FEBRUARY 21, 2023

I stand with Rushdie. CENSORING ROALD DAHLS BOOKS IS WRONG! Does that sensitivity board think that changing the word fat to enormous, or ugly and beastly to just ugly seriously going to hurt someone’s feelings? Children need to grow in an environment where they will be prepared for the real world. This namby pamby nitpicking is what wil cause triggers in the future. Forget crimes against women, cruelty to animals, child abuse; oh mummy this lady in this book has black hair? Ummmmm this author is a bad man. And what really gets me is that puffin got his estate’s agreement and permission to do this! This is worse than giving every single child on a baseball team a trophy. Oh great yeah you…we’re umm..a great bench warmer! So yeah umm here is a trophy. DOES ENGLAND NOT HAVE FREEDOM OF SPEECH OR GUARDS AGAINST CENSORSHIP?



needed a shot of Roald Dahl. What whimsy! This is one instance when I enjoy the book and the movie.

Ennesima rilettura, questa volta con la mia Lucia, di uno dei classici della letteratura dell'infanzia, che serve solo a riconfermare Dahl in cima alla lista dei miei autori per bambini preferiti. Ho solo il rimpianto di non averlo letto quand'ero piccola anch'io ma, meglio tardi che mai, per avventurarsi tra gli Umpa-Lumpa, solcando fiumi di cioccolato su una barca di caramella, assaggiando fili d'erba zuccherina e gustose praline. Ma, attenzione a non lasciarsi tentare da pericolosi capricci o il signor Wonka avrà un castigo bello e pronto per chi non rispetta le regole! Ne sanno qualcosa gli sventurati compagni di viaggio di Charlie Bucket...
La filastrocca dedicata agli effetti nocivi della TV sui bambini è la ciliegina su questa torta da maestro! Se non la conoscete, correte a leggerla subito! Voto: ★★★★★

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl is an obvious classic in my book. Besides the fact its been around for awhile already, it definitely has that magic factor that pulls you in. Anyone with even a remnant left of their kid's heart in them, will love this book. I believe this story, not the book, but at least the story has a huge following, due in part to the movie starring Gene Wilder. I love Johnny Depp, but he lacks the whimsical weirdness of the previous Wonka and is just weird. However, the Depp version is a little more book accurate, but not by much. Once again I'm amazed at how much liberty the writers took with the book, and wonder why? No Slugworth, except a brief mention, and Charlie wins at the end only because he's the last kid standing. Some extra rooms and candy are in the book that were never mentioned in the movie like the "Square candy that looks round". And it's a shame, but I understand that they can't put everything into the movies. I'm not sure if the everything's edible scenery is an original concept or not, but it is surely the most well known of children's stories. I was also impressed with the similarity between the book and movie on the poem in the boat, which is probably the most celebrated part of the story.

I must also mention here the book is absolutely worth reading even if you've seen the movie mostly because I think the movie glossed over the main theme of the book. Obviously there's the imagination aspect but in the book, the Oompa Loompa's sing a song that is three pages long when little Mike Teavee gets sucked into the TV. It's all about how TV will rot your brain and if you take away the blasted contraption, and replace it with books, within a few weeks, the child will be reading and loving the books. I whole heartedly agree, and find the "irony" funny that a book about getting kids to read more was made into a movie that is better known than the book. I put irony in quotes here, because lately a vast majority of literary figures have debated the incorrect use of the word, ever since Alanis Morisette's song came out. I think it applies here, but I could be wrong.

In any case, the book is a classic, and highly recommended. I also recommend the Wilder version of the movie, but not in place of the book. I also think this is a great story to read to children, as my 5 yr old can attest.


ClassicsDefined.com

خلاقیت رولد دال توی این کتاب واقعا مثال‌زدنیه. به نظرم اگه کسی دور و برش بچه‌ای میشناسه که اندک علاقه‌ای به کتاب داره، حتما باید این کتاب رو براش بخره و بهش بده که مطالعه کنه. البته نسل اینجور بچه‌ها تقریبا منقرض شده و اکثر بچه‌ها یه جورایی تبدیل به "مایک تی‌وی" شدن. اینکه این کتاب مناسب بچه‌هاست، به این معنی نیست که افراد بزرگسال نمیتونن ازش لذت ببرن؛ من خودم از این کتاب خیلی لذت بردم.

شوخ‌طبعی آقای ونکا هم واقعا جالب بود.

En serio, jamás me cansaré de leer a este hombre. No me imagino mejores lecturas para los niños de todas las edades. Incluídos los niños de 90 años jajajaja. Es que es un disfrute total.

