Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I used some of the "best books" lists to find a good "chaptered" book for my seven year old granddaughter. When Matilda by Roald Dahl arrived, I read about 1/4 of it. I was disappointed to find the portrayal of Matilda's parents grossly negative and much of the language used in the book is degrading of central characters. The first few pages derides parents who speak positively about their children who are really "disgusting little blisters," and the author says that such positive statements about offspring cause him to exclaim “bring us a basin”. It gets worse. The father of Matilda calls her an "ignorant little twit" and he tears pages out of library books. Even Matilda who is suppose to be admirably smart and a "miracle" worker, says, “Shut up you nut” to a noisy bird saying. "Hello" over and over again. I am hopeful that reading is a positive growth-enhancing learning experience for my granddaughter; reading Matilda would expose her to language her parents and I do not want her using and to attitudes of disrespect and cynicism.