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Review of The BFG
The BFG by Roald Dahl; illus. by Quentin Blake Intermediate Farrar 221 pp. 1982 0-374-30469-6 $10.95 The BFG is a big friendly giant who kidnaps the orphan Sophie right out of her bed...
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Review of Matilda
Matilda by Roald Dahl; illus. by Quentin Blake Intermediate Viking Kestrel 240 pp. 10/88 0-670-82439-9 $14.95 Caricature and satire are not in themselves undesirable forms of writing...
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An unexpected encounter with The Gremlins
On a recent trip to New Orleans I spent a day visiting the National World War II Museum. The museum itself was a treat for this history buff to explore, but as a children’s literature aficionado, I...
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Charlie at fifty
Veruca Salt is old enough now that she could be spoiling her own grandchildren somewhere. But she’s probably still keeping all the chocolate to herself. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory turns fifty...
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A deluge of Dahl
Matilda the Musical, based on Roald Dahl’s 1988 novel, is at the Boston Opera House through June 26th. The BFG, a movie based on Dahl’s 1982 novel, opens in theaters July 1st (and I was lucky enough to...
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In a word…the logophile’s journey
Every group text, email chain, and Facebook thread has one… that one member who can’t help but change someone’s “who” to “whom,” who balks at the improper use of “their” and “there,” and who inserts...
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Oxford Roald Dahl Dictionary
Exunckly. Frobscottle. Geraneous Giraffe. Wonka bar. The Oxford Roald Dahl Dictionary (compiled by lexicographer Susan Rennie; Oxford University Press, September 2016) is “an extra-usual dictionary”...
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Happy 100th birthday, Roald Dahl!
Roald Dahl wrote a lot, from short stories for adults to fantastical novels for kids. But what I love best about his work is the poetry, which he often tucked into his novels in the form of characters...
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Roald Dahl’s Twit or Miss app review
When you open Roald Dahl’s Twit or Miss (Penguin, 2015; iOS and Android), a British-accented voice welcomes you to “the ghastly world of The Twits.” Then you’re ushered through an overgrown yard and...
View ArticleUrsula K. Le Guin’s April 1973 Letter to the Editor
Eleanor Cameron’s remarks on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in the Horn Book may draw some fire upon her; it’s always perilous to do anything to a bestseller but adulate it. My response to her...
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