Esio Trot – in fact – does know of a way to make a tortoise grow bigger. He writes the following words on a slip of paper, and lowers it down to Mrs Silver: <poem> ESIO TROT, ESIO TROT, TEG REGGIB REGGIB, EMOC NO, ESIO TROT, WORG PU, FFUP PU, TOOHS PU, PU, WOLB PU, LLEWS PU, EGROG! ELZZUG! FFUTS! PLUG, TUP NO TAF, ESIO TROT, TUP NO TAF, TEG NO, TEG NO, ELBBOG DOOF.</poem> Mr Hoppy explains that these magic words, when whispered in Alfie's ear three times a day, will cause Alfie to grow bigger and bigger. Mrs Silver is
Roald Dahl from the point of view of a child. They typically involve adult villains who hate and mistreat children, and feature at least one "good" adult to counteract the villain(s). These stock characters are possibly a reference to the abuse that Dahl stated that he experienced in the boarding schools he attended. Dahl's books see the triumph of the child; children's book critic Amanda Craig said, "He was unequivocal that it is the good, young and kind who triumph over the old, greedy and the wicked." While his whimsical fantasy stories feature an underlying warm sentiment, they are often juxtaposed with