Like most Roald Dahl books it doesn't have a traditional happy ending but you are satisfied with how the story ends.  I would definitely recommend the book to most children.

Revolting Rhymes and Dirty Beasts by Roald Dahl

Revolting Rhymes and Dirty Beasts by Roald Dahl - 81 pages

I listened to the audio version of these two books.  They are fairy tales retold in rhyme.  Each fairy tale has been rewritten to focus on a new character or to point out how awful the actions of the various characters are.  I enjoyed this audio and would recommend it for most kids.

Going Solo by Roald Dahl

Going Solo by Roald Dahl - 209 pages

This memoir by children's audio Roald Dahl continues on after his first memoir - Boy: Tales of Childhood.  It tells the story of his time in India working for the Shell Company and his time in the RAF during WWII. 

I really liked this book.  I actually enjoyed it even more than Boy.  The audio was wonderful with perfect narration by Dan Stevens.  I would highly recommend this to anyone who has read Roald Dahl's books, enjoys historical books, or WWII stories.

Boy: Tales of Childhood by Roald Dahl

Boy: Tales of Childhood by Roald Dahl - 176 pages

In this memoir, author Roald Dahl recalls his childhood growing up. It includes stories of his time at school, his vacations in Norway, and his first job with the Shell Company.

I really enjoyed the audio edition of this book.  The narration by actor Dan Stevens, Legion and Downton Abbey, is wonderful.  The stories were interesting and humorous.  Dahl did a great job of illustrating how things were different in the 1920-30s from today.  I look forward to listening to the sequel Going Solo about his time with the Shell Company and during World War II.

James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl

James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl - 118 pages

James is rescued from his horrible life with his aunts when he crawls into a giant peach and goes on a trip to America with several giant bugs.

While the narration of this audio was really good, I did not actually enjoy the story.  It was not as good as the other Roald Dahl books that I've been listening to.  Something about the story annoyed me - although I never could never figure out exactly what.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl - 161 pages

I really enjoyed this audio version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.  I'm kind of surprised I had not the read the book before.  It was a lot of fun.  The narration by Eric Idle was great.  Two things kind of bothered me about the audio though.  One was that it seemed a very abrupt ending.  It felt like the story should go on.  Which I guess it does in Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator.  The second thing was that I kept hearing Gene Wilder's version in my head while listening to the book -- how he didn't really try to stop the kids from misbehaving in the movie.  Still -- a lot of fun!

Matilda by Roald Dahl

Matilda by Roald Dahl - 240 pages

Matilda is an extraordinary little girl who by the time she starts school can already read classic literature like Charles Dickens and do complicated math problems.  Unfortunately, her parents ignore her and her school headmaster considers her to be trouble.  Her only ally is her teacher Miss Honey. 

This was a great audio version of the classic kids book read by actress Kate Winslet.  Her reading was wonderful.  She had distinctive voices and dialects for all of the different characters.  In fact, it might be one of the best audio versions of a book I have listened to.