Valores, aventuras y diversión. Como siempre personajes muy horribles, pero también personajes muy adorables, como es el caso de Charlie o de cualquiera de sus abuelos. Deseando estoy de ponerme con Charlie y el gran ascensor de cristal. Willy Wonka es un personaje super carismático. Super. Lo hubiera amado mucho de peque. Y también de mayor jajaja.

PD: Me han encantado las canciones posteriores a la eliminación de cada uno de los niños.

A book that never gets old. I remember carrying this around with me as a child until it fell apart.

Full Review.

I'm not entirely sure, if I have read it before or my only encounter with the story has been the film (2005), but nevertheless, this exceeded my expectations.

I could see the lessons author tried to give, I could see the pain and poorness and almost started to cry. The unjust world and how things are run in it. And well honestly my only objection was 'winning' the unknown competition. You can't win, if everyone except you were tested, that usually means cheating.

I loved Oompa-Loompa's songs a lot and thought that they were written brilliantly, which is kind of really cool, because I hated them in the film. I could also see similarities with the BFG and well... simply genuinely liked the book.

Think Wonka dropped the 50 pence in the snow?

I had some car errands to run yesterday and felt that because I was going to be in and out of my car, I wanted to listen to an audiobook of something I was familiar with, from earlier in my life. I had not read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory since middle school, I guess. I had read it several times in elementary school and middle school, so I still remembered the story well. There's something about going to an old favorite as kind of a comfort read that keeps you revved up with love for reading. After going through something as dry as a memoir written by a Revolutionary War hero, I needed to read something quick and homey. I love this narrative and Dahl tells this story with the flair of a Dr. Seuss, especially with the comedic highpoints of the Oompa Loompas. Neil Gaiman was the audiobook narrator with his own distinctive storytelling prowess, adding to the mix. The story remains a whimsical fantasy that even a person at my age can still find as magical and as thought-provoking as I did when I was a different age.

Somewhere in the cold climate of the northern United States, lived a poor little boy....constant hunger dominates his existence , freezing winds in the winter, flakes of snow falling down on his parent's shamble of a structure, the home they live in, on the outskirts of a large city, with his hard- pressed father and mother , four grandparents in a bed the ancients never leave , their small residence ready to collapse , cannot keep the weather out, Charlie dreams...food to eat not cabbage soup the only thing they can afford, the endless, bleak atmosphere; his shrinking body gets weaker and life is just one big pain... However a flicker of hope for the child Charlie Bucket, the chocolate factory he passes twice a day going to school and coming back home, owned by the most successful candy maker in the world , marvelous Willy Wonka, is having a contest for children. Five Golden Tickets wrapped in his scrumptious chocolate bars will get them a tour of the fabulous building , secrets inside never revealed to the public and a lifetime supply. Chocolates ... delicious , tasty , mouthwatering flavor, finger licking , the smell alone causes the imagination to flow , a heavenly treat...that will forever be, just stretch your hand and grab another ...Ten cents, where can he get that to buy the candy, but his birthday is soon and the family every year gives him this for a present, they have saved a few coins. Silly idea, all the millions of rich kids on the planet buying and buying tremendous amounts of chocolate bars and he...has no chance to win, once in a blue moon, the saying goes . Still somebody does and miracles happen to the unlikely, sometimes. .. As he is walking home in the low temperatures from school. His stomach empty, his body shivering and the wonderful aroma permeating from Willy Wonka's factory, the dejected boy sees something sticking out of the snow. A dollar bill...he picks it up , goes to the nearest store...and no luck, thinks maybe he will try again...happiness underneath the candy bar...a Golden Ticket. Later Charlie's adventures with his Grandfather Joe, so thrilled he rises from his bed after so many years, and does a dance when his grandson wins... Inside the strange Mr. Wonka's unbelievable , humongous building, mostly hidden underground. The secrets amaze little Charlie, the four others, all spoiled children, too, with their permissive , timid parents...
Remarkable new candies, "almost ready " for the public, a chocolate river, the splendid boat on it, a glass elevator not going just up and down but sideways also, numerous rooms with closed, locked doors...
Mysterious noises heard from inside, what's happening ? The greatest discovery though are the Oompa-Loompas, tiny, intelligent people, the diligent workers here, who love to sing delightful songs just made- up, as they toil and stroll, making fun of the weird, stunned visitors. Only technicolor could adequately show the beauty of this gloriously enchanted place...

