The Magic Finger - Revision history

~2025-32037-84: /* Synopsis */

2025-12-06T15:02:40Z

Synopsis

← Previous revision		Revision as of 15:02, 6 December 2025
Line 1:		Line 1:
	{{short description\|1966 children's book by Roald Dahl}}		{{short description\|1966 children's book by Roald Dahl}}

	{{Infobox book		{{Infobox book
	\| name = The Magic Finger		\| name = The Magic Finger
Line 27:		Line 26:

	==Synopsis==		==Synopsis==
	''The Magic Finger'' is narrated by an unnamed eight-year-old girl who is growing up on a remote rural [[farm]] in the English [[countryside]], next door to the Gregg family who have a [[Passion (emotion)\|passion]] for [[hunting\|hunting animals and birds.]] The ~~titular~~ "~~Magic Finger~~" is an ability the girl has that activates inadvertently whenever she gets angry: the finger itself shoots out a beam of electrical energy that apparently seeks out whoever has angered the girl, with unpredictable consequences. For example, when the girl's teacher, Mrs. Winter, shames her for misspelling the word "cat", the magic finger gives Mrs. Winter whiskers and a bushy tail, and the girl cryptically states that Mrs. Winter was never quite the same again.		''The Magic Finger'' is narrated by an unnamed eight-year-old girl who is growing up on a remote rural [[farm]] in the English [[countryside]], next door to the Gregg family who have a [[Passion (emotion)\|passion]] for [[hunting\|hunting animals and birds.]] The so-named "magic finger" is an ability the girl has that activates inadvertently whenever she gets angry: the finger itself shoots out a beam of electrical energy that apparently seeks out whoever has angered the girl, with unpredictable consequences. For example, when the girl's teacher, Mrs. Winter, shames her for misspelling the word "cat", the magic finger gives Mrs. Winter whiskers and a bushy tail, and the girl cryptically states that Mrs. Winter was never quite the same again.

	One day, the girl sees Mr. Gregg and his two sons, Philip and William, returning home from a hunt with a deer that they have just killed, and they make fun of her and tell her to mind her own business when she shouts at them. In a rage, the girl puts the Magic Finger itself on the entire family; when they wake up the following morning they have shrunk to bird-size and developed "ducks' wings" in place of their arms and hands. While trying out their new wings, the Greggs fly out of their house, which is promptly occupied by four human-sized ducks with human arms and human hands, and they are all soon forced to build a nest in an old tree for the night.		One day, the girl sees Mr. Gregg and his two sons, Philip and William, returning home from a hunt with a deer that they have just killed, and they make fun of her and tell her to mind her own business when she shouts at them. In a rage, the girl puts the Magic Finger itself on the entire family; when they wake up the following morning they have shrunk to bird-size and developed "ducks' wings" in place of their arms and hands. While trying out their new wings, the Greggs fly out of their house, which is promptly occupied by four human-sized ducks with human arms and human hands, and they are all soon forced to build a nest in an old tree for the night.
Line 33:		Line 32:
	The following morning, the Greggs all find that, in a major reversal of their [[habit]]s, three out of four of the ducks are holding the Greggs' hunting guns in their hands. Desperately, Mr. and Mrs. Gregg both persuade the ducks not to shoot them, but the mother duck (the only duck who never holds a gun) taunts them about their own fondness for shooting, especially since the previous day, they somehow shot all six of the duck's children. Mr. Gregg tells the duck mother to give up shooting and he destroys all three guns with a big hammer, swearing never to hurt another [[duck]], [[deer]], "or anything else again". The four ducks then head back toward the [[lake]] where they live, before letting the Greggs leave their tree. Then, the Greggs all find themselves returned to normal by magic.		The following morning, the Greggs all find that, in a major reversal of their [[habit]]s, three out of four of the ducks are holding the Greggs' hunting guns in their hands. Desperately, Mr. and Mrs. Gregg both persuade the ducks not to shoot them, but the mother duck (the only duck who never holds a gun) taunts them about their own fondness for shooting, especially since the previous day, they somehow shot all six of the duck's children. Mr. Gregg tells the duck mother to give up shooting and he destroys all three guns with a big hammer, swearing never to hurt another [[duck]], [[deer]], "or anything else again". The four ducks then head back toward the [[lake]] where they live, before letting the Greggs leave their tree. Then, the Greggs all find themselves returned to normal by magic.

	The eight-year-old girl comes by the Greggs' [[farm]] to see that the Gregg family (now changing their surname to [[Egg]]) have fully changed their ways and are now feeding and caring for the birds. 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.		The eight-year-old girl comes by the Greggs' [[farm]] to see that the Gregg family (now changing their surname to [[Egg]]) have fully changed their ways and are now feeding and caring for the birds. 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 her magic finger charging up again.

