Not Roald Dahl at his finest - nevertheless a good short entertaining book with the usual great illustrations by Quentin Blake. The titular "Magic Finger" is an ability she has that activates inadvertently whenever she gets intensely angry: the finger, shoots out a beam of energy, that apparently seeks out whoever has angered the girl, with unpredictable consequences. The Magic Finger, published in 1966, is a children’s fantasy picture book written by Roald Dahl and illustrated by Quentin Blake.

I think a large part of that is down to Disney, not just for that notorious scene from Bambi but for their many lovable talking animal characters. This is a 12-session Literary Leaf for The Magic Finger by Roald Dahl which begins by making predictions about the book including what the magic finger might do.Their mother tries to comfort them, saying, “I can mince it all up very fine and you won’t even know the difference. Even that infamous photo of an American dentist standing over a lion he shot is more nuanced than the narrative pushed of some rich asshole wanting to prove he’s a “real man” by killing a “noble creature”. But online outrage culture doesn’t allow for nuance so people on Twitter went crazy and came up with their own silly narrative.

The story's narrator, an unnamed young girl, introduces herself and shares a little bit about her special abilities. As Philip and William tell the girl their entire story, the sound of gunfire in the distance attracts the girl's attention, and she feels the Magic Finger charging up again. After she uses the Magic Finger on the entire Gregg family, she “wait[s] for things to happen” (15). The following morning, the Greggs all find that, in a major reversal of their habits, three out of four of the ducks are holding the Greggs' hunting guns in their hands. Plus, you never know when your psycho neighbor is going to flip out and and punish you with her "Magic Finger" (does that sound dirty to anyone else?Dahl impresses with this story that teeters on the edge of silliness, while also instilling some valuable lessons for the reader. I could go on but I’ll just leave it at this: hunting is vastly more complex than simply seeing it as a sadistic activity for psychos. The next morning they wake up to find the large ducks with the Greggs' guns standing under their tree, threatening to shoot in the same way that they have shot ducks. However, she gives in to temptation and uses it again when she finally has had enough of the Greggs' mocking of her hatred for hunting.