James and the Giant Peach
James and the Giant Peach book cover
Author	Roald Dahl
Illustrator	Quentin Blake
Cover artist	Quentin Blake
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Genre(s)	Children's novel
Publisher	Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Publication date	1961
Media type	Paperback
ISBN	ISBN 0-375-81424-8

James and the Giant Peach is a children's book by Norwegian author Roald Dahl, originally illustrated by Nancy Ekholm Burkert, first published in the USA in 1961 by Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. and then in London in 1967 by Allen & Unwin. Because of the book's content it has been the frequent target of censors and appears on the American Library Association list of the 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990-2000 at number fifty six. [1] James and the Giant Peach is a 1996 fantasy film directed by Henry Selick, based on the Roald Dahl book of the same name. ... Image File history File links James and the Giant Peach book cover This image is a book cover. ... Roald Dahl (IPA: ) (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a Welsh novelist, short story author and screenwriter of Norwegian parentage, famous as a writer for both children and adults. ... Professor Quentin Saxby Blake, CBE (born December 16, 1932) is a British cartoonist and author. ... Professor Quentin Saxby Blake, CBE (born December 16, 1932) is a British cartoonist and author. ... For other uses, see Country (disambiguation). ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... A publisher is a person or entity which engages in the act of publishing. ... Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ... ISBN redirects here. ... Roald Dahl (IPA: ) (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a Welsh novelist, short story author and screenwriter of Norwegian parentage, famous as a writer for both children and adults. ... Nancy Ekholm Burkert is an American artist and illustrator, ironically best known for her first illustrated book, the original edition of James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl. ... Year 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Colophon of the publisher Alfred A. Knopf. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... Year 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the 1967 Gregorian calendar. ... Allen & Unwin, formerly a major British publishing house, is now an independent, Australia-based book publisher and distributor. ... ALA Logo The American Library Association (ALA) is a group based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. ... This article is about the year. ... Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ...

Synopsis

James Henry Trotter, a four-year old boy, has had a happy life but is orphaned as a result of a bizarre accident: his parents are killed and eaten up by a rhinoceros which has escaped from the London Zoo (although rhinos are, in truth, herbivores). He is sent to live with his two mean old aunts, Spiker and Sponge, who abuse him frequently.

One day, three years later, while chopping wood in the garden, James, then age seven, meets a strange man who mysteriously knows James's plight and gives him a small sack containing the ingredients for a magic potion, which the stranger promises will bring James wealth, happiness, and great adventure. Unfortunately, while running back to the house to hide the sack, James trips and drops it. It bursts and the magic green slithery 'things' sink into the ground and vanish without a trace – or so it then seems. James is horrified at the loss of what seemed to be his only opportunity for escape from his wretched aunts.

But things take another odd turn when a peach tree in the garden puts forth a single fruit which grows to almost twice the size of the tree. Spiker and Sponge realize they can make money, so they charge people to see the giant peach. One night, James, who has been shoved out of the house to pick up the litter from the crowd, crawls inside the giant peach, where he finds a most bizarre group of friends – all giant creepy-crawlies: the Centipede, Miss Spider, the Old-Green-Grasshopper, the Silkworm, the Earthworm, Mrs. Ladybird and the Glow-worm. The peach, with the help of the Centipede, breaks off the tree, rolls over, and flattens and kills James's two aunts, cuts a swath of destruction through the countryside, and tumbles into the Atlantic Ocean.

Seeking to float to New York City to begin new lives, the friends embark on an adventure across the sea on the giant peach. Among the things they encounter before reaching the city are a swarm of sharks and air-elemental creatures called Cloud Men, who are responsible for painting rainbows. In the end, upon reaching the city, James and his friends have wonderful lives in America. The stone of the marvelous peach is enshrined in Central Park along with the peach, James Henry Trotter's new home for the rest of his life.

Film version

Main article: James and the Giant Peach (film)

James and the Giant Peach movie cover

A film version of the same name was released in 1996, directed and co-produced, respectively, by The Nightmare Before Christmas collaborators Henry Selick and Tim Burton. It featured a combination of live-action and stop-motion animation. James and the Giant Peach is a 1996 fantasy film directed by Henry Selick, based on the Roald Dahl book of the same name. ... Image File history File links James and the Giant Peach book cover This image is a book cover. ... Image File history File links James and the Giant Peach book cover This image is a book cover. ... James and the Giant Peach is a 1996 fantasy film directed by Henry Selick, based on the Roald Dahl book of the same name. ... The Nightmare Before Christmas - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Henry Selick (November 30 1952 - ), is an American stop motion animation director who directed both The Nightmare Before Christmas, and James and the Giant Peach. ... Timothy Tim William Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an Academy Award and Golden Globe-nominated American film director, writer and designer notable for the quirky and often dark atmosphere in his high-profile films. ... A stop motion animation of a moving coin. ...

