The classic Roald Dahl story with fabulous full-colour illustrations by Quentin Blake. George Kranky's Grandma is a miserable grouch. George really hates that horrid old witchy woman. One Saturday morning, George is in charge of giving Grandma her medicine. So-ho! Ah-ha! Ho-hum! George knows exactly what to do. A magic medicine* it will be. One that will either cure her completely . . . or blow off the top of her head. *WARNING: Do not try to make George's Marvellous Medicine yourselves at home. It could be dangerous. 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. "A true genius . . . Roald Dahl is my hero" David Walliams
Most people know Roald Dahl as a famous writer of children's books and adult short stories, but few are aware of his fascination with medicine. Right from his earliest days to the end of his life, Dahl was intrigued by what doctors do, and why they do it. During his lifetime, he and his family suffered some terrible medical tragedies: Dahl nearly died when his fighter plane went down in World War II; his son had severe brain injury in an accident; and his daughter died of measles infection of the brain. But he also had some medical triumphs: he dragged himself back to health after the plane crash, despite a skull fracture, back injuries, and blindness; he was responsible for inventing a medical device (the Wade-Dahl-Till valve) to treat his son's hydrocephalus (water on the brain), and he taught his first wife Patricia to talk again after a devastating stroke. His medical interactions clearly influenced some of his writing - for example the explosive potions in George's Marvellous Medicine. And sometimes his writing impacted on events in his life - for example the research on neuroanatomy he did for his short story William and Mary later helped him design the valve for treating hydrocephalus. In this unique book, Professor Tom Solomon, who looked after Dahl towards the end of his life, examines Dahl's fascination with medicine. Taking examples from Dahl's life, and illustrated with excerpts from his writing, the book uses Dahl's medical interactions as a starting point to explore some extraordinary areas of medical science. Solomon is an award-winning science communicator, and he effortlessly explains the medical concepts underpinning the stories, in language that everyone can understand. The book is also peppered with anecdotes from Dahl''s late night hospital discussions with Solomon, which give new insights into this remarkable man's thinking as his life came to an end.
George Kranky created his own Marvellous Medicine to deal with his grizzly old grunion of a Grandma. You definitely can't do that at home (so don't even try!), but here's some amazing science that you can do! From concocting home-made slimy snot to creating your own volcano, these fun experiments are all easily done, following simple step-by-step instructions and using everyday household objects. Inspired by Roald Dahl's terrific tale, this is the book for budding young scientists everywhere!
"The Pelican spread his huge white wings and flew down on to the road beside me. 'Hop in,' he said, opening his enormous beak . . ." MEET BILLY. A kid with a dream. He wants to turn an old wooden house into an incredible sweetshop full of treats! AND MEET THE LADDERLESS WINDOW-CLEANING COMPANY: Monkey, Pelican (Pelly) and Giraffe (who needs ladders when you've got a giraffe?!). They have just landed a big break cleaning all six hundred and seventy-seven windows of the mansion owned by the richest man in all of England! All they need now is a little help from Billy. Can these unlikely new friends make Billy's wildest dreams come true and take him on an adventure he'll never forget . . .?
Enjoy four fabulous full-colour stories featuring some of Roald Dahl's most magnificent heroes and monstrous villains: The Enormous Crocodile, The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me, The Twits, George's Marvellous Medicine In the good corner find inventive George who stands up to his grizzly, grumpy grandma by mixing a potion unlike any other. And meet Mr Muggle-Wump and his family, whose bravery and quick-thinking lead to extraordinary events. In the bad corner Mr and Mrs Twit are the most terrible twosome you could ever have the misfortune to meet. And beware the crafty, child-guzzling crocodile...
From the bestselling author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The BFG! Last seen flying through the sky in a giant elevator in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Charlie Bucket's back for another adventure. When the giant elevator picks up speed, Charlie, Willy Wonka, and the gang are sent hurtling through space and time. Visiting the world’' first space hotel, battling the dreaded Vermicious Knids, and saving the world are only a few stops along this remarkable, intergalactic joyride.
The next time you get sick, consider this before picking up the aspirin: your body may be doing exactly what it's supposed to. In this ground-breaking book, two pioneers of the science of Darwinian medicine argue that illness as well as the factors that predispose us toward it are subject to the same laws of natural selection that otherwise make our bodies such miracles of design. Among the concerns they raise: When may a fever be beneficial? Why do pregnant women get morning sickness? How do certain viruses "manipulate" their hosts into infecting others? What evolutionary factors may be responsible for depression and panic disorder? Deftly summarizing research on disorders ranging from allergies to Alzheimer's, and form cancer to Huntington's chorea, Why We Get Sick, answers these questions and more. The result is a book that will revolutionize our attitudes toward illness and will intrigue and instruct lay person and medical practitioners alike.
An “extraordinary” look at the stubborn problem of human waste disposal: “Among the best nonfiction books of the new millennium.” —The New York Times Acclaimed as “valuable and often entertaining” (Los Angeles Times), The Big Necessity defies the taboo on bodily waste—something common to all and as natural as breathing. We prefer not to talk about it, but we should—even those of us who take care of our business in pristine, sanitary conditions. Disease spread by waste kills more people worldwide every year than any other single cause of death. Even in America, nearly two million people have no access to an indoor toilet. Yet the subject remains unmentionable. Moving from the underground sewers of Paris, London, and New York (an infrastructure disaster waiting to happen) to an Indian slum where ten toilets are shared by 60,000 people, The Big Necessity breaks the silence, revealing everything that matters about how people do—and don’t—deal with their own waste. With razor-sharp wit and crusading urgency, mixing levity with gravity, Rose George has turned the subject we like to avoid into a cause with the most serious of consequences. “One smart book . . . delving deep into the history and implications of a daily act that dare not speak its name.” —Newsweek “Makes a passionate argument for putting sanitation at the top of the world’s development agenda.” —Time “With irreverence and pungent detail, George breaks the embarrassed silence over the economic, political, social and environmental problems of human waste disposal. Full of fascinating facts . . . an intrepid, erudite and entertaining journey through the public consequences of this most private behavior.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Hi, I'm Keshav, and my life is screwed. I hate my job and my girlfriend left me. Ah, the beautiful Zara. Zara is from Kashmir. She is a Muslim. And did I tell you my family is a bit, well, traditional? Anyway, leave that. Zara and I broke up four years ago. She moved on in life. I didn't. I drank every night to forget her. I called, messaged, and stalked her on social media. She just ignored me. However, that night, on the eve of her birthday, Zara messaged me. She called me over, like old times, to her hostel room 105. I shouldn't have gone, but I did... and my life changed forever. This is not a love story. It is an unlove story. From the author of Five Point Someone and 2 States, comes a fast-paced, funny and unputdownable thriller about obsessive love and finding purpose in life against the backdrop of contemporary India.
