Beasts - Roald Dahl Roald Dahl Magical folk Overview An array of amazing animals and curious creatures appear in Roald Dahl's books. We'll be adding more to this list, so keep checking back... Close Alfie 'Alfie had been with Mrs Silver for years and he lived on her balcony summer and winter. Planks had been placed around the sides of the balcony so that Alfie could walk about without toppling over the edge...' - Esio Trot Alfie is a tortoise, and the much-loved pet of Mrs Silver . He lives on the balcony of her flat, beneath Mr Hoppy (who is secretly in love with Mrs Silver.) Mrs Silver worries about Alfie's size, but he doesn't appear to have many concerns himself. He has his own little house on the balcony and enjoys breakfasting on lettuce, tomato and celery. He hibernates in winter, and on his return is greeted joyously by Mrs Silver. It's Mrs Silver's desire to see Alfie grow that sets Mr Hoppy's plan into action. He provides Mrs Silver with a spell that will, apparently, help Alfie do just that. Mrs Silver is delighted, and the stage is set for Alfie's grand adventure.

Let's just say it involves a trip up to Mr Hoppy's, where he gets to meet a lot more tortoises... BBC One's 2015 adaptation of Esio Trot sees the addition of a new character that does not appear in the original story. James Corden narrates the action of the film, charting Alfie's progress from Mrs Silver's to Mr Hoppy's and all the way in between... Find out more Close Centipede '"Well, James, have you ever in your life seen such a marvellous colossal Centipede as me?"' James and the Giant Peach The Centipede in James and the Giant Peach is a pest. But he is very proud of being a pest. He has 42 legs and wears a lot of shoes, which he asks James to help him remove at the end of that first day inside the Peach. He's also a jolly fellow who enjoys a joke, a song - and a little bit of teasing of poor old Earthworm ... In 1996 an animated film version of Roald Dahl's original story was released, with Richard Dreyfuss voicing the Centipede.

Find out more Close Earthworm "'I am not a slimy beast,' the Earthworm said. 'I am a useful and much loved creature. Ask any gardener you like.'" - James and the Giant Peach The Earthworm appears in Roald Dahl's first famous book for children, James and the Giant Peach. He is one of a number of creatures James Henry Trotter meets aboard the Giant Peach. He is a pretty morose creature - as the Ladybird tells James, "'He hates to be happy. He is only happy when he is gloomy. Now isn't that odd? But then, I suppose just being an Earthworm is enough to make a person pretty gloomy, don't you agree?'" James is quick to point out the Earthworm's good points, though, later telling an audience of New Yorkers: "'He would be absolutely grand for digging subway tunnels and for making you a sewer.'" The 1996 film version of James and the Giant Peach featured the voice of David Thewlis as the Earthworm. Find out more Close The Enormous Crocodile 'The Enormous Crocodile grinned, showing hundreds of sharp white teeth.

"For my lunch today," he said, "I would like a nice juicy little child."' - The Enormous Crocodile The Enormous Crocodile is a beastly creature. He lives in "the biggest, browniest muddiest river in Africa," and he is just about the beastliest crocodile there. Where the Notsobig crocodile eats only fish, The Enormous Crocodile wants to eat everyone in the jungle, from The Roly-Poly Bird to Muggle-Wump the Monkey. But his favourite food of all is a yummy-tasting child... It's this that makes him leave the river to search out a tasty lunchtime treat, using his "secret plans and clever tricks" - even though the Notsobig One says he's the stupidest croc on the whole river. So will he be successful? The Enormous Crocodile bears a strong resemblence to another horrid Croc: Crocky-Wock, who appears in Roald Dahl's Dirty Beasts (1983). Find out more Close Mr Fox 'On a hill above the valley there was a wood. In the wood there was a huge tree. Under the tree there was a hole.

In the hole lived Mr Fox and Mrs Fox and their four Small Foxes.' - Fantastic Mr Fox Mr Fox is clever. Far too clever for his local farmers, Boggis , Bunce and Bean . Still, even a very clever and cunning fox sometimes gets caught out - and when those devious farmers finally locate the whereabouts of Mr Fox's home, it puts him and his family in danger. But Mr Fox is never beaten - and by trapping him and his family inside their foxhole, it looks like Boggis, Bunce and Bean might have accidentally shot themselves in the foot instead... In 2009, director Wes Anderson's stop-motion animated adaptation of Fantastic Mr Fox featured George Clooney as "Foxy" Fox. In the film, his character was a newspaper columnist and the father of one son, Ash, as opposed to the four Small Foxes that appear in the original story. A nephew, Kristofferson, also lives with the family. Find out more Close Mrs Fox '...Mrs Fox said to her children, 'I should like you to know that if it wasn't for your father we should all be dead by now.

