March Chapter book of the month: Gangsta Granny by David Walliams

[RachelMumsnet]

There was outrage on Twitter recently about Frank Lampard signing a children's book deal. Does celebrity status qualify you to become a published author of children's fiction? There have been a fair few who have succeeded (Madonna, Sarah Ferguson and Katie Price).

David Walliams has defied all those who are cynical about such a career swerve. Hailed as the natural successor to Roald Dahl, his books are clearly loved by children and parents. Scanning the boards for discussion threads about him, the overriding feeling is that his appeal is incredibly broad, transcending age and sex and, perhaps because of this, his books are frequently recommended by Mumsnetters as the best way to engage reluctant and late readers.

If your children have enjoyed Mr Stink, The Boy in the Dress or Billionaire Boy, then you'll be delighted to hear that our March book of the month is Gangsta Granny and we have 50 copies to giveaway.

Gangsta Granny is a story of prejudice and acceptance, funny lists and silly words. It contains Walliams' trademark blend of hilarity and pathos and even features Ben, the lead character swimming across the Thames with his Grandma.

Read more and apply for your free copy before 10am on Monday 4 March.

And then please post on this thread and let us know what you and your children think about the book. You'll be entered into a draw to win £100 of books from Harper Collins.

My daughter loves Roald Dahl. I'm fairly sure she (and I :o) would enjoy David Walliams' books too.

My DD is currently reading ratburger with her dad, she loves it but they have a little joke between them, they keep calling me 'Shelia' at the moment? So I am waiting to read it to find out who Sheila is:)

Agree David W very funny. Have this on audiobook. Hilarious. Appeals to my two sons and all the grown ups!

This book made DS2 cry :(

Lovely lovely book but very sad.

And not onto read if anyone in your family is ill :(

Ds loved this book.

Gangsta Granny is brilliant! My ds is 8 and although he's a good reader he doesn't normally spend quality 'Wii' time reading books however he's had his nose buried in this book for 2 days!

Bring it on David Walliams - he obviously has the magic touch when writing for this age group

Tend to find the plots to his books a bit thin. However, they are all very entertainingly written.

My year 2 dd loved having this book read to her at bedtime. She found it very entertaining but was a little shocked, and saddened, by the ending.

My Y4 (just turned 9) year old dd loved this.

9 year old DD has loved Roald Dahl since being small and she has started reading David Walliams since watching Mr Stink on TV at christmas. She enjoyed Gangsta Granny but her favourite is Ratburger.

So excited that we got picked to get a copy! DS is adoring Roald Dahl at the moment so I'm sure he's going to love this. Can't wait. Thank you

Thank you so much! We're looking forward to receiving our copy of 'Gangsta Granny.' DD1, (8) is a big fan of 'Mr Stink' and has also enjoyed 'Billionaire Boy.'

Our copy arrived yesterday and we tried it out with almost 6 year old DS as a bedtime story. Maybe not the best idea as he was giggling so much, I'm not sure it was a very restful book!

He loved the jokes and was properly, side splitting-ly laughing for much of the time I was reading. We're only 2 chapters in but I can see him really loving this one.

The kids love Mr Stink so this is bound to be a hit too. I think he is a fab author and as it really encourages a love of books for the kids then that makes it doubly-fab. x

The thing most loved about his books, in this house, is the overlap of characters. Ds loves watching out for the appearance of Raj! They are simple books, with some jokes for the adults to keep interest going, & they are FUNNY!!!!!!!!'

7yo dd has read 16 pages of this herself in one sitting today we love it!
I particularly like the way it's set out and the illustrations are fab (dd is very into illustrators atm) At 7 yrs 2 mths I wondered if it was too long for her to tackle as she usually reads much shorter books, it appears I was wrong

My oldest son owns all of David Walliam's previous children's stories and has enjoyed them all. I actually got hold of Gangsta Granny in audiobook format from my local library and have to say that having Walliams reading his own stories, complete with silly voices, really adds another dimension to the story and is much better than reading them myself!

I'm tempted to get the other stories in audiobook format as they are great for car journeys. Even my younger two will sit and listen to them, although I'm not sure they understand everything, they still find Walliams' voice entertaining!

Have to admit that I read the final few chapters before starting the novel just to see how sad the ending was and to make sure it was appropriate for Dc. Was a little taken aback, however, on reflection it isn't a subject that should be avoided. Great book. Will look out for more of his works.

My daughter was poorly today and had a day off school. She spent the day on the sofa and read it right through in one session! She loved it and thought it was very funny. She laughed out loud at the bit about the Queen in corgi slippers! She was a bit shocked as the ending was not what she expected. Very different, she said. She really enjoyed it and now wants more of his books. Thanks to Mumsnet and Harper Collins for cheering her up when she was unwell!

We really enjoyed reading this book. i found it was great for adults as well as kids! it's really funny and also very well written (the important part in my opinion!)

After sitting through many a boring book aimed at children of around 7 and up, have to say that this is brilliant! When we saw the cover both my 7 year old & I said it looks very much like a Roald Dahl (which she loves) and we were not disappointed. The story is cleverly plotted and the descriptions of the old Granny made us both laugh out load- not a million miles away from our own experiences! David Walliams wit is clearly translated and aimed just at the right level for pre-teens- its silly/yucky enough without being too close to the knuckle. He also manages to put in a good twist at the end and without giving too much away, manages a sad ending well. Its definitely a refreshing change in kids novels and we hope he writes many more like this- highly recommended.

We recently finished reading Mr Stink which my son loved so he was really excited when we received the copy of Gangsta Granny. Normally we read a chapter of a book a night however this book is so good I have been able to persuade my son to go to bed earlier so we could read two and even three chapters! The book is very well written and we both found it very amusing, you couldn't help but laugh out loud in some parts.