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James and the Giant Peach Paperback – August 16, 2007
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One of TIME MAGAZINE’s 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time
After James Henry Trotter's parents are tragically eaten by a rhinoceros, he goes to live with his two horrible aunts, Spiker and Sponge. Life there is no fun, until James accidentally drops some magic crystals by the old peach tree and strange things start to happen. The peach at the top of the tree begins to grow, and before long it's as big as a house. Inside, James meets a bunch of oversized friends—Grasshopper, Centipede, Ladybug, and more. With a snip of the stem, the peach starts rolling away, and the great adventure begins!
Roald Dahl is the author of numerous classic children’s stories including Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, The BFG, and many more!
“James and the Giant Peach remains a favorite among kids and parents alike nearly 60 years after it was first published, thanks to its vivid imagery, vibrant characters and forthright exploration of mature themes like death and hope.” —TIME Magazine
- Print length146 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- Grade level3 - 7
- Lexile measure790L
- Dimensions7.6 x 5 x 0.5 inches
- PublisherViking Books for Young Readers
- Publication dateAugust 16, 2007
- ISBN-100142410365
- ISBN-13978-0142410363
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book thoroughly enjoyable and immerses them in the story. They describe the story as engaging, filled with magic, and adventure. Readers also find the humor funny, silly, and lovable. They appreciate the great illustrations and character variety. However, some customers find the print color difficult to read.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the book thoroughly enjoyable, great, and immerses the reader. They say it has delightful characterizations and is exciting and interesting. Readers also mention it's a timeless classic.
"...This book, published in 1961, is one of the most famous books worldwide to this day. It is a fictional-fantasy story and has a child-friendly plot...." Read more
"My daughter had to read for summer reading. Classic book! She loved it!" Read more
"...Pacing is fun, writing is very Dahl-ish and it's a book I'd happily re-read for myself or read to a classroom given the opportunity." Read more
"Bought this for my classroom and the kids loved the story - I did have to censor some words." Read more
Customers find the story quality great, engaging, and fun. They say it's filled with magic and adventure. Readers also mention the book is the best for imagination and adventure. They also mention it's exciting, funny, and has many plot twists.
"...and vivid words like “hurtled” or “plunged” which makes the book fun to read. It is very easy to imagine and feels like you're in the story itself...." Read more
"...Pacing is fun, writing is very Dahl-ish and it's a book I'd happily re-read for myself or read to a classroom given the opportunity." Read more
"...Great mini adventure story for kids and parents!" Read more
"...his death in 1990, and each of them is a masterpiece of invention, excitement, humor, and scariness that children love to experience...." Read more
Customers find the book funny, creative, and quirky. They say it's silly and fun, with fun words like scrumptious and delectable. Readers also mention that the poetry alone makes them laugh.
"...Both books are easy to picture and have fun words in them such as “scrumptious”, “delectable”, or “enraptured”...." Read more
"...Adaptations aside, this one gets top marks for being fun, quirky, creative, smile inducing, sweet, and enjoyable...." Read more
"...in 1990, and each of them is a masterpiece of invention, excitement, humor, and scariness that children love to experience...." Read more
"...Some of his poetry is quite highbrow and amusing however, particularly his poems about the fat and skinny aunts...." Read more
Customers find the illustrations in the book great and fabulous. They say the book is easy to picture and has fun words. Readers also mention it's easy to imagine the scenes.
"...Both books are easy to picture and have fun words in them such as “scrumptious”, “delectable”, or “enraptured”...." Read more
"...to capture the attention of young listeners and filling their minds with wondrous images.If you haven't read it, do so...." Read more
"...This book edition has all the fabulous original art and we absolutely loved it...." Read more
"...I know, it looks cool, but I'd have gladly paid the extra ~ $1 for a black-text and peach chapter headings and illustrations version...." Read more
Customers find the characters quirky and fun. They appreciate the opportunities for different character voices. Readers also mention that the insects' personalities are hilarious.
"...All the characters are fun and interesting, from the mean aunts to the insect menagerie of companions James has by a fortuitous accident...." Read more
"10 year old boy review: liked all the funny characters especially the cloud men!Great mini adventure story for kids and parents!" Read more
"Reading it with my 9 year olds and they are loving the characters and the craziness of this read." Read more
"...and the book has two Very Nasty Adults. But not ALL the adults are nasty. And this world has some very nasty adults, so there you have it...." Read more
Customers find the book very nice for the price. They say it's a valuable life lesson and helpful for college.
