Down in the valley there were three farms. The owners of these farms had done well. They were rich men. They were also nasty men. Ah, how I love Roald Dahl. I recently reread Boy and The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More, so I figured it was time to reread some more of his children's books, all of which I love. Fantastic Mr. Fox is a short, but really clever and entertaining book. It is the story of "Fantastic" Mr. Fox, and his ongoing battle against Boggis, Bunce, and Bean, three farmers who despise him because he always steals poultry from them. In Fantastic Mr. Fox, they are determined to dig him out and then wait him out. Mr. Fox also has a wife and four small children to protect.
In many of Roald Dahl's books, it's about the children outwitting the grown-ups. In Fantastic Mr. Fox, we have instead a clever animal outwitting a bunch of stupid and mean adults. Fantastic Mr. Fox isn't my favorite Roald Dahl book (that honor would probably go to Matilda), but it's certainly a book that I love and enjoy.
I probably reread this book in about ten or twenty minutes. It's short, and the font is really big. Plus, a lot of space is covered by some pretty good illustrations (by Quentin Blake). So this whimsical book is perfect for reading aloud or for just reading in a few minutes for some fun. It's not laugh-out-loud funny, but it's pretty entertaining.
There was a movie made of it in 2009, and I saw some of it on a flight when it came out, but I don't think it did this amazing book justice. Fantastic Mr. Fox is just too short for a movie, so they had to add a whole bunch new things into the movie, and none of it has the sheer genius of Roald Dahl. To be fair, I haven't seen the movie in a while.
I would highly recommend this Roald Dahl book.
Read Fantastic Mr. Fox:
- if you like Roald Dahl
- if you like books with foxes
- if you like books about children and/or animals outwitting adults
| Outstanding Book That Will Stay On My Bookshelf For Rereading (jf I own it)! |
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