	==Adaptations==		==Adaptations==
Line 40:		Line 39:

	===Animation===		===Animation===
	The story was adapted into an [[original video animation]] (OVA) by [[Abbey Home Media\|Abbey Broadcast Communications]] in 1990, which was released [[direct-to-video\|straight-to-video]] through Abbey Home Entertainment. It was a faithful adaption of the original story, which was told through Clements' audiobook recordings against animations in the style of Quentin Blake's illustrations. Re-releases from 1997 onwards redubbed Clements' narration with that of actress [[Caroline Quentin]]. For its 2005 DVD release, the original narration was reinstated.<ref>https://www.amazon.co.uk/Enchanting-Stories-Enormous-Crocodile-Revolting/dp/B0009UCEUU</ref>		The story was adapted into an [[original video animation]] (OVA) by [[Abbey Home Media\|Abbey Broadcast Communications]] in 1990, which was released [[direct-to-video\|straight-to-video]] through Abbey Home Entertainment. It was a faithful adaption of the original story, which was told through Clements' audiobook recordings against animations in the style of Quentin Blake's illustrations. Re-releases from 1997 onwards redubbed Clements' narration with that of actress [[Caroline Quentin]]. For its 2005 DVD release, the original narration was reinstated.<ref>{{Cite web\|url=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Enchanting-Stories-Enormous-Crocodile-Revolting/dp/B0009UCEUU\|title=Amazon.co.uk}}</ref>

	==References==		==References==
Line 66:		Line 65:
	{{Roald Dahl}}		{{Roald Dahl}}
	{{Authority control}}		{{Authority control}}

			<!-- US, first edition -->

	{{DEFAULTSORT:Magic Finger, The}}		{{DEFAULTSORT:Magic Finger, The}}
Line 71:		Line 72:
	[[Category:1966 children's books]]		[[Category:1966 children's books]]
	[[Category:Children's books about magic]]		[[Category:Children's books about magic]]
	~~[[Category:Hunting in popular culture]]~~
	[[Category:American picture books]]		[[Category:American picture books]]
	[[Category:British picture books]]		[[Category:British picture books]]
Line 79:		Line 79:
	[[Category:Harper & Row books]]		[[Category:Harper & Row books]]
	[[Category:Books critical of hunting]]		[[Category:Books critical of hunting]]
	~~<!-- US, first edition -->~~		[[Category:Children's books about animal hunting]]

imported>Throughthemind: removed Category:Anti-hunting movement using HotCat; is parent category of Category:Books critical of hunting

2025-06-28T15:13:04Z

removed Category:Anti-hunting movement using HotCat; is parent category of Category:Books critical of hunting

← Previous revision		Revision as of 15:13, 28 June 2025
Line 77:		Line 77:
	[[Category:Children's books about ducks]]		[[Category:Children's books about ducks]]
	[[Category:Novels about talking animals]]		[[Category:Novels about talking animals]]
	[[Category:~~Anti-hunting movement~~]]		[[Category:Harper & Row books]]
	[[Category:~~Harper & Row books~~]] <!-- US, first edition -->		[[Category:Books critical of hunting]]
			<!-- US, first edition -->

2601:647:4700:3880:B401:7E53:3E04:92DD: /* Synopsis */

2025-02-14T23:18:50Z

Synopsis

New page

{{short description|1966 children's book by Roald Dahl}}

{{Infobox book
| name = The Magic Finger
| image = TheMagicFinger.jpg 
| image_size =
| alt =
| caption = First British edition ([[Allen & Unwin]], 1968)
| author = [[Roald Dahl]]
| illustrator = William Pène du Bois (first), Pat Marriott, Tony Ross, Quentin Blake
| cover_artist = Pène du Bois (first), Marriott, Ross, Blake
| country = United States United Kingdom
| subject = Hunting, magic<ref name=LCC/>
| genre = Children's [[picture book]], Fantasy, [[Comedy]]
| publisher = Harper & Row (first)
| publisher2 = George Allen and Unwin (first UK)<ref name=worldcat1974/>
| pub_date = 1966
| media_type = Print (hardcover)
| pages = 40
| isbn =
| isbn_note =
| oclc =
| congress = PZ7.D1515 Mag<ref name=LCC>[https://lccn.loc.gov/66018657 "The magic finger"]. LC Online Catalog. Library of Congress (lccn.loc.gov). Retrieved 2016-02-13.</ref>
}}

'''''The Magic Finger''''' is a 1966 [[Children's literature|children's story]] by British author [[Roald Dahl]].<ref name=dahl/><ref name=dahl2/> First published in the United States by Harper & Row with illustrations by [[William Pène du Bois]],<ref name=LCC/><ref name=isfdb/> Allen & Unwin published the first U.K. edition in 1968.<ref name=worldcat1974/> Later editions have been illustrated by [[Pat Marriott]], [[Tony Ross]], and [[Quentin Blake]].<ref name=isfdb/>

==Synopsis==
''The Magic Finger'' is narrated by an unnamed eight-year-old girl who is growing up on a remote rural [[farm]] in the English [[countryside]], next door to the Gregg family who have a [[Passion (emotion)|passion]] for [[hunting|hunting animals and birds.]] The titular "Magic Finger" is an ability the girl has that activates inadvertently whenever she gets angry: the finger itself shoots out a beam of electrical energy that apparently seeks out whoever has angered the girl, with unpredictable consequences. For example, when the girl's teacher, Mrs. Winter, shames her for misspelling the word "cat", the magic finger gives Mrs. Winter whiskers and a bushy tail, and the girl cryptically states that Mrs. Winter was never quite the same again.

