Although the story is narrated in first-person by Billy, the word "Me" in the title refers to the monkey, who concludes every verse of his signature song with the phrase "the giraffe and the pelly and me". Things go smoothly when they get there until, while cleaning the bedroom windows of Henrietta the Duchess, the Giraffe and the Monkey spot a burglar attempting to steal the Duchess's jewels. The Pelican then flies in and catches the burglar, holding him prisoner in his beak despite the burglar's attempt to shoot his way out with his gun (this makes a hole in the Pelican's beak, but the Duke assures him that the chauffeur can patch it up). Soon the police arrive to arrest the burglar, whom the Chief of Police identifies as the "Cobra", one of the world's most dangerous cat burglars.

Dahl masters yet another story here by finding new characters and new angles to approach. With another child protagonist (as attentive readers will see, many Dahl tales are narrated by children), the story progresses. The precocious narrator goes off to explore the world, alone. I noticed that there are rarely any parental figures found in Dahl's children's books, which was mentioned in a recent biography I read of the author. Billy is free to frolic and find his way, dashing off to an estate with three random animals, where they eventually clash with an armed robber. How interesting for a children's book to remove the 'adult flavour', at least parents, from the narrative and give complete control to a child seemingly the same age as the target audience. The story flows well and the characters work well together to forge a strong story and decent collection of morals and lessons that are threaded throughout. Told from the point of view of a young boy named Billy, The Giraffe and the Pelly and Metells the story of Billy's lifelong dream to own a candy store (which the British call a "sweet shop.") He almost constantly is reminded of this dream because of an abandoned building next to his home called the Grubber (an old term for a candy store). Billy's biggest wish is to turn a weird old wooden house into a wonderful sweet shop. But then he finds a giraffe, a pelly and a monkey living inside - they're the Ladderless Window Cleaners! Who needs ladders when you've got a giraffe? They become best friends and when they meet the richest man in all England, there's a chance Billy's scrumptious-galumptious dream just might come true . . . Look at the songs and rhymes in the story. Can you identify the rhyming words? Can you think of other words that rhyme with these? And, if your classes enjoyed learning about the different animals in ‘The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me’, they’ll like this Giraffes Cloze Worksheet.He is a criminal and is known as being one of the most dangerous cat burglars. He attempts to steal the jewels at the Duke of Hampshire’s house, but is foiled by Billy and the members of The Ladder less Window-Cleaning Company. Update this section! Make a ‘Wanted’ poster to encourage people to look out for ‘The Cobra, the cleverest and most dangerous cat-burglar in the world’. Draw a plan of the inside of Hampshire House. How many different rooms might it have? What special rooms could be inside it? This Roald Dahl Reading Comprehension uses the life of the author to help children understand and analyse a piece of written text. It’s differentiated so children of all abilities can take part. The Monkey, in both appearance and diet, bears a strong resemblance to Muggle-Wump, a monkey from two of Dahl's earlier books: The Enormous Crocodile and The Twits.

When Billy reopens The Grubber he chooses to sell sweets made by the Willy Wonka company which features in Dahl's earlier novels Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator. Look out for new Roald Dahl apps in the App store and Google Play - including the disgusting TWIT OR MISS! and HOUSE OF TWITS inspired by the revolting Twits. Read more Details Roald Dahl was a British novelist, short story writer and screenwriter of Norwegian descent, who rose to prominence in the 1940's with works for both children and adults, and became one of the world's bestselling authors.Listen to the audiobook version of the story. Could you narrate and record a passage from the book using expression / accents / sound effects / music? In reality, one can extrapolate a certain allegorical context from the story thanks to the period of national upheaval in which it was composed that would actually, ironically, make it one of Dahl’s most controversial stories. When reading Dahl’s books for children, one eventually notices a recurrence of what might be termed nationalist pride or xenophobia depending upon one’s perspective. Dahl is not shy about criticizing citizen of other countries within the context of comparison to the British. Usually, this is pretty much outright with no veil of symbolism or allegory, but on one level there is a deeply symbolic and allegorical reading of this particular book that seems deeply concerned with the issue of changes to England in the post-war society resulting from the influx of immigrants into the United Kingdom. The Duke of Hampshire’s house has six hundred and seventy-seven windows. Can you count up to 677? Can you think of some problems that have 677 as the answer? One can read this seemingly benign and controversy-free Dahl book published in the wake of massive social upheaval dedicated to dismantling the welfare state and reforming the country’s immigration policies—should one so desire—as a blistering critique of the entire social structure of post-WWII British history up to the election of Margaret Thatcher. Update this section! Find out about giraffes, pelicans and / or monkeys. Can you write a report about them to teach others about your chosen animal(s)?