Your father is a fantastic fox.'" - Fantastic Mr Fox Mrs Fox is the loyal and loving wife of Mr Fox , a husband who by her own admission is pretty fantastic. In Roald Dahl's original story she is also the mother to the four Small Foxes, although in Wes Anderson's 2009 animated film adaptation she has only one child, Ash, and also looks after her nephew, Kristofferson. Wes Anderson also gave her the first name Felicity. In Roald's original tale she is simply Mrs Fox, but Felicity was the name of Roald's own wife. Wes's film adaptation draws on Roald's life in many other ways too, not least the locations of many of the sets which were based on areas in the Buckinghamshire countryside where Roald wrote the story. Mrs Fox is a supportive wife, ably holding the fort while her husband is off poaching chickens and turning her hand to the creation of a superb feast. In Wes Anderson's film adaptation, the character was voiced by Meryl Streep. Find out more Close Glow-worm "'She isn't really a worm at all. Glow-worms are never worms.

They are simply lady fireflies without wings.'" - James and the Giant Peach This is what the Centipede tells James Henry Trotter after he points out that the Glow-worm doesn't actually look like a worm at all, in Roald Dahl's early children's story James and the Giant Peach. She might spend a lot of her time sleeping, but the Glow-worm provides the main source of light for James and his friends aboard the Giant Peach. As James says later, "...although this smacks a bit of eccentricity, it's really rather clever." In the 1996 partially animated film version of James and the Giant Peach, Miriam Margolyes - who had also played Aunt Sponge - voiced the Glow-worm. Find out more Close Humpy-Rumpy 'A gigantic creature was standing in the slimy oozy mud on the river-bank. It was Humpy-Rumpy, the Hippopotamus.' - The Enormous Crocodile Humpy-Rumpy lives on the river-bank next to the "biggest, brownest muddiest river in Africa," alongside the horrible Enormous Crocodile , who he tries to persuade not to eat the nearby children.

He foils The Enormous Crocodile's plan to disguise himself as a tree in order to snap up a juicy child. The Enormous Crocodile was published in 1978, and was the first Roald Dahl story to feature illustrations by Sir Quentin Blake. Find out more Close Ladybird (or Ladybug) "'The number of spots that a Ladybird has is simply a way of showing which branch of the family she belongs to. I, for example, as you can see for yourself am a Nine-Spotted Ladybird.'" - James and the Giant Peach The Ladybird (or Ladybug, as she is known in North American editions of the book and in the 1996 film, where the character is voiced by actress Jane Leeves) appears in Roald Dahl's first famous children's story, James and the Giant Peach. She is a great friend to James during his adventures aboard the Peach, and her kind personality causes James to call her his "greatest comfort since this trip began." She has nine spots upon her wings - and four hunderd children...

Find out more Close Old-Green-Grasshopper "'Young fellow,' he said, speaking in a deep, slow, scornful voice, 'I have never been a pest in my life. I am a musician.'" James and the Giant Peach The Old-Green-Grasshopper is a wise old creature who feels that his musical skills are unappreciated inside the Giant Peach, but he takes a liking to young James Henry Trotter and keeps a fatherly eye on him throughout the story. Roald Dahl's original story of James and the Giant Peach was first published in 1961. In 1996, an animated film adaptation of the story was released, with Simon Callow voicing the character of The Old-Green-Grasshopper. Find out more Close Muggle-Wump Muggle-Wump the Monkey is most at home eating nuts in the African jungle he lives in - but he also falls foul of the horrible Twits... Muggle-Wump is the name of the Monkey we first meet in The Enormous Crocodile , which was first published in 1978.

