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". 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! 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. Make a ‘Wanted’ poster to encourage people to look out for ‘The Cobra, the cleverest and most dangerous cat-burglar in the world’. 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? 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

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

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! He is the main protagonist of the story - a young boy who dreams of owning his own sweetshop. He meets the animals from The Ladder less Window-Cleaning Company by chance, and begins to work for them, resulting in many adventures. Giraffe 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. 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!

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? 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. 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. 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. Look at photos of giraffes / pelicans / monkeys and use these to help with your own drawings / paintings of them? (see Resources below).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 . . . 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. The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me is a 1985 children's book written by Roald Dahl and illustrated by Quentin Blake. The plot follows a young boy named Billy who meets a giraffe, a pelican, and a monkey, who work as window cleaners.

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.

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Listen to the audiobook version of the story. Could you narrate and record a passage from the book using expression / accents / sound effects / music? 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).