But I'm not going to give any author unconditional praise if it's not due. But I was disappointed by lots of things in this latest Walliams offering. Den britiske komikeren David Walliams har de siste femten årene skrevet barnebøker og blitt veldig populær i sjangeren. Tante Grusom ble utgitt på norsk i 2016 og handler om lille Stella og hennes tante Alberta. Når Stellas foreldre dør på tragisk vis, arver Stella herregården Saxby. Tante Alberta, og hennes nærmeste fortrolige, uglen Wagner, vil ikke godta denne arverekken, og gjør alt de kan for å slå kloa i herregården. Stella må stå opp mot tanten, og får uventet hjelp fra slottets spøkelse. Dette er en humoristisk og absurd fortelling om en moden tolvåring og en barnslig tante, med innslag av alvorlige tema ispedd rare og morsomme detaljer. A bright and brave female heroine in Stella, young heiress of a large country house, orphaned but determined not to let her evil aunt Alberta steal her house from her. It's more contained than other Walliams books. By this I mean, his usual zany humour just doesn't make as many appearances as it has in the past. There's a lot of exposition to get through, and it does make the book more serious as a result. There are also fewer settings and characters (it all takes place, like a stage play) in Saxby Hall and the grounds, with very few characters (which I felt it missed - other children, other adults). It's almost a two-hander - little girl versus evil aunt.

Awful Auntie - The World of David Walliams

What happens next? Will Aunt Alberta succeed her mission of claiming the inheritance? Is Stella’s parent’s accident being really an accident? Will Stella be able to figure out the truth? Lies the suspense of the story.But there’s even more. You can watch Grandpa's Great Escape, Mr Stink, Gangsta Granny and The Boy in the Dress on DVD. And have you listened to all of the books on audio too - hilariously read by David Walliams himself! And not forgetting that Ratburger, Demon Dentist and Awful Auntie have all won the National Book Awards Children’s Book of the Year. Not only that, but The Ice Monster won ‘Children’s Fiction Book of the Year for 2018’ at the British Book Awards! As if all that wasn’t enough, lots of bigwig reviewers have compared him to Mr Funny Books himself, Roald Dahl. Make sure you don’t miss David’s newest book… MEGA MONSTER!!

BBC - David Walliams BBC - David Walliams

A very amusing butler in the ancient Gibbon, muddling up everything nicely. Even though he is underused. She is terribly evil, like a devil has possessed her. It was just creepy and disturbing, she was a horrendous character, not only in attitude but just generally as well. She had no value, but being a villain and a bad person. It would have been nice if there had been some growth, though I guess with the fact she was evil from the beginning, there is no helping her. II A Baby Vanishes Before we continue our story, I need to tell you a little more about Aunt Alberta, and why she was so awful. This is the Saxby family tree. Aunt, urgh, most horrendous character ever. Dear Lord, I do wonder why no one took action against her, why no one could see how she was, how no one had any idea. Her brother (Stella's dad) was just way to generous, he should have said no from the start, instead of letting it go on like this. More 'Dahl-like' moments - a Mr-Twit beard moment in describing Aunt Alberta, a feel of James and the Giant Peach in some of the sad Saxby family history, some Miss-Trunchbull-like pranks)We can see illustrations in this book that gives added essence to the story. I would like to recommend this book all, especially children. Soot was an interesting character, though I knew what he was, his role and everything else, from the start. It was just so obvious that it would be odd had it been something else entirely. He was a good friend to Stella, though I felt sorry for the idea that she would lose him so soon. His accent was a bit annoying and it took me some time to get through the parts that featured him talking. This book was a step up from Mr Stink and I can't deny that it's very good. I read it to Celyn and she asked that I give it 5*. Personally I would deduct 1* and here's why: The 'Raj' epilogue is wonderful. From the moment I realised the time period I knew we wouldn't be seeing Raj. And he's my favourite (recurring) character. This may be a huge hit with the under-ten set, but I was massively disappointed. I do feel terribly sorry for the author, who clearly suffers from Trying-Too-Hard-To-Be-Like-Roald-Dahl Syndrome. (It's a real thing; I didn't just make that up. Did you catch last year's telethon? The Oompa Loompas did a smashing acapella version of Don't Worry Be Happy.)