Imagine that you could fit inside a pelican’s mouth and fly anywhere in the world. Where would you go to? Why? Billy and the animals are one day asked by the Duke of Hampshire to clean the titular Hampshire house. They accept the Duke's request. As they clean one day, however, they catch a cat burglar trying to steal the Duke's wife’s jewels. Because of this, the Duke invites the animals to live on his estate so that they can be his personal helpers, meaning that they no longer their building. In turn, Billy turns their old building into a candy shop, fulfilling his lifelong dream. Update this section! The sign on the front of ‘The Grubber’ says ‘FOR SAIL’. ‘Sail’ and ‘Sale’ are examples of homophones. Can you think of any more? These lovely Roald Dahl Colouring Sheets provide you with a great activity to keep your classes calm while they have fun colouring in all their favourite Roald Dahl characters. One third of The Ladder less Window-Cleaning Company, he is also known as, the ‘Dancing Monkey.’ He complains about the taste of the food in London and complains of not being able to eat walnuts. The Cobra

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The giraffe, pelican and monkey set up a window cleaning company. Can you think of some other animals? What job might they be able to do? Could you write a story about this? His first children's book was The Gremlins, about mischievous little creatures that were part of RAF folklore. The book was commissioned by Walt Disney for a film that was never made, and published in 1943. Dahl went on to create some of the best-loved children's stories of the 20th century, such as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda and James and the Giant Peach. It is with some regret that I sit down to write this correspondence. I understand your reluctance to read voluminous missives so I will keep this missive as unchunky as my e-pen allows. Kudos, Mr. Dahl for all you have given us. You departed the world much too soon, but left a literary footprint that no one else will ever fill. Although the story is narrated in first-person by Billy, the word 'me' in the title refers to the monkey, who concludes every verse of his signature song with the phrase 'the giraffe and the pelly and me'.

Children love Roald Dahl’s books, because they make fantastical settings and characters so easy to believe in. Now you can absorb your classes even further into Roald Dahl’s wonderful world with this fun activity. These Roald Dahl ‘The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me’ worksheets are ideal for supporting your teaching on this story and helping children to understand the text. One third of The Ladder less Window-Cleaning Company, he is also simply known as, ‘Pelly.’ He complains about the taste of the fish in London and complains of not being able to eat salmon. He is stated to have a flexible upper beak. Monkey Listen to THE GIRAFFE AND THE PELLY AND ME and other Roald Dahl audiobooks read by some very famous voices, including Kate Winslet, David Walliams and Steven Fry - plus there are added squelchy soundeffects from Pinewood Studios! The fortunes of these animals whose ability to talk is never once questioned changed after revealing they are solid citizens by thwarting the attempted robbery of a Duke. Grateful for having his wife’s expensive jewelry collection protected from being stolen by a notorious burglar known as the Cobra, the Duke offers the animals a place to live on his estate in exchange for cleaning his windows and harvesting fruit from his orchards. To do this, they must close down their privately owned business and thus become wards of the estate. As in wards of the state. As in receiving government assistance while meeting a minimum requirement of applied labor. If your classes enjoyed these Roald Dahl ‘The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me’ worksheets, the fun doesn’t have to stop here! Our in-house teachers have created a wide range of fantastic resources to make Roald Dahl’s books even more engaging for all the children you teach.

What’s the story of ‘The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me’?

Among the sweets that Billy sells in The Grubber are Fizzwinkles, from China. They are referenced in one of Dahl's earlier novels, The BFG, except there they are spelled "Fizzwinkel". The giraffe, pelican and monkey can be viewed as symbolic representatives of foreign cultures who move into and completely transform a building which has been apparently been abandoned since the war. In renovating what was once a candy store they quite literally throw out everything including the kitchen sink! Look at photos of giraffes / pelicans / monkeys and use these to help with your own drawings / paintings of them? (see Resources below).