Billy walks past the abandoned sweet shop he dreams of owning one day and a monkey, giraffe and pelican have bought the place and turned it into the Ladderless Window Cleaning Company. They ask for Billy's help in finding some windows to clean so they can buy their favourite foods. Luckily, the Duke of Hampshire has seen their sign and wants to hire them to clean his 677 windows.

This was a silly little tale about using your talents to achieve your dreams, the importance of friends and the enduring nature of books. I enjoyed the rhyming poems and the fun singsong elements of this one. My favourite though was the end lines;

"We have tears in our eyes
As we wave our goodbyes,
We so loved being with you, we three.
So do please now and then
Come and see us again,
The Giraffe and the Pelly and me.
All you do is to look
At a page in this book
Because that's where we always will be.
No book ever ends
When it's full of your friends
The Giraffe and the Pelly and me."

I generally don't enjoy Roald Dahl books but this was one of his better ones. And as per usual Quentin Blake's illustrations are wonderful. 3.5 stars, rounded to 4 for the target audience. 3 stars for me. ( )

I was no fan of Roald Dahl when I was young. Probably I was so used to more traditional fare that Dahl's particular brand of humorous fantasy was too surreal and subversive for my tastes. Reading these books with my girls has led me to some pleasant (re)discoveries. The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me, Dahl's story about the world's strangest window-cleaning company, is an enjoyable romp which skilfully reinterprets elements of traditional fairy tales. Instead of a Cinderella we get a young boy who seems not to have too many friends, instead of elves and gnomes we get a group of hilarious talking animals and a rich Duke takes on the role of Fairy Godmother. Enjoyable stuff. ( )

I really enjoyed those one: silly and funny and very very readable. ( )

I just loved this story! I listened to it as well and Hugh Laurie was a wonderfully playful narrator! ( )

I was no fan of Roald Dahl when I was young. Probably I was so used to more traditional fare that Dahl's particular brand of humorous fantasy was too surreal and subversive for my tastes. Reading these books with my girls has led me to some pleasant (re)discoveries. The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me, Dahl's story about the world's strangest window-cleaning company, is an enjoyable romp which skilfully reinterprets elements of traditional fairy tales. Instead of a Cinderella we get a young boy who seems not to have too many friends, instead of elves and gnomes we get a group of hilarious talking animals and a rich Duke takes on the role of Fairy Godmother. Enjoyable stuff. ( )