He's a generous sort of monkey, offering the beastly Enormous Crocodile some of his favourite nuts, even though the Crocodile would rather eat the Monkey himself as a nice tasty snack before he hunts out some children for his lunch... Muggle-Wump also finds himself in a sticky situation in The Twits , released in 1980 - he and his family have been imprisoned by the horrible Mr and Mrs Twit and forced to stand on their heads all day as part of Mr Twit 's GREAT UPSIDE DOWN MONKEY CIRCUS training. But Muggle-Wump is clever. When his old friend the Roly-Poly Bird pays a visit, he realises that he has a chance not just to escape, but also to teach those nasty Twits a lesson... Find out more Close The Roly-Poly Bird 'Then one day, a truly magnificent bird flew down out of the sky and landed on the monkey cage.' - The Twits The Roly-Poly Bird is a magnificent bird who usually lives in the African jungle. He first appears in Roald Dahl's 1978 story The Enormous Crocodile , where the horrible Enormous Crocodile threatens to eat him for lunch.

He's too swift by half for the Crocodile though, and quickly flies away before later helping foil Croc's secret plans and clever tricks... He also pays more than a flying visit to help Muggle-Wump the Monkey and his family - as well as the birds that might otherwise end up in Mrs Twit 's Bird Pie - in The Twits , published in 1980. The Roly-Poly Bird has marvellous coloured feathers, likes to travel, and his favourite food is berries, as he tells us in The Enormous Crocodile. Find out more Close Silkworm 'On the floor over in the far corner, there was something thick and white that looked as though it might be a Silkworm. But it was sleeping soundly and nobody was paying any attention to it.' - James and the Giant Peach The Silkworm is one of the creatures James Henry Trotter meets aboard the Giant Peach in Roald Dahl's first famous children's story, James and the Giant Peach. Although she says little, she is an invaluable member of the Peach's crew: without her quickly-spun silk, James's plan to rescue the Peach from the threatening sharks might never have worked.

Towards the end of the story, James reveals another piece of information about the Silkworm: apparently, she had the honour of sewing Queen Elizabeth II 's wedding dress. The Silkworm did not feature in the 1996 animated film version of James and the Giant Peach - in the film, Miss Spider was the sole provider of the silk that helped rescue the Peach. Find out more Close The Small Foxes 'Mr Fox looked at the four Small Foxes and he smiled. What fine children I have, he thought.' - Fantastic Mr Fox In Roald Dahl's orginal Fantastic Mr Fox story, Mr and Mrs Fox have four children who they live with in their foxhole. They are all eager to assist their father in his bid to get as much food as possible form those horrible farmers, Boggis , Bunce and Bean . In Wes Anderson's 2009 film adaptation of the story, the Foxes have only one child, Ash, and a nephew who comes to stay with them called Kristofferson. Ash is voiced by Jason Schwartzman, and Eric Anderson is Kristofferson. Find out more Close Miss Spider '"I am not loved at all. And yet I do nothing but good.

All day long I catch flies and mosquitoes in my webs. I am a decent person."' - Miss Spider, in James and the Giant Peach Poor old Miss Spider. She's such a helpful creature, and yet as she tells James in Roald Dahl's James and the Giant Peach, spiders just aren't treated right. She even has to witness her poor old father being flushed down the plug-hole by James's horrible Aunt Sponge . She's a good friend to James, though, and - along with the Silkworm - it is her incredible thread that helps get them out of a sticky situation aboard the Peach. In the 1996 animated film adaptation of James and the Giant Peach, Miss Spider was voiced by Susan Sarandon. Find out more Close Trunky 'Trunky was nibbling leaves from the top of a tall tree, and he didn't notice the Crocodile at first. So the Crocodile bit him on the leg.' - The Enormous Crocodile Trunky the Elephant lives in the jungle near the river where the horrible Enormous Crocodile also lives. It is up to him and the other residents to stop the Enormous Crocodile from getting up to his child-eating secret plans and clever tricks.

Luckily, Trunky has an idea to help get rid of the Crocodile forever... The Enormous Crocodile was released in 1978. It was the first of Roald Dahl's stories to feature illustrations by Sir Quentin Blake. Find out more Esio Trot Audiobook | Roald Dahl | Audible.com "Horrifying and Delightful" Publisher's Summary Esio Trot, a classic Roald Dahl story, is brought to life in this audiobook edition by Sir Quentin Blake. Mr Hoppy loves Mrs Silver. Mrs Silver loves Alfie the tortoise. Sometimes Mr Hoppy wishes he could become a tortoise. Until one day he finds a way to win Mrs Silver's heart, with the help of a little magic and some cabbage. Quentin Blake is the award-winning English illustrator internationally known for his long partnership with Roald Dahl. He has also collaborated with many authors such as Joan Aiken, Michael Rosen, David Walliams, and John Yeoman, illustrated books by Dr Seuss and created picture books of his own. He was appointed first-ever Children's Laureate in 1999 and in 2013 was knighted for his services to illustration.

