Matilda, a brilliant, sensitive little girl, uses her talents and ingenuity to seek revenge on her crooked father, lazy mother, and the terrifying Miss Trunchbull, her wicked headmistress, and save her beloved teacher, Miss Honey.

I read Matilda for the first time two decades ago. I had not revisited it since, but decided to do so a few days ago after seeing it pleadingly ensconced on a shelf in a local library. Unlike my past self, who, as a child, had little to contest in this simple narrative, I was displeased with how brazenly overdone it felt. It read like a hammy and blatant self-insert meant to vindicate those whose premature intellect was not commended to their satisfaction. I found that, beneath the thin veneer of girl empowerment and principled mischief, there was little thematic impact, owing to Dahl's inability to convey even a hint of nuance in the morality of his tale. With nauseatingly virtuous heroes and restlessly foul villains, any pretense to didacticism is lost in its own hyperbole. Sadly, Dahl's works for children are conveniently installed in a genre that is ever underestimated, and therefore, they are acclaimed as masterpieces. Indeed, this genre is one to which many writers turn to avoid the criticism they would undoubtedly face for their patent inelegance, and in which such inelegance is otherwise welcomed by many adults who tritely excuse it as "immaterial" considering the target audience; truly, a most lamentable complacency. While Dahl's style is of unmistakable aesthetic value, which finds better use elsewhere in his oeuvre, it is simply not enough to elevate the book above its arrant lack of grace. ( )

Very Good. A little sassy but fun. I really liked the ending. ( )

I read this book as I prepared to choreograph the musical. It was wonderful. I felt so connected to this little girl. Such a wonderful story for the child who likes to read and is interested in the world. ( )

FIC
DAH