Reading with the kid is such a wonderful experience.
Oh, Matilda is indeed the penultimate Mary Sue. But you know what? I don't really care.
She is just SO over-the-top brilliant. By the age of five, she taught herself to read and was already devouring grown-up books. She plays wonderful pranks to right the wrongs and injustices of the world. And when things get really tough, she even develops superpowers!
Is it a wish-fulfillment novel? Absolutely! She gets a much better family, solves all the problems, and everything ends in love and light.
Is it unbelievable? Who cares! It's so sweet. And Miss Trunchbull was just NASTY, HORRIBLE, and WICKED. She definitely deserved everything she got!
Plus, when I finished reading it to my little girl, she said, "That was AWESOME, daddy!"
Fair enough. Fair enough. It's moments like these that make reading with kids truly special.