©2014 Roald Dahl (P)2014 Penguin Books Limited More from the same Book Review: Esio Trot by Roald Dahl Paperback Book£4.49£5.99 25% off Nicholas from St Aubyn's School reviews Esio Trot by Roald Dahl As part of our #ReadYourAToZ reading challenge Nicholas has read Esio Trot for our Romance prompt. "Esio Trot is a romance and is a fun book to read. It is an interesting story. Mr. Hoppy gazes over every morning to look at Miss Silver because he is in love with her. He has a plan to win her heart. Mr. Hoppy is going to make a tortoise catcher. He will buy a lot of tortoises and keep changing the weight of the tortoise to trick Miss Silver into thinking her tortoise has grown. Mr. Hoppy makes up some magic words, he calls them Tortoise language. Will Miss Silver discover his trick of will she marry Mr. Hoppy? Although I like the book, I thought it could be a bit longer.

I recommend this book to readers who enjoy Roald Dahl." Many thanks to Nicholas for this review of the Roald Dahl classic Esio Trot. Other Roald Dahl favourites: Esio Trot by Roald Dahl on iBooks This book is available for download with iBooks on your Mac or iOS device, and with iTunes on your computer. Books can be read with iBooks on your Mac or iOS device. Description An ancient spell, 140 tortoises, and a little bit of magic… Mr. Hoppy is in love with his neighbor, Mrs. Silver; but she is in love with someone else—Alfie, her pet tortoise. With all her attention focused on Alfie, Mrs. Silver doesn’t even know Mr. Hoppy is alive. And Mr. Hoppy is too shy to even ask Mrs. Silver over for tea. Then one day Mr. Hoppy comes up with a brilliant idea to get Mrs. Silver's attention. If Mr. Hoppy's plan works, Mrs. Silver will certainly fall in love with him. After all, everyone knows the way to a woman’s heart is through her tortoise.

From Publishers Weekly Oct 01, 1990 – This celebrated, splendidly matched author-illustrator team here present a 64-page love story that is equally sweet and silly. For years, Mr. Hoppy has leaned over his balcony rail to gaze longingly at Mrs. Silver, who lives one floor below him. But all of her attention and affection is showered upon her pet tortoise, Alfie. Although the creature seems content, his devoted owner is concerned because he has gained a mere three ounces in the 11 years she has owned him. When the distressed Mrs. Silver tells her neighbor that she will be his ``slave for life'' if he can find a way to make Alfie grow, the determined Mr. Hoppy devises an elaborate scheme to make her think the tortoise is growing. (Since tortoises, according to Mr. Hoppy, are backward creatures that ``can only understand words that are written backwards,'' his exhortation to the pet begins ``Esio Trot''--which is ``tortoise'' reversed.) It is a happy Hoppy who gets all the credit--and Mrs. Silver's hand.

Adults and older children will appreciate Dahl's superior storytelling skills, and will chuckle at Blake's animated, cartoony drawings. But the book's length and subtle humor make it less suitable for beginning readers. All ages. © Publishers Weekly Publisher: Penguin Young Readers Group Seller: Penguin Group (USA) Inc. Print Length: 64 Pages Language: English Requirements: To view this book, you must have an iOS device with iBooks 1.3.1 or later and iOS 4.3.3 or later, or a Mac with iBooks 1.0 or later and OS X 10.9 or later. Customer Ratings Children's Book Review: Esio Trot by Roald Dahl, Author, R. Hayes, Editor, Quentin Blake, Illustrator Viking Children's Books $16.99 (64p) ISBN 978-0-670-83451-8 Powell's ADVERTISEMENT This celebrated, splendidly matched author-illustrator team here present a 64-page love story that is equally sweet and silly. For years, Mr. Hoppy has leaned over his balcony rail to gaze longingly at Mrs. Silver, who lives one floor below him.

