The Enormous Crocodile, by Roald Dahl

(hb; 1978: children's picture book. Illustrations by Quentin Blake.)

From the inside flap:

"When the Enormous Crocodile decides he would like a nice juicy little child for lunch, the other animals - his friend the Notsobig One, Humpy-Rumpy the Hippopamus, Trunky the Elephant, Muggle-Wump the Monkey, and the Roly-Poly Bird -- are horrified.

"But the Enormous Crocodile continues on his way with his secret plans and clever tricks, which will bring deliciously exciting shivers to the spine of every young reader.

"In the end, he get exactly what he deserves.

"One of Roald Dahl's most popular picture books. . . The Enormous Crocodile is now in a storybook edition for those beginning to read on their own. It was the first of Roald Dahl's stories to be illustrated by Quentin Blake, marking the beginning of a wonderfully successful relationship."

Review:

Darkly serendipitous wordplay and tone abound in this sublime moral (i.e., the moral is never stated outright) beginning-to-read children's book.

Blake's illustrations are true to Dahl's almost-shocking-for-a-kid's-book vision, storyline and characters, adding to the hijinky and comic payback feel of The Enormous Crocodile.

Going to be chuckling over this one for a while. Worth owning, even if you're an adult without kids.