LoveReading4Kids Says
One of our Books of the Year 2015 - October 2015 Book of the Month There’s no doubt that this will be at the top of the bestseller lists, at least until Christmas and probably well beyond. In a relatively short time David Walliams has built up a huge following, and it’s easy to see why.
Like Dahl, Walliams fills his stories with villainous adults, appealing child protagonists, dark humour, and crazy situations, mixing it all into compelling stories. This story concerns Jack and his grandpa, a former WWII RAF ace, now in the throes of dementia and convinced it’s 1940 (the book is actually set in 1983). ‘Everyone else always saw Grandpa’s condition as a problem,’ says the narrator, ‘For Jack, the way his grandfather’s mind worked was nothing short of magical.’ The adventure they have is magical indeed, involving a Colditz style breakout from an old people’s home, confrontations with various dastardly adults, and a glorious getaway in a Spitfire!
Great fun, it’s very moving too, the description of Jack’s relationship with his grandfather very nicely done. The illustrations by Tony Ross – without doubt one of the greatest illustrators for children ever – are superb. A book that deserves its place at the top of the charts. ~ Andrea Reece
LoveReading4Kids
About Grandpa's Great Escape
Jack's Grandpa wears his slippers to the supermarket, serves up Spam à la Custard for dinner and often doesn't remember Jack's name. But he can still take to the skies in a speeding Spitfire and save the day! This is an exquisite portrait of the bond between a small boy and his beloved Grandpa, taking readers on an incredible adventure full of comedy and heart.
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David Walliams Press Reviews
PRAISE FOR DAVID WALLIAMS:
“A pleasure to read. A beguilingly funny, original and thought-provoking tale… hilarious” – Amanda Craig, The Times
“I absolutely love David Walliams's books. In a few more years they will become classics” – Sue Townsend, author of Adrian Mole, Guardian
“The new Roald Dahl” – Evening Standard
"A triumphant mix of wit and warmth" – Telegraph Books of the Year
“Ridiculously over-the-top and utterly delightful “ – Spectator
"Another triumph for David Walliams. His books are a breath of wonderful fresh air" – Sun
“David Walliams’ children’s books are now guaranteed bestsellers… watch this fly off the shelves” – Daily Mail
“Delightfully funny” – Metro
About David Walliams
David Walliams is fast becoming a global phenomenon in the world of children’s literature – his ability to wow fans is unprecedented with global sales over 14.1 million.
His most recent fiction title, The World’s Worst Children, published on 19th May 2016 sold over 340,000 copies in the UK alone. It went straight to No. 1 on release where it stayed for 4 weeks and also concurred Children’s Books charts, where it stayed at No.1 for 7 weeks. Internationally sales continue to thrive, The World’s Worst Children also went straight to No. 1 in the Australian children’s chart and remained there for three consecutive weeks and reached the No. 1 in the overall book chart in New Zealand.
This follows on from the success of Grandpa’s Great Escape, Awful Auntie, Demon Dentist, Ratburger and Gangsta Granny. All went straight to Children’s number one on release with Gangsta Granny and Billionaire Boy selling over a million copies to date.
Mr Stink, Gangsta Granny, The Boy in the Dress and Billionaire Boy have all been adapted into TV comedy dramas. David’s books have also been made into theatre productions including Mr Stink, Gangsta Granny, Ratburger and The First Hippo on the Moon.
As well as his Children’s fiction, David has also published four number one bestselling picture books, his latest, The Bear Who went Boo! was published in November 2015 and has had total sales of over 85,000 to date. The Queen’s Orang-utan, David’s third picture book was written exclusively for Comic Relief with David giving all of his proceeds from the book to the charity.
Added to all this, David’s books have achieved unprecedented critical acclaim: Awful Auntie, Ratburger and Demon Dentist won the National Book Awards Children’s Book of the Year and in France David was awarded the popular Tamtam for Mr Stink and the prestigious Le Prix Du Livre De La Jeunesse for Ratburger, so it comes as no surprise that countless broadsheet reviewers have compared David to his all-time hero, Roald Dahl.
As a brand, The World of David Walliams continues to grow: export sales have increased by 77% year on year with growth in every single market and David’s books are published in over 49 languages.
As well as being a No.1 best-selling Children’s author, David Walliams is one of Britain's most popular writers and comic actors.
‘Little Britain’, which he co-created with Matt Lucas, started on Radio 4 and soon progressed to BBC1. The show has won numerous international awards including three BAFTAs, and now plays in over 100 countries. ‘Little Britain Live’ performed to a million people in the UK, Ireland and Australia. David and Matt followed ‘Little Britain’ with the hugely popular spoof airport documentary series 'Come Fly With Me'.
David has proved himself as a dramatic actor in BBC2's 'Capturing Mary' with Dame Maggie Smith, in BBC1's Agatha Christie series 'Partners In Crime', as Frankie Howerd in the biopic ‘Rather You Than Me’ for BBC4, and on the stage in Harold Pinter’s 'No Man’s Land' starring alongside Sir Michael Gambon. He received the Comedy Award at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards for his performance as Bottom in ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ directed by Michael Grandage.
His film credits also include The Look of Love, directed by Michael Winterbottom, Great Expectations directed by Mike Newell, Dinner For Schmucks with Steve Carell and Paul Rudd and directed by Jay Roach, Run Fat Boy Run directed by David Schwimmer and starring Simon Pegg, and Stardust directed
More About David Walliams
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