But all of her attention and affection is showered upon her pet tortoise, Alfie. Although the creature seems content, his devoted owner is concerned because he has gained a mere three ounces in the 11 years she has owned him. When the distressed Mrs. Silver tells her neighbor that she will be his ``slave for life'' if he can find a way to make Alfie grow, the determined Mr. Hoppy devises an elaborate scheme to make her think the tortoise is growing. (Since tortoises, according to Mr. Hoppy, are backward creatures that ``can only understand words that are written backwards,'' his exhortation to the pet begins ``Esio Trot''--which is ``tortoise'' reversed.) It is a happy Hoppy who gets all the credit--and Mrs. Silver's hand. Adults and older children will appreciate Dahl's superior storytelling skills, and will chuckle at Blake's animated, cartoony drawings. But the book's length and subtle humor make it less suitable for beginning readers. All ages.

(Oct.) DETAILS ‘Roald Dahl’s Esio Trot’ Review: BBC Movie Stars Dustin Hoffman, Judi Dench | Variety Print March 29, 2015 | 04:00PM PT The Weinstein Co. has U.S. rights to this upbeat British TV movie, in which Dustin Hoffman offers Judi Dench a hand with her pet tortoise. A rare romance from the typically dark imagination of children’s book author Roald Dahl, “Esio Trot” spells more than just “tortoise” backwards, but an evening of warm-fuzzy feelings all around as Dustin Hoffman ’s Mr. Hoppy devises an elaborate scheme to woo the chelonian-loving widow downstairs, as played by Judi Dench . Commissioned as a New Year’s telepic for British TV, this delightful family offering is already making its way to homevideo in several European markets, but could potentially support a more substantial treatment Stateside, if someone were to shell out for theatrical (exec producers Harvey and Bob Weinstein bought all other U.S. rights). Judging by Hoffman and Dench’s involvement alone, this is no ordinary TV movie.

Co-written by “Love Actually’s” Richard Curtis (who shares credit with Paul Mayhew-Archer) and directed by smallscreen miracle worker Dearbhla Walsh (“Little Dorrit,” “Shameless”), the film has been crafted with all the care that might go into a cinema-bound feature, but suits the tube, given its inherently small confines. Dahl’s story takes place almost entirely in an apartment building, where its two lonelyhearts, silver-haired Mr. Hoppy and redheaded Mrs. Silver (Dench), live one above the other. For years, Mr. Hoppy’s pride and joy has been the extravagant garden he keeps on the balcony of his otherwise modestly appointed bachelor flat. Ever since the day Mrs. Silver (Dench) moved in, Mr. Hoppy has dedicated any free time he can find to tending his plants, which conveniently gives the shy old man a chance to gaze down on his upbeat new neighbor and, when he can find the courage, to exchange a few words. Oh, how he longs to tell Mrs. Silver how he truly feels! But alas, she already loves someone else: her pet tortoise, Alfie, whom she keeps on her own balcony. Now, Mrs.

Silver “never was the brightest bulb in the chandelier” (to use her own expression), and she frets that little Alfie isn’t growing fast enough. Even preschool children know that she has chosen the wrong sort of pet for that, considering that tortoises are among nature’s slowest growing creatures, not to mention that Mrs. Silver is well into her golden years already. But Mr. Hoppy, who happens to overhear her wish, has other ideas. Wanting nothing more than to make Mrs. Silver happy, he goes out and buys 100 tortoises of every size he can find. After instructing Mrs. Silver to recite a made-up Bedouin chant (composed entirely of backwards words) which he claims will make Alfie grow faster, he constructs an elaborate rig with which to grab the little guy from her balcony and replace him with a lookalike who happens to be just a wee bit bigger, repeating the process with a different tortoise every few days. The “genius” of his plan, as chokably cheery narrator James Corden explains, is that the size differences are so small, Mrs.

Silver won’t even notice that Alfie appears to be growing — until the day he can no longer fit through the door of his own hutch. Such a fanciful courtship is easy enough to conjure in a reader’s imagination, but poses significant logistical challenges to a live-action director, which is where Walsh’s ingenuity comes into play. First, there’s all the reptile wrangling involved, plus the far trickier question of tone, which she manages to keep amusing where it so easily might have lapsed into silliness. Since Mr. Hoppy’s odd plan isn’t so obviously romantic at first, the film leans on a few well-placed Louis Armstrong tunes and tosses in a rival neighbor, the boorish Mr. Pringle (Richard Cordery), as competition. Rather than attempt an accent, Hoffman’s character has been rewritten as American.

