Modern Fantasy

James and the Giant Peach
Written By: Roald Dahl
Illustrated By:Quentin Blake

Summary: James Henry Trotter, a young boy who once had an extremely happy life, went on vacation with his parents and saw them eaten by a rhinoceros. This meant he had to live with his awful aunts, Spiker and Sponge. One day, a wizard comes to James while he is crying in the bushes and gives him a bag of magic crystals which he spills on the peach tree outside of his house. The peach tree, which has never given fruit, bears an enormous peach. James, who is pushed outside at night, crawls into the peach to find that the peach is not the only thing that has grown, but the insects inside are enormous! He befriends them and they plan their escape from Spiker and Sponge, crushing them with their peach as they roll away. Their adventure takes them over the Atlantic, through many perils, and to Manhattan, where the people believe they are about to be under attack because there is a huge peach atop the Empire State Building. When James comes out to explain everything the insects and James are welcomed with a parade and James has all of the childhood friends he has ever needed.

Application:
James and the Giant Peach has strong ties of friendship that would be great to discuss along with this book. Also, one could tie some of the events of the book into other subjects such as science by exploring whether the traits of the bugs are true, whether the actions of certain animals could happen, and whether the way the peach reacted in the ocean is plausible. (Do peaches really float or sink? Buyoncy test.)