Fantastic Mr. Fox

‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’ is a well-known children’s novel written by Roald Dahl and illustrated by Quentin Blake. The story’s protagonist – Mr. Fox, lives beneath a tree with his wife and four small children; who he provides for by stealing food. Mr Fox’s food sources are three nearby farms (owned by the farmers; Boggis, Bunce and Bean. When Boggis, Bunce and Bean become fed up with the thievery- they attempt to dig Mr. Fox out from his home in the ground. The rest of the story details the challenges faced by the protagonist – as he formulates a plan to save his family and the rest of the underground community who he has placed in danger.

Dahl has created a complex character in Mr Fox; one who is confident, charismatic and cunning – yet not infallible. In addition to this; Dahl retains an element of ‘wildness’ about Mr Fox – despite extensive and constant use of anthropomorphism. These elements combine to form a captivating, entertaining and relatable character who readers soon engage with and warm to.

Blake’s illustrations (like in so many Roald Dahl books) add ‘movement’ and whimsy to ‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’. Through his iconic, ‘spindly’ drawings – Blake contributes to the personality filled characters and magical absurdity which characterise Dahl’s work.

I think this story would be best suited to children in year three or four. The book’s language and reading level seems to be appropriate for children of this age group - while it should still challenge them with some new vocabulary.  In terms of the book’s content – there is plenty of material for discussion in the classroom – such as themes of environmental destruction, greed, facing up to mistakes and working as a team.

I think ‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’ is a valuable book for use in the classroom – particularly as the use of animals (and anthropomorphism) almost always attracts children’s interest and will therefore make reading the book a positive experience.