A Brit would surely be shier, but the chemistry still works great between the two leads — legendary actors three years apart in age whom no one had previously thought to imagine as a couple — in part because they’re each playing against type: Wonderfully bombastic in other roles, Hoffman inverts that dynamic and becomes an adorably timid soul, while Dench, so often reserved as proper British characters, surprises in such an openly flirtatious part, clad in bright colors and low-cut dresses, while tapping into a daffy, Lucille Ball-like energy we didn’t know was there. Never hip, despite mentions of Facebook statuses and “hip-hop stylings,” the script endears through its often corny sense of humor — the sort that should play well to both the very young and very old, without alienating the harder-to-please generations in between. With his constant interruptions, Corden can be a bit irritating, though the addition of an energetic narrator cleverly serves to inject some scenery into the otherwise closed-off tale.

Walsh shows the young man zipping all over London, whereas Hoppy only makes it as far as the pet shop, otherwise sticking close to home — which, of course, is where British auds saw the film when the BBC aired it on New Year’s Day, and where it’s sure to get a fair amount of repeat viewing, now that it’s available to own. TV Review: 'Roald Dahl's Esio Trot' BBC One, Thurs. Jan 1., 6:30 p.m. Production Filmed in London by Endor Prods. Executive producers, Richard Curtis, Matthew Read, Bob Weinstein, Harvey Weinstein; producer, Hilary Bevan Jones; director, Dearbhla Walsh; writers, Richard Curtis, Paul Mayhew-Archer, based on the book by Roald Dahl.

Crew Camera (color), Ben Smithard; editor, Tim Murrell; music, Tim Phillips; production designer, Tom Burton; art director, Dominic Roberts; set decorator, Barbara Herman-Skelding; costume designer, Jenny Beavan; sound, Chris Ashworth; re-recording mixer, Stuart Hilliker; visual effects supervisors, Simon Frame, Adam McInnes; visual effects, Dneg TV; stunt coordinator, Gareth Milne; line producer, Ian Hogan; assistant directors, Harry Boyd, Matthew Scrivener; casting, Rachel Freck. Esio Trot: Roald Dahl, Blake Quentin: 9780141304649: Books - Amazon.ca By Renee @ Mother Daughter Book Reviews on Feb. 18 2015 Format: Kindle Edition My son (8) and I (the Mom) reviewed this book for Mother Daughter Book Reviews. You can visit our website for the full reviews. SON SAYS: The book is about a man who lives in an apartment who is very lonely but under him, there’s one person he secretly loves but he won’t tell anybody. That person (Mrs. Silver) gives all her love to her pet tortoise, Alfie. Mrs.

Silver thinks that Alfie is not growing fast enough and he’s too small. So, one day, Mr. Hoppy tells Mrs. Silver about a secret spell to help Alfie grow. Then, he invents the tortoise catcher, goes to a pet shop and buys 140 tortoises and then every few days, he switches a tortoise for a bigger one so it looks like Alfie is growing. Then, Mrs. Silver is happy and they get married. I think the pictures were really funny and cool. I really liked the one with Mr. Hoppy and all the tortoises in his living room. I liked the spell because it’s really cool how it works, but I can’t tell you how. I liked how he went to buy tortoises so he could switch them every few days. He was sneaking around and it was funny. I thought it was really good, cool, and funny. It was one of my favorite books by Roald Dahl. I would give it 5 stars. I think that a lot of people might like this book but some might not. Some grown-ups might like it – my Mom did!

MOM SAYS: Roald Dahl and Quentin Blake have created a unique and memorable story in Esio Trot. If you are already a fan of Dahl’s children’s books, I’m sure you will also enjoy Esio Trot! It is a great choice for reading aloud or for independent readers who are not quite ready for middle grade tomes such as Harry Potter and Percy Jackson. Ages 5 to 10. * This book was purchased as a Christmas gift for my son. All opinions expressed are our own. * Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback... Thank you for your feedback. Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again. By Michael Mathena on June 5 2001 Format: Paperback "Esio Trot" is the story of a lonely old gentleman who finds the way to the heart of the middle-aged widow he had secretly adored for years. The lady could be seen tending to her beloved little turtle, for whom she had a little house on her balcony. Her one wish was to have the little critter "grow" a little bigger. Read how the old man "tricks" the woman into believing that her tiny tortoise had grown enormously through "magic".

