Top 5 Thursday: Children's Book Authors

As a teacher I love reading children’s books. Especially to children. I can really get lost in them, like a child can. Here are my five favourite children’s book authors.

5. E.B. White
He wrote “Stuart Little” and “Charlotte’s Web”, two stories I just happen to love. And so do kids. He made everyone feel for a spider, when in the daily life most people want to step on them.

4. Beatrix Potter
Lovely stories, beautiful illustrations. These stories are timeless.

3. Eric Carle
When I was a toddler, I loved “The Very Hungry Caterpillar”. Appearantly when me and my mother went to the library, she always had to read it to me. I knew it by heart. I actually still do.

2. J.K. Rowling
She really hit the mark with the Harry Potter books. What a great success! I loved reading those books and was sad that the series ended. But even rereading them is enjoyable. This is the only author on the list that I didn't experience as a child.

1. Roald Dahl
I think we all agree on this one. He wrote my favorite children’s book “Matilda” and many other beloved books. All his books are amazing!

They Almost Made the Top 5: C.S. Lewis, Max Velthuijs, Dr. Seuss

50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 22: George's Marvelous Medicine by Roald Dahl

Title: Geoge's Marvelous Medicine
Author: Roald Dahl
Story: George's Grandma is a grizzly, grumpy, selfish old woman with pale brown teeth and a small puckered up mouth like a dog's bottom. Four times a day she takes a large spoonful of medicine, but it doesn't seem to do her any good. She's always just as poisonous after she's taken it as she was before. When George is left to look after her one morning, it's just the chance he needs...
Start: june 12th 2013
End: june 15th 2013
Comment: Roald Dahl is a writer that can impossibly disappoint me. All of his books are a joy to read, for kids AND adults. I think this was even the first book by him I ever read. We meet the very likeable and thrilling George, who has to deal with his nagging old grandmother. Comparing her to the grandmother from "Th Witches", this one is a grandma from hell. Nothing George does is ever good enough. But that's a trademark for Dahl, in every book there is at least one adult that kids would dispise. The story was funny and magical in its own way. It's timeless. I highly enjoyed "George's Marvelous Medicine", like any other Roald Dahl story.
Rating: 4,5/ 5

Top 5 Thursday: Books I Read in 2012

This year I had themes for every month and I liked it. It made reading even more pleasant for me. Some months were better then others, but overall I had a very good reading year. Here are the five best books I read this year.

5. “Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Brontë
It’s an absolute classic and I can’t believe that I never read it before. Although it’s not a very spectacular book, it keeps your attention at all times. (September – Classics Month)

4. “Duma Key” by Stephen King
I read a lot of Stephen King books this year, but this was definitely my favorite. It totally captivates you, like my brother had already warned me before. King is a magician with words, just sublime. (October – Stephen King Month)

3. “The Hobbit” by J.R.R. Tolkien
Fantasy has become one of my favorite genres over the year and I loved every second of reading “The Hobbit”. What a fantastic journey. (June – Adventure Month)

2. “Matilda” by Roald Dahl
Roald Dahl is the best children´s book writer off all time and “Matilda” is his best work. I´ve loved this books ever since I was a child. And now as a teacher I love to share this wonderous story with my children. It’s such a magical story. (August – Roald Dahl Month)

1. “The Help” by Kathryn Stockett
When I finished this book in the beginning of the year, I already knew that this was going to be high on my favorites list. It is the best books I read this year, for so many reasons. It really grabbed me, the story is touching and sometimes funny and it has such great characters. If you haven’t read this book yet, what are you waiting for?(February – Bestsellers Month)

They almost made the top 5: “Divergent” by Veronica Roth, “Into the Wild” by John Krakauer, “The Understudy” by David Nicholls, “Dances with Wolves” by Michael Blake, “A Game of Thrones” by George R. R. Martin, “The Lucky One” by Nicholas Sparks, “The Fantastic Mr. Fox” by Roald Dahl, “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins, “Carrie” by Stephen King

50 Books Challenge 2012 - # 38: The Witches by Roald Dahl

Title: The Witches
Author: Roald Dahl
Story: A seven-year-old boy has a run-in with some real-life witches! In fairy tales witches always wear silly black hats and black cloaks and they ride on broomsticks. But this is not a fairy tale. This is about REAL WITCHES. REAL WITCHES dress in ordinary clothes and look very much like ordinary women. They live in ordinary houses and they work in ordinary jobs. That is why they are so hard to catch. Witches, as our hero learns, hate children. With the help of a friend and his somewhat-magical grandmother, our hero tries to expose the witches before they dispose of him.
Start: august 26th 2012
End: august 27th 2012
Comment: This is the last book I read in my Roald Dahl month. It was such a pleasure reading them all and it's great to end this month with "The Witches". This is without a doubt the scariest book Dahl wrote. I remember that it freaked me out as a kid, both the book and the movie. The little boy in the book hears all those gruesome stories from his grandmother, that he didn't only get scared. He gets curious and wants to see them for real. When he does, he wished he didn't. My favorite parts in the book were the chapter where grandma tells her grandson how you can recognize a witch. And second is where the boy turns into a mouse and tries to think of a plan to get the witches. I really liked the boy narrator. Like in "Danny the Champion of the World" we see the story through his eyes. Grandma is also loveable, although she has the nasty habit of smoking cigars. She dedicades her life to her grandson. The witches in this book aren't stereotypical witches with pointy hats, brooms and a black cat. Dahl managed to create a new kind of witch, maybe even scarier than the one we already knew. This month was fantastic, Roald Dahl will always be te best children's book writer.
Rating: 5/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2012 - # 37: James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl

Title: James and the Giant Peach
Author: Roald Dahl
Story: When poor James Henry Trotter loses his parents in a horrible rhinoceros accident, he is forced to live with his two wicked aunts, Aunt Sponge and Aunt Spiker. After three years he becomes "the saddest and loneliest boy you could find." Then one day, a wizened old man in a dark-green suit gives James a bag of magic crystals that promise to reverse his misery forever. When James accidentally spills the crystals on his aunts' withered peach tree, he sets the adventure in motion. From the old tree a single peach grows, and grows, and grows some more, until finally James climbs inside the giant fruit and rolls away from his despicable aunts to a whole new life. James befriends an assortment of hilarious characters, including Grasshopper, Earthworm, Miss Spider, and Centipede--each with his or her own song to sing.
Start: august 21st 2012
End: august 25th 2012
Comment: The idea is again very original. A peach that starts growing because of magic seeds. The start of the story is a bit slow, but when the peach starts growing it's another joyful read. James is the leading character in the story and he's a sweet boy. He has to put up with a lot because he lives with his terrible aunts, which is typical for Roald Dahl's books. Most of the time the adults in the book aren't the most pleasant characters. Like the three farmers from "The Fantastic Mr. Fox", the two aunts both had completely different looks. They make James do all the nasty work and he never gets to be a kid. I liked the gang James met inside the peach. Like the centipede and the spider. Real fun. My favorite part is when the peach hits the ocean. Some exciting things happen there. And I loved the ending, because James got his dream. Roald Dahl did a great job with this book.
Rating: 4,5/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2012 - # 36: Danny the Champion of the World by Roald Dahl

Title: Danny the Champion of the World
Author: Roald Dahl
Story: Danny feels very lucky. He adores his life with his father, living in a gypsy caravan, listening to his stories, tending their gas station, puttering around the workshop, and occasionally taking off to fly home-built gas balloons and kites. His father has raised him on his own, ever since Danny's mother died when he was four months old. Life is peaceful and wonderful... until he turns 9 and discovers his father's one vice. Soon Danny finds himself the mastermind behind the most incredible plot ever attempted against nasty Victor Hazell, a wealthy landowner with a bad attitude. Can they pull it off? If so, Danny will truly be the champion of the world.
Start: august 17th 2012
End: august 20th 2012
Comment: This book was a gift and this isn't very well known. At least I never heard of it before receiving it. We start out with Danny, who is happy with his life with his dad. He looks up to his father and loves his stories. I liked the start of the book. We meet Danny and his dad and he tells us about his life in a gypsy trailer and their gasstation. Then Danny's dad reveals that he used to be a poacher and wants to pick it up again. That I didn't like. I don't like poachers and definitely not when dads teach their kids to do it too. In "The Fantastic Mr. Fox" they also poached, but they were foxes. That's nature. What I did like and was probably my favorite aspect of the book was that the entire story was told by Danny himself. That way you can really experience the story through Danny's eyes. What I also liked was that Dahl made a few references to some of his other books, like "The BFG" and "The Witches". So far, "Danny the Champion of the World" is my least favorite Roald Dahl book. I think it's because of the theme, not the story itself.
Rating: 3/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2012 - # 35: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl

Title: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Author: Roald Dahl
Story: Willy Wonka's famous chocolate factory is opening at last, and only five lucky children will be allowed inside. But what they find is even wilder than any of the wild rumors, they've heard!
Start: august 11th 2012
End: august 16th 2012
Comment: "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" has been named the best children's book of all time by many readers. In can understand why people would say that. This story goes beyond every kids dream an imagination. I think any child would love to visit a magical chocolate factory like the one described in this book. All their wildest dreams come true. Charlie Bucket is the leading character and he is probably the sweetest and most selfless kid I ever read about. Charlie has a heart of gold and although he doesn't have much, he is a happy child. It's impossible not to like Charlie. The other children are so extreme, but so much fun to read about. Sweettooth Augustus Gloop, spoiled Veruca Salt, gum chewer Violet Beauregard and television addict Mike Teavee. Willy Wonka is such a strange man, but I do like him. Maybe because of his weirdness. Grandpa Joe is, together with Charlie, my favorite character. Loved him. The way Roald Dahl describes the factory is just amazing. So fanciful. This is what Dahl knows best, he can write so vividly. You can picture everything he writes about. "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" is such a joy to read, for all ages.
Rating: 5/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2012 - # 34: The BFG by Roald Dahl