My 2020 adventure revisiting some of my classic favorites from childhood with my kids continues! I just finished reading them Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and they loved it! I continue to feel great warmth and joy with the fact that they ask about reading time with as much enthusiasm as when they ask about tablet time. In fact, if they happen to be on tablets when I declare it is time to read, they drop them immediately and curl up on the couch. It is pretty awesome!

Charlie and Willy Wonka bring back a lot of nostalgia for me. I watched the movie and read the book (and its sequel) several times as a child. It was one of those stories I could watch/read over and over again without a break between. I didn’t care for the more recent movie they made, but if it encouraged others to go back and read the book and watch the original, then that is a good thing!

One thing I will say that I don’t remember quite as much from my child years, but I notice when revisiting as an adult – Willy Wonka is kind of a jerk. As I was reading it out loud to the kids I kept thinking, this is funny, but I hope they don’t end up thinking that acting this way is appropriate! Sure, there were lessons to be learned about the bad behavior and habits of the kids in the book, but Wonka is pretty ruthless about pointing out their flaws. I think he would do quite well as a Twitter troll today!

Up next we will be watching the movie with the kids. However, I do remember a few things from watching it years ago that we may have to fast forward through . . . more for my sake than for theirs!

Since the Swiss make the best chocolate figures in the world, I thought I would pick up a few to take with me to England. I was originally only intending to buy a couple of chocolate rabbits, engagingly goofy-looking with big buck teeth and natty bow-ties, but the selection was so enticing that I eventually walked out with four rabbits, a chicken with a marzipan waistcoat and a chocolate chalet. I explained to the nice assistant that they would be accompanying me to London later that day, and she spent ages wrapping them up in individual boxes.

But, when we opened them yesterday, catastrophe! She evidently hadn't used enough tissue paper. Not a single figure was whole: two rabbits had lost their ears and two their heads, the chicken's wings were broken, and the roof had come off the chalet. It seemed like a very poor return on 116 Swiss Francs. On closer examination, though, the breaks looked fairly clean. We wondered if surgery was possible.

David and I went to the shop around the corner, bought a substantial bar of Cadbury's milk chocolate, and melted it carefully in a double-boiler. Our first plan was to use the chocolate as glue - we have a lot of experience with building gingerbread houses. But it turns out that melted chocolate makes very poor glue; it isn't sticky enough. The operation was also complicated by the fact that it was impossible to hold the pieces directly, since they immediately started melting in our hands (it was a hot day). We decided that we had to hold them using kitchen roll, which was anything but convenient. Things looked hopeless for a moment.

And then, breakthrough! Maybe it was a good thing that the chocolate melted so easily, and we could exploit that? We'd already determined that gluing didn't work. How about welding? And, with some care, it turned out that it was possible. The new technique consisted of dipping the edge of the piece in the melted chocolate to soften it and then pushing it into place so that it fused, making a solid join, and we successfully used it to mend all six figures. The first two looked a little messy, but the final ones were so good that you actually couldn't tell they'd been broken. It was almost beyond belief.

Please, Mr. Wonka, can I come and work for you? As you see, I'm really into chocolate technology.

ما كل هذه الروعة ! أيمكن أن يحوي كتاب كل هذا الجمال !
كم أحببت تشارلي ذلك الطفل الصغير النحيل ، الذي يعيش هو ووالديه و أجداده الاربعة في نفس البيت ، و لا يجدون ما يقيتهم ، لكن رغم ذلك يحاولون ، و يستمرون ، و يفرحون .
كان كل حلم تشارلي و عائلته وجبة شهية تقيتهم ، او لوح شوكولا رائع يستمتعون به .
عندما أعلن السيد ويلي وينكا عن البطاقات الذهبية ، و الخمس فرص لزيارة مصنعة الشهير الغامض ، كم تمنى تشارلي ووالدية وأجداده أن يحصل تشارلي على واحدة منهن ، ليأكل الشوكولا لباقي حياته .
لم يعلم أن هذه البطاقة التي ربحها ، ستغير حياته ، ليصبح هو مالك هذا المصنع الصغير ، لانه كان طفلا ذكيا ، قنوعا ، ليس شرها أكولا ك " اغستيس غلوب " و ليس علاكا فارغا ك " فيوليت " و ليس قنوعا يعتقد أنه سوف يشتري كل شيء حتى البشر ك " فيروكا سالت " و ليس طفلا فارغ العقل و الروح ك " مايك تي في " .
كم أحب قصص الاطفال التي تحوي عبرة للكبار .
كم أحببت الرسومات الجميلة التي زينت صفحات هذا الكتاب .