There is, of course, a wonderful happy ending. -- I can recommend this book especially for children who fear "lengthy reading" or who have difficulty focusing on a book for hours on end. The reading of "Esio Trot" can be completed in about an hour by most 8-10 year olds. If a child "breezes" through this book, then they are ready for such specialties as "Matilda" and "The BFG", both by the same author, Roald Dahl, and both deserving of 5 star ratings. You can never go wrong with ANY of Roald Dahl's books! Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback... Thank you for your feedback. Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again. By Jane on Nov. 15 2008 Format: Paperback Esio Trot ('tortoise' spelled backwards) by Roald Dahl is an enjoyable book that is aimed for children and is extremely short. However, I wonder if it is truly aimed for children since it teaches some bad lessons, such as to get what you want, you must deceive others. Esio Trot is an educational book that teaches children about widows, retirement, and tortoises.

This is Roald Dahl's better novels. Esio Trot is about Mr. Hoppy, who is in love with Mrs. Silver, a widow who lives in the apartment right underneath his. They often speak to each other since Mr. Hoppy's balcony is right above her balcony. Mr. Hoppy, a retired man, is too shy to approach Mrs. Silver, even though he is in love with her. He notices that all of Mrs. Silver's love is given to a small tortoise named Alfie. Opportunity strikes unexpectedly one day to bring the two closer together. If Mr. Hoppy's plan works, then he believes that Mrs. Silver will definitely fall in love with him. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback... Thank you for your feedback. Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again. By Ne0nXSuNsHine on May 5 2002 Format: Paperback I got this book in a boxed set of Roald Dahl's books. While I loved Matilda and *liked* The Witches, I found this book almost, well, comepletely stupid. Mr. Hoppy has loved his neigbor Ms.

Silver for a very long time, but has never summond up the courage to tell her his feelings. One day while they were having a chat, Ms. Silver mentions that she worries about her much loved tortises size. So Mr.Silver comes up with a ridiculous plan to make it look the it had grown, then before you know it, they're married. I read this book in about twenty minutes, and i can never see how this can be depictied as a novel. The story was absolutely just plain stupid! This was written for younger audiences, I kept that in mind, but I dont think it's the kind of story children would like, there's no point to it! NOT reccomended. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback... Thank you for your feedback. Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again. By Kristen P. Hintz on Feb. 15 2004 Format: Paperback Secretly in love with Mrs. Silver is the desperately shy Mr. Hoppy. He adores her completely and believes he must do something to make her fall in love with him and tear apart some from her obsession with her beloved tortoise, Alfie.

The two are neighbors in the apartment building and they rarely do anything more but have a small chat. Mrs. Silver is displeased because Alfie is small. She has heard of great, immense tortoises that people could ride on and she wishes Alfie would grow. So, thinking this as a chance to win over Mrs. Silver, Mr. Hoppy gives her a little special something to make Alfie grow. He has devised a wonderful plan to finally have the woman of his dreams. Esio Trot was an exceptional book, and a short one. If you are looking for a quick read, this is the book to choose. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback... Thank you for your feedback. Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again. Roald Dahl's Esio Trot (TV Movie 2015) - IMDb IMDb 17 January 2017 4:34 PM, UTC NEWS There was an error trying to load your rating for this title. Some parts of this page won't work property. Please reload or try later. X Beta I'm Watching This! Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends.

Error Roald Dahl's Esio Trot ( 2015 ) 1h 28min A retired bachelor has a thing for his neighbour who only shows affection to her pet tortoise. Director: a list of 46 titles created 30 Dec 2013 a list of 24 titles created 11 Dec 2014 a list of 40 titles created 06 Jan 2015 a list of 37 titles created 28 Feb 2015 a list of 43 titles created 27 Mar 2015 Title: Roald Dahl's Esio Trot (TV Movie 2015) 7/10 Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. 1 win & 1 nomination. See more awards » Photos Edit Storyline Lonely, ageing bachelor Mr Hoppy lives in a London flat and has two loves in his life - his balcony garden and Mrs Silver, the widow in the flat below. Sadly Mrs Silver is too fond of her tortoise Alfie to respond.

Noting that Mrs Silver is perturbed that Alfie never seems to grow Mr Hoppy hatches a plan to show her how much he cares. This involves buying dozens of tortoises of increasing sizes to gradually substitute for Alfire, leading Mrs Silver to believe that a Bedouin chant - Esio Trot - is making her pet grow. However he is rumbled when one of the tortoises escapes. And, with another, brash resident vying for Mrs Silver's affections, will Mr Hoppy find happiness with the woman he loves?

