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Title: The Vicar of Nibbleswick
Authors: Roald Dahl
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Childrens Fiction
Pages: 6
Words: 1K
I have no idea how this story got to be on its own instead of being folded into some sort of collection. Be that as it may, this feels like a good ending to my Dahl re-read. Short and sweet and amusing.
The Vicar says words backwards and Dahl has a blast figuring out language tricks to make things sound not just nonsensical but actually correct grammatically while being totally wrong in what the poor Vicar is trying to say. One funny instance is him trying to tell the congregation not to “park” their cars alongside the front of the church but to use the back parking lot. I laughed, as it comes out like telling them to not krap in front of the church, hahahhaa. Good stuff!
Having started my Dahl re-read back in December of ‘21 with Matilda, which is close to being one of his longest books, like I mentioned at first, this short story felt like a great way to finish things up. I’ve enjoyed this almost year and a half journey of exploring Dahl all over again but I’ve realized that I probably won’t do it again on my own. I feel like Dahl has a magic circle that his books work in and I’ve simply aged out of that circle. They are still wonderful and amusing stories and I’ll remember them very fondly, but I am now done.
★★★✬☆
Bookstooge's Reviews on the Road 
Now if the whole book was a palindrome, that would be something.
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THAT would be a miracle I think!
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Nice to end on a high! Onwards….!
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I am happy this whole re-read went so well.
Of course, now I have to choose my next juvenile series to read. Can’t keep reading nothing but serious stuff like Groo and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles after all 😉
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Are you saying you’re told old for this?
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correcto mungo! Boba FaCT!
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It’s good to end on a high note. Who knows, maybe in another 30 years you’ll be back in that magic circle! 😀
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And that’s what I’m concerned about, hahahahaa.
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I still loved his books when my kids were young, but I don’t know if I would like them now either. I will still occasionally pick up a Nancy Drew book and read it. I guess I haven’t grown out of them. And they’re so predictable too!
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I guess it’s not so much that I don’t like them, as that I don’t enjoy them as much as I did last time.
I have not tried to re-read a hardy boys book, I think that ship has sailed completely for me 🙂
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Roald Dahl is a part of my childhood. His books were magical. So, I still like them but have no desire to reread any of them. I think I like Nancy Drew books because they are so straightforward and provide all kinds of details about culture and history. Also food. Nancy is always whipping up “quick” meals with complete main courses and desserts. “There isn’t much in these cupboards, but we must feed the sickly orphan, so I’ll just whip up lamb chops, creamed spinach, scalloped potatoes, and a butterscotch pudding.”
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Mhmmm, creamed spinach…
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When I saw this title in your feed, I thought it was going to be a P.G. Wodehouse book. If it’s Dahl + language play, it must be good!
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There are definite similarities between the 2 here, that’s for sure.
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What did you think of the illustrations? 😮 Or did your edition didn’t contain Quentin Blake’s art?
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I had a “stripped down” version. So there weren’t any pictures.
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