Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, by Roald Dahl

(1964: prequel to Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator. Illustrated by Quentin Blake.)

From the inside flap:

"Young Charlie Bucket can't believe his luck when he finds the very last of Mr. Willy Wonka's Golden Tickets inside his chocolate bar. He wins the trip of a lifetime -- a magical tour around Mr. Wonka's mysterious chocolate factory. once inside, Charlie and the four other winners -- Augustus Gloop, Veruca Salt, Violet Beauregarde, and Mike Teavee -- witness amazing wonders: rainbow drops, lickable wallpaper, and even a chocolate waterfall. But what happens when the children, one by one, disobey Mr. Wonka? In Roald Dahl's most popular story for children, the nasty are punished and the good are deliciously rewarded."

Review:

Whimsical, timeless, gently subversive morality work, this: by now most of us know the story, whether it's through the book, or the two movie versions.

One of my favorite all-time children's books.

#

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory has been filmed twice.

The first version, under the title Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, starred Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka. Released stateside on June 30, 1971, it was directed by Mel Stuart, from a script by book author Roald Dahl, and an uncredited David Seltzer.

Peter Ostrum played Charlie Bucket. Jack Albertson played Grandpa Joe. Julie Dawn Cole played Veruca Salt. Roy Kinnear played Mr. Salt. Denise Nickerson played Violet Beauregarde. Leonard Stone played Mr. Beauregarde. Paris Themmen played Mike Teevee. Nora Denney, credited as Dodo Denney, played Mrs. Teevee. Michael Bollner played Augustus Gloop. Ursula Reit played Mrs. Gloop. Diane Sowle played Mrs. Bucket.

#

The second version, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, was released stateside on July 15, 2005. John August scripted; Tim Burton directed.

Johnny Depp played Willy Wonka. Freddy Highmore played Charlie Bucket. David Kelly played Grandpa Joe. Helena Bonham Carter played Mrs. Bucket. Noah Taylor played Mr. Bucket. Christopher Lee played Dr. Wonka. Julia Winter played Veruca Salt. James Fox played Mr. Salt.

My French Whore, by Gene Wilder

(hb; 2007)

From the inside flap:

"The beloved actor and screenwriter's first novel, set during World War I, delicately and elegantly explores a most unusual romance. It's almost at the end of the war and Paul Peachy, a young railway employee and amateur actor in Milwaukee, realizes his marriage is one-sided. He enlists, and ships off to France. Peachy instantly realizes how out of his depth he is -- and never more so than when he is captured. Risking everything, Peachy -- who as a child of immigrants speaks German -- makes the reckless decision to impersonate one of the enemy's most famous spies.

"As the urbane and accomplished spy Harry Stroller, Peachy has access to a world he could never have known existed -- a world of sumptuous iving, world-weary men, and available women. But when one of those women, Annie, a young, beautiful and wary courtesan, turns out to be more than she seems, Peachy's life is transformed forever."

Review:

Funny, deftly-composed and sentimental (but not overly so), this novella charms. The characters are well-rendered, as are the various milieux Peachy finds himself in.

Great, speedy read. Can't wait to see what Wilder comes out with next.