Written by don @ minifie-1 Agu trot - Esio Trot, Del Sol Books Agu trot Agu trot , Softcover, Spanish, Book, Roald Dahl, Quentin Blake, 3rd Grade and Up, 9789702902416, $9.95 Esio Trot , Softcover, English, Book, Roald Dahl, Quentin Blake, 3rd Grade and Up, 9780142413821, $5.99 $104.28 for the Roald Dahl Spanish Collection , Including 20%-Off, Free Shipping, and No Sales Tax : 13 Softcover Spanish Books Mr. Hoppy is in love with his neighbor, Mrs. Silver, but she is in love with her pet tortoise. Mr. Hoppy comes up with an idea to get Mrs. Silver�s attention. If his plan works, Mrs. Silver will certainly fall in love with him. After all, everyone knows the way to a woman�s heart is through her tortoise. Publishers Weekly : This celebrated, splendidly matched author-illustrator team here present a 64-page love story that is equally sweet and silly.

For years, Mr. Hoppy has leaned over his balcony rail to gaze longingly at Mrs. Silver, who lives one floor below him. But all of her attention and affection is showered upon her pet tortoise, Alfie. Although the creature seems content, his devoted owner is concerned because he has gained a mere three ounces in the 11 years she has owned him. When the distressed Mrs. Silver tells her neighbor that she will be his "slave for life" if he can find a way to make Alfie grow, the determined Mr. Hoppy devises an elaborate scheme to make her think the tortoise is growing. (Since tortoises, according to Mr. Hoppy, are backward creatures that "can only understand words that are written backwards," his exhortation to the pet begins "Esio Trot"--which is "tortoise" reversed.) It is a happy Hoppy who gets all the credit--and Mrs. Silver's hand. Adults and older children will appreciate Dahl's superior storytelling skills, and will chuckle at Blake's animated, cartoony drawings. But the book's length and subtle humor make it less suitable for beginning readers. All ages.

School Library Journal : Grade 3-6-- What is this? A love story by Dahl? By the master of the malign, the nabob of the nasty, the king of the coarse, the baron of the body function? Can it truly be he? Well, in a word . . . yes--it can. And to those who still disbelieve, it's a sweetly insouciant love story at that. For years, old Mr. Hoppy has loved his neighbor, Mrs. Silver, a widow who, alas, only has eyes for her pet tortoise, Alfie. The details of how her wish that Alfie would grow a little faster inspires Mr. Hoppy to win the widow's heart will not be divulged here (but it has something to do with the fact that "Esio Trot" is "tortoise" spelled backward). There's not much room for character development in this slender story, but Blake's jauntily scribbled illustrations are--as always--the perfect comic complement and manage to give even Alfie a personality. Esio Trot - large paperback This item is out of stock. Esio Trot Description A large, colourful paperback edition of Roald Dahl's Esio Trot.

"Tortoises are very backward creatures. Therefore they can only understand words that are written backwards. That's obvious, isn't it?" Mr Hoppy thinks up an elaborate plan to try to win the heart of his neighbour, the tortoise-loving Miss Silver. All he needs is a little patience, a few cabbage leaves and an apartment full of tortoises. With full colour illustrations by Quentin Blake throughout. ----- For our Canadian visitors: please note, this product is not available to purchase through this website. Please follow the links below to purchase this item in your country. *Link opens in a new window Product Information Illustrations: Colour Other languages Looking for a non-English language edition? Click here to take a look at our list of Roald Dahl's worldwide publishers and find out if Esio Trot is available in your territory. Other versions Esio Trot, Paperback (£4.19) Shipping Orders to the UK will be charged a fixed shipping fee per order of £3.95. Orders to other countries are charged at the following rates (prices are per product ordered). Orders are usually despatched within 2 working days.

We aim to deliver within the UK and Europe within 5 working days of despatch, and within 10 working days of despatch for deliveries to the rest of the world. Import duty and taxes may apply on international orders. The purchaser is responsible for meeting these costs. Please see Terms and Conditions for further information. Esio Trot - Large colour paperback EU: £4.45, ROW: £4.45

Question: Roald Dahl's children's novel Esio Trot features which creature?
Answer: Tortoise