Matilda

October 1, 1988
Matilda is an extraordinarily gifted four-year-old whose parentsa crass, dishonest used-car dealer and a self-centered, blowsy bingo addictregard her as ``nothing more than a scab.'' Life with her beastly parents is bearable only because Matilda teaches herself to read, finds the public library, and discovers literature. Also, Matilda loves using her lively intelligence to perpetrate daring acts of revenge on her father. This pastime she further develops when she enrolls in Crunchem Hall Primary School, whose headmistress, Miss Trunchbull, is ``a fierce tyrannical monster . . . .'' Adults may cringe at Dahl's excesses in describing the cruel Miss Trunchbull, as well as his reliance on overextended characterization at the expense of plot development. Children, however, with their keenly developed sense of justice, will relish the absolutes of stupidity, greed, evil and might versus intelligence, courage and goodness. They also will sail happily through the contrived, implausible ending. Dahl's phenomenal popularity among children speaks for his breathless storytelling charms; his fans won't be disappointed by Matilda. Blake's droll pen-and-ink sketches extend the exaggerated humor. Ages 9-11.

valench - Written by: Roald Dahl Illustrated by: Quentin Blake Reviewed by: Valentina Ch (age: 9) Matilda is a five year old girl that has two bad, evil, nasty, ugly parents. She learns to read and write on her own. She also starts going to school with the other five year old children but she is very ahead. During all the days at school, she discovers that she has a special power. What is it? Will her parents stop treating her the way they do? Will some things change for her? Read this book to discover the answers to all these questions. My favourite scene was when Miss Trunchbull, the headmistress, makes Bruce eat a whole chocolate cake because she thinks he will never finish it. You will have to read it to see if he can finish it or not. I like this book because some parts are very funny, like this one: “The Trunchbull let out a yell and leapt off her chair as though a firecracker had gone underneath her. And now the the children also saw the long thin slimy yellow-bellied lizard-like creature twisting and turning in the glass, and they squirmed and jumped about as well, shouting...” I also recommend Roald Dahl's books because he entertains the reader by exaggerating everything. Surprise is essential in his books. All the characters are amazing and the way Quentin Blake illustrates them matches perfectly. I loved Roald Dahl´s idea of giving Matilda powers because it makes the story very interesting. Since it has some difficult words so I recommend this book to 9, 10 and 11 year old children. READ IT!!!