Charlie
and the Chocolate Factory
by Roald Dahl

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Grades 3 & up

Fantasy, Adventure

James and the Giant Peach
Matilda
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More

Book Summary:
Charlie lives in poverty with his parents and grandparents, existing on cabbage soup, until he is offered the opportunity of a lifetime--the chance to visit Willy Wonka's secret, magical chocolate factory. 

The sequel to this book is called Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator (scroll down for more details about that book).

 Book Review:
This classic book tells a story about a sincere, good person in a unique situation in a world full of selfish people. As with many of this author's stories, the child is the true hero, even when adults are behaving badly. The moralizing against laziness and greed is tempered with playfulness and humor. As an extra bonus, the book is teeming with great vocabulary words, particularly in the strings of synonyms when the exuberant Mr. Wonka speaks.

Although later versions of this book were edited to remove some disrespectful references to the Oompa Loompas who work in Mr. Wonka's factory, it still depicts the forced removal of a group of people to perform labor for a wealthy British guy. Although the book is a fantasy, this point - like the house elves in Harry Potter and Becky's treatment in A Little Princess - is something that cannot be ignored by modern readers.

Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator

In this sequel to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the book begins with the understanding that Mr. Wonka will be giving his factory to Charlie. Charlie's entire family is welcome to live in the factory, including his four grandparents--three of whom have not gotten out of bed for many years. An accident sends the factory's elevator and everyone in it into outer space. Mr. Wonka, Charlie, and his family must deal with space creatures, the U.S. government, and each other.

"Mr. Wonka is the most amazing, the most fantastic, the most extraordinary chocolate maker the world has ever seen!"

Chocolate & Candy Inventions
Manners; Etiquette

Thinking for Yourself
Responsibility, Ethics
Poverty and Wealth
The Power of Imagination
Risk-Taking

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