Characters

• James Henry Trotter - An ordinary 7-year-old boy, the main protagonist has had a happy life but is orphaned as a result of a bizarre and terrible accident. He is sent to live with his two aunts, Spiker and Sponge, who subject him to a variety of physical and mental abuse.
• The Old-Green-Grasshopper - is an old, wise musician (he plays the fiddle).
• The Centipede - is a boisterous but good-natured rascal, fond of eating and singing.
• The Earthworm - is blind and very pessimistic. He frequently argues with the Centipede.
• The Ladybird (or in American versions of the book, Ladybug) - is a kind, motherly character.
• The Glowworm - is a living-lighting-system for the peach's interior. She is fond of sleeping, and sometimes needs to be woken up so she can switch herself off.
• The Silkworm - is a quiet, inactive creature who helped very much with her amazing "power" to weave very fine gossamer/silk. (She is missing from the movie.)
• Miss Spider - is a gentle creature (whose web-silk replaces that of the missing character of the Silkworm in the film).
• Old Man - A wizard-like magician who helped James.
• Aunt Sponge - A dimwitted, obese aunt.
• Aunt Spiker - A cruel, thin-as-a-stick aunt.

This article is about the visual condition. ... Subfamilies Chilocorinae Coccidulinae Coccinellinae Epilachninae Scymininae Sticholotidinae etc. ... The manufacture of textiles is one of the oldest of mans technologies. ... For other uses of this word, see Silk (disambiguation). ...

References in the book to other Roald Dahl works

James and the Giant Peach possibly references Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in the beginning and end of the novel. When the peach rolls off the tree, it rolls through a "famous chocolate factory", possibly a reference to Willy Wonka's chocolate factory (the illustration even depicts the word "WONKA" on the side of the building). Towards the end of the book, people in New York City accuse the passengers aboard the peach to be Vermicious Knids, Whangdoodles, Snozzwangers or even Hornswogglers. All of those animals (except the former) are mentioned by Willy Wonka to live in Loompaland, which is also the home of Oompa-Loompas. Vermicious Knids are extraterrestrials, and feature in the sequel book, Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator. For the 2005 movie by Tim Burton, see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (film). ... Willy Wonka is a character in the classic Roald Dahl childrens book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and its sequel Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator. ... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... Vermicious knids are a species of amorphous, shape-shifting monsters which invade the Space Hotel USA in Roald Dahls Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator, the sequel to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. ... The Whangdoodle is a fanciful creature, described by singer and actress Julie Andrews Edwards in her childrens novel The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles. ... The Oompa Loompas during Augustus Gloops song in the 2005 film adaptation. ... Extraterrestrial, as an adjective, refers to something that originates, occurs, or is located outside Earth or its atmosphere. ... Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator is a childrens book by British author Roald Dahl. ...

References in the movie to other Tim Burton works

There is also a reference made to another of Tim Burton's works The Nightmare Before Christmas. When the centipede descends into the underwater ship to retrieve a compass, he catches sight of the deceased captain and exclaims, "A skellington!" Perhaps to add emphasis to the reference, as he approaches the captain (who looks very much like Jack Skellington) he cries out, "Jackpot!" The Nightmare Before Christmas - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... The Pumpkin King redirects here. ...

Editions

• ISBN 0-375-81424-8 (hardcover, 2002)
• ISBN 0-670-88577-0 (hardcover, 1999)
• ISBN 0-7868-3105-7 (hardcover, 1996)
• ISBN 0-670-85251-1 (hardcover, 1995)
• ISBN 0-613-35965-8 (library binding, 2001)
• ISBN 0-679-98090-3 (library binding, 1996)
• ISBN 0-14-130467-7 (paperback, 2001)
• ISBN 0-14-131135-5 (paperback, 2001)
• ISBN 0-14-130756-0 (paperback, 2000)
• ISBN 0-00-102494-9 (paperback, 1997)
• ISBN 0-679-88090-9 (paperback, 1996)
• ISBN 0-14-038234-8 (paperback, 1996)
• ISBN 0-14-037424-8 (paperback, 1996)
• ISBN 0-14-038297-6 (paperback, 1996)
• ISBN 0-14-037156-7 (paperback, 1995)
• ISBN 1-55734-441-8 (paperback, 1994)
• ISBN 0-14-034269-9 (paperback, 1990)