Let your imagination run riot! (Roald Dahl in general)

Member Name: aebone

Product:	Roald Dahl in general
Date:	17/05/01 (41 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: The best childrens books, Such a marvellous writer, Gets the imagination going!

Disadvantages: Unfortunately Roald is no longer with us.

Roald Dahl, what a genius.... and his books are one of the things I remember most about childhood!

I have read a great many books, as a child and as a grown-up. However, none stick in my mind as clear as the BFG....Big Friendly Giant to all those who haven't experienced it! Let me explain the story a little, although I can't do it justice here, as Roald writes in such an incredible way throughout this book that I can't begin to convey the story as well as him!

*THE BFG*
Its a magical tale of a, well....Big Friendly Giant...who has huge ears, runs very fast and catches dreams with a net. Once he has the dreams, he mixes them and then goes out in the dead of night and blows them into the ears of children with a big trumpet. One night he goes to deliver some dreams to children, when a little girl called Sophie spots him. He has to kidnap her to stop her telling what she has seen, and she lives in his cave with him, avoiding the horrible child eating giants who the BFG hates, and feasting on foul tasting snozzcumbers. They are soon involved in a battle to try and stop the big child eating giants feasting on all the children in the world! It may sound scary, but it isn't really, and Sophie and the BFG get on so very well. Dahl's descriptions of dreams and how to catch them and mix them are truly fantastic. AND in the end, with the help of the Queen and the RAF, the BFG and Sophie overcome the foul bullies that are the child eating giants!

You can't help but love the BFG, he is a kind and funny giant. It felt to me as an 8 year old that I was Sophie, and was actually there! Quentin Blake provided some great illustrations for this book (and indeed some of Roalds other books), it is sure to keep kids and even grown-ups amused throughout!

*OTHER BOOKS*
I have also read many more of his books, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, George's Marvellous Medicine, The Witches and the Twits to name but a few. T
hese were great too, brilliant books that got my imagination churning! They couldn't be as great as the BFG though.....

This man has the ability to write in a way that makes you imagine exactly what he was imagining when he wrote it. Its quite brilliant!

*HOW TO FIND OUT MORE*
There is an official website for Roald Dahl now, and it really is worth a look. You can see all of his works here (www.roalddahl.com/index2.htm) and find out all about the man himself, as there is a really detailed biography. The site is very easy to navigate, and there is a great opening sequence! Quentin Blake's illustrations are dotted everywhere to amuse some more.

Unfortunately, Roald passed away in November 1990, but his books live on and I'm sure they will inspire children for many years to come.

Harry Potter may be the big hit today, but all parents should read at least one Roald Dahl book to their children!

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