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Children's books

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Original poster

I am reading Matilda with my kids and it is fucking terrifying.

32 replies

moondog · 08/12/2010 22:32

Or is it just me?
I'm pretty cynical but Jaysus, it is soooooo creepy.

OP posts:
ragged · 09/12/2010 12:11

At least in Snow White only the Queen is truly evil. Almost everyone else has some good in them (the hunter who save's SW's life, for instance). In Matilda, there are many awful adults including her own parents, and the nicest adults (what few there are) are all so dippy.

Danny book is my favourite, too!!

sethstarkaddersmum · 09/12/2010 09:18

we're reading Matilda atm too and have just got to the school bit and dd has stopped being keen.
I think Dahl is an incredible writer but my favourite is probably Danny the Champion of the World which is the least scary.

Original poster
moondog · 09/12/2010 09:12

I think it is because it is a teacher and the kids are at her mercy as their paretns wouldn't believe them if they told.
Stories of witches and ogres are fantastical to start with.
Yes, my kids love it too.

OP posts:
gorionine · 09/12/2010 07:07

It is no more terrifying than Snow White with the Quenn who wants to kill her and eat her heart or the story (I cannot remember the name) of the 7 little boys who seek refuge at an ogre's house and during the night the boys find out the ogre is going to eat them so switch beds with his daughters so he eats them instead. Numerous stories were poor parents abandon their children because they are too poor to feed the...

Children (most of them) like scary stories.

I love Roald Dahl stories and so do all my Dcs.

VivaLeBeaver · 09/12/2010 07:01

Agree that most Dahl books are fairly terrifying, I hated them all as a kid.

The Twits - horrible, evil loons trying to kill birds and monkeys.

James and The Giant Peach - little orphan boy with evil aunts gets stuck in a bit of fruit with giant centipedes, etc.

The Witches - I think the kid gets turned into a mouse.

ReformedCharacter · 09/12/2010 06:00

Agree ragged. I find a lot of Roald Dahl's books sinister and creepy.

I don't think I'd have enjoyed his books when I was young but DS loves them.

ragged · 09/12/2010 05:53

I hate it, it well and truly creeps me out (I assume you mean the Roald Dahl story). So unrelentingly horrid.

Am not very keen on some other Dahl stories for same sort of reason, like The Twits.

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