I had done twenty two years of teaching English in High Schools and FE colleges cross Yorkshire when I came to this book and to be blunt, had lost my Mojo when it comes to reading for fun. Seriously, reading was a chore up until I read this book and my joy for reading has returned once again, as well as my desire to write my own story, like this one, about a boy who loses his family and then reunites them all.
But to the boy in the dress and all that that is about.
I approached it like we all do. What was his first book? Was it any good? A fan of Dahl, especially when reading to my 7 and 6 year olds, who are now mid to late twenties and ancient like their Dad, is it worth my effort? Read some Amazon reviews, I thought. Some were positive. Others were concerned with fat jokes and the likes. I am 23 stone so thought stuff it, give it a go and buy this and the Buck House one.
I began this one first, for obvious reasons and had 80 pages done very quickly. It is a great and an easy read. The characters are equally good too, from Dennis who becomes Denise, to Hawtrey, who reminded me of me when at school, to the French teacher who wails and the Dad who puts the teacher in his place - memories of my Dad when a teacher who ran in the Olympics threatened my elder brother and Dad waded in etc - all of them are brilliant little characters. But for me, the one we call Raj, now that is a creation of genius. Where did Mr. Walliams get him from? Arkwright but in a Sikh? So funny, especially with the big reveal at the end with Mr. Hawtrey. That was unexpected, but had me laughing and coughing in glee. I am supposed to be recovering from this virus, but the laughing hurt.
I am not going to tell the story. I am sure you all know it by now, but safe to say that I have now begun reading the Buck House one and am loving reading all over again. For that, I thank Mr. Walliams and his ability to spin a yarn about a lonely young lad who misses his Mum, who is in love with the girl of his dreams and finds himself with her, if only in a way he could never expect.
Yes, I looked for the fat jokes, but Mac only reminded me of a lad I used to teach, who was foulsome and horrid, so Mac was a blessing in a disguise. Dad was me, in a nutshell. Mess with my kid and you get told what I think. Lisa made me remember several thirteen year olds who wanted to be nineteen too quickly and Dennis just reminded me of that kid in every school who you see and try to help, because they drop below the radar of brilliance and/or excellence.
The thing I loved though, was the way he ended this one. Two brothers, arms in arms, one protecting the other, in brotherly love as they walk into an uncertain future of pure French Joan D'Arc; now that is pure class.
Buy it. Read it. Devour it. I do hope there is a film of this somewhere, because the scene with the French teacher wailing in the corridor is one I have to see. So darn funny.
A great book that has me reading again. Who knows, I might even be back in the classroom in September because of this. Thank you, David Walliams. Truly appreciated.
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Reviews with images
Book falling apart as we turn the pages!!
Arrived an hour ago and my daughter is already on chapter two and is enjoying the story. But as we turn each page it becomes unstuck. There won’t be a second read.
Top reviews from other countries
LIU H.
pas vraiment en très bon état, mais acceptable
Reviewed in France on 10 April 2019