James and the Giant Peach

by Roald Dahl

James Henry Trotter

Despite what anyone says (even JKR herself), i refuse to believe that this name wasn't the inspiration for Harry James Potter's name. It may have been subconscious, but it was definitely the inspiration. Especially since Harry is a diminutive of Henry (don't ask me how that happened, but it's been a thing since the Middle Ages so...)

Their names were Aunt Sponge and Aunt Spiker, and I am sorry to say that they were both really horrible people. They were selfish and lazy and cruel, and right from the beginning they started beating poor James for almost no reason at all. They never called him by his real name, but always referred to him as “you disgusting little beast” or “you filthy nuisance” or “you miserable creature,” and they certainly never gave him any toys to play with or any picture books to look at. His room was as bare as a prison cell.

Ya know, the more I think about it, Harry Potter is just a huge rip off of James in the Giant Peach in general. Young boy is orphaned - young boy goes to live with abusive aunt(s and/or uncle) - young boy is forced to be household servant and given clothes that dont fit - young boy meets mysterious stranger who changes his life forever - young boy moves into new home(/castle/peach) - young meets with zany cast of characters who provide the family he never had - together (but mostly the boy) they combat injustice and create a better world in which to live.

Most people—and especially small children—are often quite scared of being out of doors alone in the moonlight. Everything is so deadly quiet, and the shadows are so long and black, and they keep turning into strange shapes that seem to move as you look at them, and the slightest little snap of a twig makes you jump.

“But good heavens, you must be blind!” said James. “You know very well I’m blind,” snapped the Earthworm. “There’s no need to rub it in.” “I didn’t mean that,” said James quickly. “I’m sorry. But can’t you see that—” “See?” shouted the poor Earthworm. “How can I see if I am blind?” James took a deep, slow breath. “Can’t you realize,” he said patiently “that we have enough food here to last us for weeks and weeks?”

“What are you looking so worried about, Earthworm?” the Centipede asked. “What’s the problem?” “The problem is…” the Earthworm said, “the problem is…well, the problem is that there is no problem!”

“They are sharks!” cried the Earthworm. “I’ll bet you anything you like that they are sharks and they have come along to eat us up!” “What absolute rot!” the Centipede said, but his voice seemed suddenly to have become a little shaky, and he wasn’t laughing. “I am positive they are sharks!” said the Earthworm. “I just know they are sharks!” And so, in actual fact, did everybody else, but they were too frightened to admit it.

“Go on, James,” the Ladybug said gently. “How are you going to do it?” “Skyhooks, I suppose,” jeered the Centipede.

those do exist you know, they're what hold up the great glass eelevator owned by Willie Wonka

“My dear young fellow,” the Old-Green-Grasshopper said gently, “there are a whole lot of things in this world of ours that you haven’t started wondering about yet.

“I’d rather be fried alive and eaten by a Mexican!” wailed the Old-Green-Grasshopper.

Some parts of this book dont age well

And James Henry Trotter, who once, if you remember, had been the saddest and loneliest little boy that you could find, now had all the friends and playmates in the world.