Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Esio Trot
Illustrator: Quentin Blake
Fiction
For ages 6 to 8
Random House UK, 2010 ISBN: 978-0224083867
There are two things that Mr. Hoppy really loves in this world. He loves his flowers, which are growing in tubs and pots on his balcony, and he secretly loves Mrs. Silver, who lives one floor down from Mr. Hoppy. Unfortunately, Mr. Hoppy is a very shy man and he simply cannot find the courage, or the words, to tell Mrs. Silver how much he likes her. To make matters worse, Mr. Hopper has to watch Mrs. Silver lavish all her devotion on her tortoise, Alfie. Mr. Hopper would not mind being in Alfie’s shoes if it meant that he could be on the receiving end of Mrs. Silver’s affection.
Day after day Mr. Hopper watches Mrs. Silver talking to her tortoise and giving him all her attention and devotion. Day after day Mr. Hopper tries to come up with a plan, a scheme that will show Mrs. Silver what a good man he is. Then one day an opportunity presents itself and Mr. Hopper seizes it. At last, he has the chance to prove to his love once and for all that he is the right man for her.
In this delightful story Roald Dahl gives us a very unhero-like hero; he his an average man who has to use his intelligence to get what he wants. Readers will laugh out loud when they realize what Mr. Hopper is up to, and they will be interested to find out if his rather devious scheme is going to work out.
