UEL Primary PGCE 2014-2015 discussion

George's Marvellous Medicine
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Book review number two

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message 1: by Jaimee (last edited Aug 22, 2014 09:23AM) (new) - rated it 4 stars

Jaimee Baker (jaimeeb) | 12 comments George’s Marvellous Medicine, for ages 7+, written by Roald Dahl in 1981 is a children’s fantasy book as it uses supernatural phenomena as a primary plot element. The key themes include; growing up, perseverance when facing difficult circumstances and family relationships.

It focusses on a young schoolboy named George who spends a Saturday morning alone with his grandma who is compared to a witch. When he can’t stand the cantankerous, old woman any longer, George decides to cure her miserableness or make her disappear completely by concocting a special medicine of his own. George roams through his house and his fathers shed where he finds all sorts of items that he adds to his marvellous medicine which is made from all sorts including; hair remover, antifreeze, paint and much more. The results show George’s grandma growing taller and taller until she is too big for the house. After making more medicine to test it on animals, in order to sell the medicine for a profit, George’s grandmother insists on having more with disastrous but beneficial results of her shrinking into pure nothingness.

The language is full of onomatopoeic words and phrases (‘fizzle swizzle shout hooray’ – ‘watch it sloshing, swashing, sploshing’ – page 41), alliterative phrases (‘grousing, grouching, grumbling, griping about something or other’ –page 8) and frequent use of rhyme to build pace (‘So give me a bug and a jumping flea, give me two snails and lizards three’ – page 21) all mixed up with humorous descriptions of household goods (‘Nevermore Ponking Deodorant Spray’ - page 27).
The illustrations seem to compliment the text by portraying specific occurrences within every few pages of the story. Although the drawings are sketch like, represent scribbles, have no colour and generally only fill half or less of a page, emotion and a clear understanding are still represented.

The plot is simple and easy to follow – make medicine to make his grandma less horrible. It is interesting for children because the household items are humorous and the fantasy and magic of George’s grandma growing so tall that she can’t live in the family house anymore is exciting and broadens the imagination. The story is logical as each chapter leads on from the last with a progression in the making of the ‘medicine’, however the story seems to come to quite an abrupt ending. Some aspects represent real life such as the family atmosphere whereas others are pure fantasy, using aspects from the magical and supernatural genre.

This book has a few problematic issues. The hatred George feels towards his grandmother is quite troubling, e.g. ‘He really hated that horrid, old, witchy woman’ - page 18. This could possibly send out ruthless messages to children about their own family members. Also, when George’s grandma disappears at the end of the story, George’s mother didn’t consider it important that her mother had shrunk so much that she had vanished. George’s mother says ‘Ah well, I suppose it’s all for the best, really. She was a bit of a nuisance around the house, wasn’t she?’ – page 112. Another issue could be children attempting to recreate George’s ‘medicine’ at home what with the hazardous nature of some of the ingredients. This book also incorporates a theme of violence, dishonesty and suffering. There is an additional chapter about testing the medicine on animals which is inhumane. Nevertheless, it is extremely interesting for the target age group. Together with the comical storyline, short chapters, beautifully described characters and stimulating linguistic features, the book seems to be perfect for children ages 7 and older, and could also be enjoyed by younger children if read aloud to them. The main character is 8 years old, so 8 year old boys may relate to George’s values. Furthermore, it is interesting for both genders, although the main character is a boy which implies that boys could perhaps enjoy it more because of the mischievous school boy personality of George, however the other standard characters in the book mean that it can be understood and valued by both genders.

I liked the book as it was short and easy to understand. The use of rhyme, alliteration and onomatopoeia made the reading entertaining. The story is exciting but seems to come to an abrupt ending leaving the reader to guess how George is feeling or what he is thinking. Overall, the character of George who comes across as polite and clever but then tortures his mean grandma proves to be a thrilling combination.


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