Now a musical! 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 menacing, kid-hating 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 … Miss Trunchbull what she deserves and Matilda may be just the one to do it!
Here is Roald Dahl’s original novel of a little girl with extraordinary powers. This much-loved story has recently been made into a wonderful new musical, adapted by Dennis Kelly with music and lyrics by Tim Minchin.
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Ok I missed it but Roald Dahl’s birthday was this week and if anyone has not read Matilda, you need to, because it is a book that speaks deeply to my SOUL.
Full of whimsy, this is the most charming story about a little girl who loves books and develops magical powers and defeats an evil teacher. Basically, I aspire to be as amazing as Matilda.
As a child who loved to read, I was enthralled by the story of a young, precocious girl coming up against terrific and terrible obstacles. Full of hope for the future and love for goodness, this book will take you back to the realm of childhood.
From her terrible parents to the awful headmistress of Crunchem Hall, the odds are stacked against Matilda. But with a genius intellect and a smattering of revenge, she wormed her way into my heart. What child doesn’t dream of getting back at the unfair grownups?
In this tale of books and people, both good and bad, everybody can recapture the sense of childhood no matter how far away it might be. Recommended for children and parents alike, take a trip to discover Matilda Wormwood and her incredible powers, both mental and otherwise.
Book Review
Roald Dahl gets 4+ out of 5 stars for his knock-it-out-of-the-park story, Matilda, from 1988. For some reason, I thought this was published before 1988, but I know I read it when I was 13, so… must have been right then. I thought it was great. Looking back years later, and seeing all the films and cartoons made from it, I love it even more. While she’s a good role model in many ways for young kids, she’s all a little too spunky and might give some the wrong impressions. Nevertheless, with the right guidance, she can be someone to look up to.
Not everyone gets the best parents, family, teachers and friends. And when you don’t, you better be a smart girl to be able to make it on your own. And that’s what she is… brilliant, funny, witty, sarcastic, friendly… everything all wrapped up into 1 adorable young girl. She has a few adventures, tries to make things happen and shows the world who she. And that’s all we can ask for! Great book. Great story. Lots to see and learn. Definite re-read some day!
Though the characters are extreme and absurd, this is a tale about love and friendship.
This book was so good! I’m a huge fan of the movie but the book was so good too! I love Matilda and Ms Honey! I love Roald Dahl books!
I’ve always had a soft-spot in my heart for Matilda Wormwood, the main character in Roald Dahl’s Matilda. She’s a gifted child, and as an educator I have always enjoyed working with gifted children. In the current state of education, standardized test scores are everything, and gifted children are more often than naught not given the opportunities to grow and develop like their classmates simply because they can be counted on, for the most part, to score well on The Test. I was one of those students growing up. Luckily, like Matilda, I always had a good book to read, because when I finished my assignments before my classmates that was what I was always instructed to do, no matter what grade I was in.
I love Matilda’s fire too. She knows how to push and challenge herself and recognizes that’s the only way she’s going to realize her amazing potential. She’s also lucky to have a teacher, Miss Honey, who not only recognizes her gifts but wants to develop them as well.
Like many gifted children, Matilda also has a strong sense of justice, which leads her to take action against her parents and the dreaded Miss Trunchbull – but I’ll get into that later in more detail.
Like many of Roald Dahl’s books, I believe Matilda is a fairy tale at heart, which could explain why his books are still so endearing today and enjoyed worldwide. Like many fairy tale children, she has awful parents. They’re neglectful, selfish and mean, and do not appreciate their daughter’s abilities. On top of that, they are downright criminals.
After empowering herself through countless books at the local library, Matilda’s fondest wish is to go to school. Sadly, no fairy godmother or enchanted animals come to her rescue, and frankly Matilda doesn’t need it – and that is part of what makes her so great. She’s a prankster. She might even embody the Trickster archetype, specifically in how she challenges authority and is determined to upset the status quo she finds unfair. She uses her brains and her cunning to get what she wants, similar to how Hansel and Gretel defeat the witch.
Thankfully, the story doesn’t end there. It’s just starting to build up steam. Her school, Crunchem Hall can be seen as a kingdom being terrorized by an ogre named Miss Trunchbull. Miss Trunchbull has also taken over “the castle” aka Miss Honey’s family home after killing her father. Matilda is the only one who can set things right.
She is the hero, never a victim – or at least not for long. In fact, if anything, Miss Honey is the damsel-in-distress, the princess Matilda must rescue, and she does so with her brains, her cunning, and the latent telekinetic powers she develops. The most important fairy tale aspect that appears in Matilda is that “They all live happily ever after.”
Matilda embodies a wish fulfillment all children possess deep down. She has the ability to stand up to mean, unjust, even tyrannical adults, despite her lack of size or physical presence. Her brain is her weapon, but as an educator I have to point out that Matilda, despite her natural gifts, would be nowhere near as smart or as cunning as she ended up being if she hadn’t read as many books as she had.
Roald Dahl really has a special story here. Growing up in a similar environment, with overbearing and abusive parents in an unhealthy environment, this book really hit home with me. It is, I believe, every child’s fantasy to be able to overcome their hardships with their own unique abilities, and Matilda did just that. Beyond the Trunchbull, the other Wormwoods, and with the help of Miss Honey, this is a truly heartwarming story for all ages.
It is so fun and I love mrs honey and more Matilda is so smart and everything
A sweet and fun tale about a young lass that against all odds is kind, brilliant, and humble. Have definitely enjoyed reading a lot of Dahl in the last year or so and this has to be one of the most fun books and one of the most rounded out stories I’ve read of his.
With books for younger readers, it’s curious how often I’m not fond of the protagonist or irked by some of their less appealing features yet Dahl has a knack for crafting memorable young heroines and heroes you can’t help but like and to be among the best or most likable in his books is something very special. What I think is most important is that there is more than one character that is kind even if they don’t receive kindness or love or much attention at all. Miss Honey and Matilda are both very lovely in how they are regardless of the hands they’ve been dealt in regards to the people they call family.
I could say more about it, but that might give spoilers and not in the mood to spoil such a good story. Suffice to say that among all the books I’ve read by Dahl, it’s easily in the top 3… but that’s a topic for discussion for another day, and perhaps another video.
I love this book! It is amazing and so amusing! Just after finishing the first chapter, I wanted to keep on going!
I would recommend this book to to any child who loves funny stories. They would really enjoy this book!
– Ananya N.
Oh one of my favourite books from my early years and to be honest, it still holds up for me as an adult. This book teaches children that it’s ok to be different, even in your own family. Matilda stays true to her own values and thankfully finds a friend and a confidant in Miss Honey who helps her find her true potential. I used to read this book over and over, along with many other Roald Dahl books and it has certainly shaped me and encouraged me to write.
It was a great book
its funny imean she put glue on her dad hat for revench and shes a smart kid im a smart kid to but i am 8 also she is a great cooker and thats my sister i can take a pic with her and send it to yoiu …/./;…./ i can if you want me ttoooooo hello i mean im not lyeing lieing is bad she s my sister
It’s one of my favorite books.
it was a cool little book it was funny and unpredictable and a page-turner and entertaining
its a very good book ill tell u in brief that theres a girl who is very intelligent from a very young age but her mom and her dad thinks shes a nasty lil brat!
IT WAS THE BEST
Wonderful book for kids 4+ I was 6 years old when I read this book!
we tend to ridicule the peculiar one. They’re standout from the way they lived, differ from the common, and that what it makes this book interesting.
I love this book more than any other