Daddy Lost His Head by Quentin Blake & Andre Bouchard

Loved this book, Daddy Lost His Head, before I even read the first page. What kid wouldn't pluck this one right off the shelf?  I found the book very amusing.  If your Dad lost his head you would fashion him a new one of course. Newspaper, paint and a potato for a nose and voilà...there it is a new functioning head with many advantages. You see, he doesn't snore or shout, he readily agrees with you and is quite happy to do the vacuuming. Even better, take him shopping and he will buy anything you ask for. But...will Daddy ever find his real head and just how did he lose it in the first place? This is certainly a very absurd story but also very inventive and funny.

The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me by Roald Dahl

True to Dahl's witty style and brilliance, this book doesn't fail to entertain. One day, a young lolly shop aficionado called Billy sees an old sweet shop, The Grubber, which has been recently sold. Whilst standing goggled-eyed and wishing it had been him who was the lucky purchaser, a porcelain lavatory comes flying out the window, followed by a kitchen sink and an empty canary cage. The reader is engaged immediately. As it turns out the building is being renovated by a giraffe, a pelican and a monkey; a very unlikely trio. They are however, a very enterprising window-cleaning team and it seems that one of the richest men in Britain requires their services. The Duke cannot believe what service this team has to offer; a giraffe with an extendable neck is one marvellous thing but their criminal-foiling abilities is quite another. They are simply indispensable and so who will look after The Grubber in their absence? Quentin Blake comes to the party as always with his comical sketches adding greatly to the eccentric and bizarre characters who inhabit the books of Dahl. This is a short novel which will be quickly devoured by primary school children as well as being appreciated by adults. 

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You can listen to the unabridged version by Hugh Lorry:

Dirty Beast by Roald Dahl

Roald Dahl's Dirty Beasts is a treat of humorous (slightly black) poems about animals. Poems include The Pig, The Crocodile, The Lion, The Scorpion, The Anteater, The Porcupine, The Cow, The Toad, and lastly, The Tummy Beast. They are all written in rhyming couplets and take ordinary animals and turn them into people-eating monsters, usually for reasons of self-preservation or because of some misunderstanding. This book is perfect for reading out loud and Quentine Blake's illustrations are as lively as ever. The one about the emaciated anteater who eats an aunt is good fun, but my  favourite poem is probably The Porcupine. You can watch an animation of it below:

Down Behind The Dustbin

Michael Rosen's poems are actually funny and my last year's class just loved him, especially his video clips performing his own poetry which are available on line. This little book was one of his first. He writes about every day objects and circumstances, about things that would happen in a home... like the one about the mum waiting for her son to put his shoes on and he can't find them, or the one about what dad feeds the kids when the mum is away. I always was a big fan of his Down by the dustbin poems.

Down by the dustbin

I met a dog called Jim.

He didn't know me

And I didn't know him.

Check out the clip below of Rosen reciting some of his dustbin poetry.

Our Village by John Yeoman and Quentin Blake

John Yeoman and Quentin Blake have created an entire village, filled with interesting, eccentric and endearing characters. It is essentially a book of descriptive poems describing each of the main characters in this village. There is Mr Crumb the Baker, Mr Pruce the Postman, Mr Henry Arkwright who loves his penny-farthing bike, Little Miss Thynne the school teacher, two elderly citizens...Lily Bins and Elsie Crumb and many others.

The use of rhyme keeps the readers walk through the village lively and anticipating the next character. Farmer Trotter is quite memorable:

Old Father Trotter has five pigs,

All fat and pink and white;

He scratches at their backs until

They're grunting with delight.

Quentin Blake is one of my favourite illustrators whose quirky and comical drawings I came to know well though his illustration of Roald Dahl's books. He also illustrates for more recent author, David Walliam's. The maps provided of the village on the end covers of the book make for useful reference points.

The Twits by Roald Dahl

The Twits was the first novel I ever read by Roald Dahl. I read it as a class novel to a grade 6 class at South Queenstown in Primary School in 1987 followed by The BFG and Matilda. I know a certain David Snell used to really enjoy them. Dahl's books are a good way to get children reading and they are very rich in detail when it comes to the main characters. If you really like Dahl's style you will also enjoy reading David Walliam's novels which are interestingly enough also illustrated by Quentin Blake. The Twits are a truly a bogan couple, disgusting in fact, and you will be very surprised and maybe even horrified at some of their antics. The book is a humorous read which will leave you hungry for more of this author's books. The original Rolad Dahl website is worth the visit and contains a biography about Dahl, lists all his books and has some fun stuff to do. Just click on the link below:

http://www.roalddahl.com/

Listen to chapter 1 by clicking on this link. The other chapters are also available.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJzlPT_-Vwc