Title: The BFG
Author: Roald Dahl
Story: One night when Sophie cannot fall asleep during the "witching hour", she sees a giant blowing something into the bedroom windows down the street. The giant notices her, reaches through the window, and carries her to his home in Giant Country. Once there, he reveals that he is the world's only benevolent giant, the Big Friendly Giant or BFG, who operating in the strictest secrecy, collects good dreams that he later distributes to children. By means of immense ears he can hear dreams and their contents and blow them via a trumpet-like blowpipe into the bedrooms of children. When he catches a nightmare, he destroys it, or uses it to start fights among the other giants, who periodically enter the human world to steal and eat "human beans", especially children. The BFG, because he refuses to do likewise, subsists on a foul-tasting vegetable known as a snozzcumber, and on a drink called frobscottle, which is unusual in that the bubbles in the drink travel downwards and therefore cause the drinker to break wind instead of burp; this causes noisy flatulence known as Whizzpoppers.
Start: august 6th 2012
End: august 10th 2012
Comment: Imagine you were a young orphan tossing and turning because you can't sleep. Then all of the sudden a big, giant hand comes in through your window and lifts you out of your bed! The next thing you know you are bouncing around in a wool pocket. It happens the young Sophie, the character who was named after Dahl's granddaughter. She befriends a giant, the only giant that doesn't eat people and is very kind. The two of them form a team and try to save the world from the evil giants. It's really great to read about this friendship, which is really out of the ordinary. I like the way the BFG talks. His own language. That really speaks to kids with a big imagination. Sophie and the BFG are both loveable characters and basically the only characters in the book. The other ones don't get enough attention to really develope. This whole book is imaginative. So especially for kids this is a joy to read.
Rating: 4,5/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2012 - # 33: The Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl

Title: The Fantastic Mr. Fox
Author: Roald Dahl
Story: Someone's been stealing from the three meanest farmers around, and they know the identity of the thief-it's Fantastic Mr. Fox! Working alone they could never catch hi; but now fat Boggis, squat Bunce, and skinny Bean have joined forces, and they have Mr. Fox and his family surrounded. What they don't know is that they're not dealing with just any fox-Mr. Fox would rather die than surrender. Only the most fantastic plan can save him now.
Start: august 4th 2012
End: august 5th 2012
Comment: "The Fantastic Mr. Fox" tells the story of a heroic fox that does everything in need to help his family and friends survive. Although Mr. Fox does this by stealing food from bad farmers, this book has a great story. This book will probably raise a number of questions. Mr. Fox feeds his family by stealing food from the farmers. Does that make stealing OK just because the men he stole from were mean? The Badger brings up this important issue. It's a good plot and eventhough it's a very short book there is enough room for the characters and their strong personalities. This book is a classic example of Dahl's writing style. The adults are always mean and bad, while the children and animals are smart and good. Mr. Fox is truly fantastic and so are all the other animals surrounding him. I really like how Dahl described the three farmers, all different looking and with nasty habits. Again with the extreme, like the Trunchbull in "Matilda". A joy to read.
Rating: 5/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2012 - # 32: Matilda by Roald Dahl

Title: Matilda
Author: Roald Dahl
Story: Matilda is a little girl who is far too good to be true. At age five-and-a-half she's knocking off double-digit multiplication problems and blitz-reading Dickens. Even more remarkably, her classmates love her even though she's a super-nerd and the teacher's pet. But everything is not perfect in Matilda's world. For starters she has two of the most idiotic, self-centered parents who ever lived. Then there's the large, busty nightmare of a school principal, Mrs. Trunchbull, a former hammer-throwing champion who flings children at will and is approximately as sympathetic as a bulldozer. Fortunately for Matilda, she has the inner resources to deal with such annoyances: astonishing intelligence, saintly patience, and an innate predilection for revenge. She warms up with some practical jokes aimed at her hapless parents, but the true test comes when she rallies in defense of her teacher, the sweet Miss Honey, against the diabolical Trunchbull. There is never any doubt that Matilda will carry the day. Even so, this wonderful story is far from predictable.
Start: august 1st 2012
End: august 3rd 2012
Comment: "Matilda" was one of the last books Roald Dahl wrote before he died in 1990. While reading, it becomes clear that Roald Dahl never lost his touch for creating wonderful original characters and situations. As a child I already loved this book. I read it many times and I always enjoyed it when my teacher or my parents read this book for me. Matilda, the heroine of the story, is the sweetest little girl. She is a small girl with extraordinary talents. Her parents don't care for her. Her teacher, Miss Honey, is the only one that sees Matilda for who she is and she sees what Matilda is capable of. Miss Honey is also a great character, maybe even my favorite. I love how she cares for Matilda and how she loves being a teacher. Agatha Trunchbull is a horrible human being, but such a well written antagonist. Very over-the-top, but typical for Roald Dahl. The story is simply fantastic and full of humor. We see how a young girl fights for her individuality. Once you start reading, you just can't stop. Now, many years after I read this book for the first time, I'm a teacher and I read this book to my children in class and make them love it as much as I did. And still do. "Matilda" has always been my favorite children's book.
Rating: 5/ 5