"...this classic to my daughter and this paperback version was the perfect price to get th job done." Read more
"...I think that's an extremely valuable life lesson and something anyone can appreciate...." Read more
"...I'm happy this edition is still available and can be bought for a reasonable price!" Read more
"Very grateful for a fair price on a difficult to find book - thank you!" Read more
Customers find the print color of the book difficult to read. They say it's a poor choice for the ink and the text is printed in light orange.
"...Here, the pale, peach-tinted ink -- set off against the off-white, cheaply pulped page -- fails the text miserably...." Read more
"The print in the book was pale peach and I could not read it. Shame" Read more
"...the font is usually bigger, but buyers be aware that the prints are in light peach/orange, which makes it extremely difficult to read...." Read more
"Love the story but not the format. Print is peach which is clever but hard to read. I found the illustrations pretty amateurish." Read more
Reviews with images
Review of Hardcover Edition 978-0425287651
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Top reviews from the United States
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James and the Giant Peach is a very descriptive book and makes it easy to imagine the scenes. This story starts off in London, England, in the countryside in James’s aunt’s house. Later on, James meets bugs inside the peach. The peach then ends up in the Atlantic Ocean and arrives in America.
James is the protagonist. His friends are giant bugs named Old-Green-Grasshopper, Centipede, Earthworm, Spider, and Ladybug. Although these bugs can be impatient, they cooperate with James and are friendly to him.
James is a curious orphan who was trapped with his cruel aunts for many years. One day, his aunts went to their garden and found an enormous peach on one of the trees. The aunts locked him outside of the house for some time as punishment, and that's when he spotted the giant peach. He examined the peach and found a big hole. Big enough for James to fit in it. He stepped into the hole and found the seed of the peach. The seed of the peach opened. James went inside where he met his future friends. Unfortunately, not after long, the peach started rolling, and rolling, and rolling. And that’s how his adventure begins.
James and the Giant Peach is filled with descriptive scenes and vivid words like “hurtled” or “plunged” which makes the book fun to read. It is very easy to imagine and feels like you're in the story itself. This novel is similar to other Roald Dahl books such as Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Both books are easy to picture and have fun words in them such as “scrumptious”, “delectable”, or “enraptured”. The common theme can be that karma comes around.
Even though James was treated poorly by his aunts, he doesn’t become bitter or mean spirited. He still helped out the bugs. This shows that you can help out people and make friends even when it seems like you can’t. The theme of James and the Giant Peach relates to my life when I switched schools in fifth grade. I thought I wouldn’t be able to make friends or have fun. Soon someone did end up making friends with me, and then I had hope about making more friends. In just a little bit of time, I was having a lot of fun during recess and had many friends.
Adaptations aside, this one gets top marks for being fun, quirky, creative, smile inducing, sweet, and enjoyable. All the characters are fun and interesting, from the mean aunts to the insect menagerie of companions James has by a fortuitous accident. This is not a book that will ever stress you out and quite often makes you chuckle at the sweet and silly things the insects say. It is also a redeeming journey for James, who had always been told he was worthless, in his journey to showing that he is truly a hero. It's a subtle message but an important one for people of all ages, and for me on a personal note: at times you are a hero or worthless depending on the context and the people who are around you. I think that's an extremely valuable life lesson and something anyone can appreciate.
Pacing is fun, writing is very Dahl-ish and it's a book I'd happily re-read for myself or read to a classroom given the opportunity.
Great mini adventure story for kids and parents!
Mr. Dahl wrote many children's books before his death in 1990, and each of them is a masterpiece of invention, excitement, humor, and scariness that children love to experience. In my opinion, JAMES and the GIANT PEACH, his first children's book after a decade and a half of writing adult stories, is the most appealing, never failing to capture the attention of young listeners and filling their minds with wondrous images.
If you haven't read it, do so. If you haven't read it to a child, do that also -- as soon as possible.
Top reviews from other countries
Jacob (age 7)
Reviewed in Spain on February 18, 2021








