The Twits (1980)

Re-reading this aloud did not match my very positive memories of the book: it was more mean than I had remembered and not as witty, with nothing much in the way of character development or plot. It seems pale compared to much of the rest of Roald Dahl. That said, it still has a lot of memorable creations, not the least of which is covering a tree in glue to trap birds for bird pie. ( )

This book has two characters: Mr Twit and Mrs Twit. He is very hairy and he doesn't wash his hairy hair. So it's so dirty and there are some food that he eats everyday. And he is also so mean. For examples, while his wife is sleeping, he made her walking-stick longer and longer. And also, he put a frog in her bed and enjoyed her screaming.
I didn't like what he was doing to her. I thought they were too mean. ( )

The Twits are the most revolting family known to mankind. They have horrible hygiene, even meaner personalities, and attitudes that are less than welcoming. While they isolate themselves from other people, they take much pleasure in pulling pranks on each other and in having random animals as pets- which are more like small prisoners to their harsh ways. However, the family of monkeys that the Twits have been keeping are sick and tired of the cruelty that they have been through, and have decided to turn the tables on the Twits to give them a taste of their own medicine and so set themselves free.
This descriptive story is a great read for young audiences and older ones as well. I think that Dahl's writing really is an excellent example of how powerful words can be and how they even have the magic to form images in the readers' minds. While being paired with Quentin Blake's illustrations, the text is pushed further, being supplemented by the expressive and playful pictures which effectively convey both grotesque and more humorous moments in the book.

Gotta love Roald Dahl and his twisted sense of humor! ( )

Totally ridiculous and entertaining story of two adults, their tricks on one another and the ultimate trick on them. Great read aloud for 7-8 year olds. ( )