The Witches
Roald Dahl
written in 1983 (The Twits written 1980 and Charlie Choc Fac 196 . .. 4??)
anyway, quite note that I noticed about this book is that while I thoroughly ENJOYED it, somehow it didn't seem quite like Dahl wrote it. Almost as though he plotted it and gave it to an understudy to write it, or else it was a very good imitation of his style.
As I was reading I thought that perhaps it was one of his first books, and that his style hadn't completely developed yet. One example is that his occasional alliteration for impact didn't seem to have the same "kick" that it did in books, such as, James and the Giant Peach, for example. Now that I see that this book was written after the others, perhaps I'll have to check more closely into his age and see if it was written at a time perhaps when his production was slowing. Or who knows, maybe he did have a ghoster (although I am shamed to think so!!!)
Regardless, it's a great story and the most fascinating to me and the idea that makes me think that I'm blending two fields: I kept seeing this as a movie - as one of those movies such as Stuart Little, set in a seaside English hotel - with a thoroughly English cast (except for Grandmamma and the head witch, of course - who will be Norweigan and Vampyrric respectively!) but if you read it, perhaps you will see as well that this story lends itself to one of those wonderful movies where the only CG is the moving lips on the talking mouse, and a movie which the children will love, because even though it's not overdone with special effects and action, it does have an honest straightforward story, delightfully told.
VG
Postscript 11262007: Imagine my chagrin as I was looking through the aisles of my local Blockbuster the other day and saw on the shelves a film version of - yup! - The Witches. With Angelica Houston cast as the Head Witch - not a bad choice, all in all, excepting of course that the head witch is supposedly beautiful (sorry Angelica!) Be that as it may, what it all means is that the screenplay that I was going to shop to the Hollywood producers is now in the trash can, and I haven't even had the heart to rent it - just to see the people who stole my idea . . . 17 years before I had that idea!!
VG
written in 1983 (The Twits written 1980 and Charlie Choc Fac 196 . .. 4??)
anyway, quite note that I noticed about this book is that while I thoroughly ENJOYED it, somehow it didn't seem quite like Dahl wrote it. Almost as though he plotted it and gave it to an understudy to write it, or else it was a very good imitation of his style.
As I was reading I thought that perhaps it was one of his first books, and that his style hadn't completely developed yet. One example is that his occasional alliteration for impact didn't seem to have the same "kick" that it did in books, such as, James and the Giant Peach, for example. Now that I see that this book was written after the others, perhaps I'll have to check more closely into his age and see if it was written at a time perhaps when his production was slowing. Or who knows, maybe he did have a ghoster (although I am shamed to think so!!!)
Regardless, it's a great story and the most fascinating to me and the idea that makes me think that I'm blending two fields: I kept seeing this as a movie - as one of those movies such as Stuart Little, set in a seaside English hotel - with a thoroughly English cast (except for Grandmamma and the head witch, of course - who will be Norweigan and Vampyrric respectively!) but if you read it, perhaps you will see as well that this story lends itself to one of those wonderful movies where the only CG is the moving lips on the talking mouse, and a movie which the children will love, because even though it's not overdone with special effects and action, it does have an honest straightforward story, delightfully told.
VG
Postscript 11262007: Imagine my chagrin as I was looking through the aisles of my local Blockbuster the other day and saw on the shelves a film version of - yup! - The Witches. With Angelica Houston cast as the Head Witch - not a bad choice, all in all, excepting of course that the head witch is supposedly beautiful (sorry Angelica!) Be that as it may, what it all means is that the screenplay that I was going to shop to the Hollywood producers is now in the trash can, and I haven't even had the heart to rent it - just to see the people who stole my idea . . . 17 years before I had that idea!!
VG
posted by Verble Gherulous | 12:51 PM
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