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I think that this is a fantastic book for kids because I love the part when the police yells to the centipede "It's a DRAGON,WAMPUS,GORGON,SEA-SERPENT,PROCK,MANTICORE,SNOZZWANGER,WHANGDOODLE,."From an 8 year old :-)
Then one day a strange man appears and gives James magical green things, telling him to brew them into a tea and drink them and marvelous things will happen. The strange man was right, though, and the peach tree somehow surviving in such a horrible place, grows a gigantic peach that serves as boat, meal and almost a secondary character in James' voyage to freedom.James and the Giant Peach is quite "out there".
But the underlying theme is one of taking your life into your own hands and choosing your own actions rather than letting the actions of others force you into things.Dahl's books might be of particular value to families and children struggling to cope with real life abuse and pain, as every story I've read so far has pit a mostly helpless child against forces entirely out of their control, and yet through thoughtfulness and great-heartedness wonderful things come to those who choose to live beyond the harshness of the world. In fact between giant bugs, sheer strangeness and outlandish extremism (and cloud people) James and the Giant Peach could fit into the bizarro genre, if it was commonly aimed at children readers.There is some issue with language ("ass" is used several times) and the level of abuse James suffers that makes this book not for all families.
I bought this book.Dahl's name on a book, to me, is synonymous with a wild ride. Consider it an opportunity to have a talk or two about the serious subjects with your kids.James accidentally trips and loses the green magical things, which burrow into the ground and instead work their magic on the few occupants of the horrible aunts' pitiful garden.
Like many children found solace in the Harry Potter series after the death of a parent, some might also find solace and aid in coping from Dahl's dark, but triumphant tales of recovery. James and the Giant Peach is quite possibly his craziest book (that I've read) so far.Dahl's penchant for abused children facing down a cruel world sets the scene, with James Henry Trotter (whose parents were gobbled up by a rhinoceros) living a lonely, miserable life in the cruel care of his aunts Spiker and Sponge (who are, of course, truly horrible people, even for Dahl's worlds).
Parents will be close to screaming at this point, both because of the blatant abuse of the lead character and the danger of eating things strangers (and this man is indeed VERY strange) offer.
I would buy from her again. The book is the version I expected, in good condition and it arrived fairly quickly. She also wrapped it for Christmas.
There are some lovely imaginative solutions to basic "how things work" questions to delight any reader. I had a love-hate relationship with Dahl and with fantasy and quirky books in general as a child. It's a difficult read, even as a read-aloud, and I will probably wait to revisit it with Lexi until she is a year or so older than Kate is now. The centipede still annoys me, but I appreciated the general "bugs are cool" vibe that this book exudes.I was a little surprised at how much Kate (5 years, 4 months) comprehended. Choosing to listen to this (read very ably by Jeremy Irons) with Kate and Lexi at their formative ages was purposeful: I wanted to expose them to literature that is dark, silly, and fantastical all at the same time. With it's poetry and nonsense, levity and solemnity, James and the Giant Peach is memorable at the least, and I think that was my primary intent.Listening as an adult, I enjoyed hearing the foreshadowing of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (when the peach rolls through the factory and everyone greedily eats their fill and it streams through the streets).
Now that's what I call FANTASY.If you have a vast imagination, I would HIGHLY recommend this book to you. I LOVED this book, and I REALLY think you should read it. This book, James and the Giant Peach is fantastic book because James sails away in a GIANT peach with GIANT insects.
The funny thing is that they are all so different, they drive each other CRAZY. Fantasy is the key to great books. (Which doesn't help them move along).
If you like fantasy, you should listen to this. For instance, Centipede is SO grumpy, and Earth Worm, is ALWAYS thinking on the bad side.
He goes on many adventures with them. I've read it, and the character traits are so interesting in so many different ways.
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