One day, the girl sees Mr. Gregg and his two sons, Philip and William, returning home from a hunt with a deer that they have just killed, and they make fun of her and tell her to mind her own business when she shouts at them. In a rage, the girl puts the Magic Finger itself on the entire family; when they wake up the following morning they have shrunk to bird-size and developed "ducks' wings" in place of their arms and hands. While trying out their new wings, the Greggs fly out of their house, which is promptly occupied by four human-sized ducks with human arms and human hands, and they are all soon forced to build a nest in an old tree for the night.

The following morning, the Greggs all find that, in a major reversal of their [[habit]]s, three out of four of the ducks are holding the Greggs' hunting guns in their hands. Desperately, Mr. and Mrs. Gregg both persuade the ducks not to shoot them, but the mother duck (the only duck who never holds a gun) taunts them about their own fondness for shooting, especially since the previous day, they somehow shot all six of the duck's children. Mr. Gregg tells the duck mother to give up shooting and he destroys all three guns with a big hammer, swearing never to hurt another [[duck]], [[deer]], "or anything else again". The four ducks then head back toward the [[lake]] where they live, before letting the Greggs leave their tree. Then, the Greggs all find themselves returned to normal by magic.

The eight-year-old girl comes by the Greggs' [[farm]] to see that the Gregg family (now changing their surname to [[Egg]]) have fully changed their ways and are now feeding and caring for the birds. 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.

==Adaptations==
===Audio===
An unabridged recording of the book read by Roald Dahl himself was released as part of a compilation set by [[HarperCollins|Harper Children Audio]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/release/10555922-Roald-Dahl-The-Roald-Dahl-Audio-Collection|title=Roald Dahl – The Roald Dahl Audio Collection|website=Discogs.com|access-date=12 December 2023}}</ref> A 1980's version released by WM Collins features Anne Clements as narrator. The 2013 edition of the audiobook featured narration by [[Kate Winslet]] and was released on digital audio by [[Penguin Random House|Penguin Audio]].<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.audiofilemagazine.com/reviews/read/86454/|title=THE TWITS, THE MINPINS, & THE MAGIC FINGER by Roald Dahl|website=AudioFile.com|access-date=12 December 2023}}</ref>

===Animation===
The story was adapted into an [[original video animation]] (OVA) by [[Abbey Home Media|Abbey Broadcast Communications]] in 1990, which was released [[direct-to-video|straight-to-video]] through Abbey Home Entertainment. It was a faithful adaption of the original story, which was told through Clements' audiobook recordings against animations in the style of Quentin Blake's illustrations. Re-releases from 1997 onwards redubbed Clements' narration with that of actress [[Caroline Quentin]]. For its 2005 DVD release, the original narration was reinstated.<ref>https://www.amazon.co.uk/Enchanting-Stories-Enormous-Crocodile-Revolting/dp/B0009UCEUU</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist |25em |refs=

<ref name=isfdb>
{{ISFDB title|19052}}. Retrieved 2016-02-13.</ref>

<ref name=worldcat1974>
[http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/59152594 "The magic finger"]. [[WorldCat]].org. Retrieved 2016-02-13.
 One library catalogue record for the 1974 Puffin Books edition. "Originally published: / with illustrations by William Pène du Bois. New York : Harper and Row, 1966; London : Allen and Unwin, 1968."</ref>

<ref name=dahl>
{{Cite web |title=The Magic Finger |url=http://www.roalddahl.com/roald-dahl/stories/1960s/the-magic-finger |publisher=Roald Dahl (roalddahl.com) |access-date = 2015-10-01}}</ref>
<ref name=dahl2>
"The Magic Finger". [http://www.roalddahl.com/roald-dahl/stories/1960s Stories: 1960s]. Roald Dahl. Retrieved 2016-02-11.
   "The Girl". [http://www.roalddahl.com/roald-dahl/characters/children Characters: Children]. Roald Dahl. Retrieved 2016-02-11.
</ref>
}}

==External links==
{{Portal |Children's literature}}
* {{ISFDB title|19052}}

{{Roald Dahl}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Magic Finger, The}}
[[Category:Children's books by Roald Dahl]]
[[Category:1966 children's books]]
[[Category:Children's books about magic]]
[[Category:Hunting in popular culture]]
[[Category:American picture books]]
[[Category:British picture books]]
[[Category:British fantasy novels]]
[[Category:Children's books about ducks]]
[[Category:Novels about talking animals]]
[[Category:Anti-hunting movement]]
[[Category:Harper & Row books]]