Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

The BFG: A Set of Plays

Rate this book
Roald Dahl fans will rejoice at the opportunity to bring their favorite books and characters to life. Five of Dahl’s hugely popular, beloved books have been adapted into winning plays for children. With useful tips on staging, props, and costumes, these plays can be produced with a minimum amount of resources and experience. Teachers, parents, and children everywhere will recognize Quentin Blake’s appealing classic cover art and will find these easy-to-perform plays to be a great source of entertainment!

128 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1991

64 people are currently reading
2059 people want to read

About the author

Roald Dahl

1,473 books26.6k followers
Roald Dahl was a beloved British author, poet, screenwriter, and wartime fighter pilot, best known for his enchanting and often darkly humorous children's books that have captivated generations of readers around the world. Born in Llandaff, Wales, to Norwegian parents, Dahl led a life marked by adventure, tragedy, creativity, and enduring literary success. His vivid imagination and distinctive storytelling style have made him one of the most celebrated children's authors in modern literature.
Before becoming a writer, Dahl lived a life filled with excitement and hardship. He served as a Royal Air Force pilot during World War II, surviving a near-fatal crash in the Libyan desert. His wartime experiences and travels deeply influenced his storytelling, often infusing his works with a sense of danger, resilience, and the triumph of the underdog. After the war, he began writing for both adults and children, showing a rare versatility that spanned genres and age groups.
Dahl's children's books are known for their playful use of language, unforgettable characters, and a deep sense of justice, often pitting clever children against cruel or foolish adults. Some of his most iconic titles include Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, The BFG, James and the Giant Peach, Fantastic Mr Fox, and The Witches. These works are filled with fantastical elements and moral undertones, empowering young readers to challenge authority, think independently, and believe in the impossible.
Equally acclaimed for his work for adults, Dahl wrote numerous short stories characterized by their macabre twists and dark humor. His stories were frequently published in magazines such as The New Yorker and later compiled into bestselling collections like Someone Like You and Kiss Kiss. He also wrote screenplays, including the James Bond film You Only Live Twice and the adaptation of Ian Fleming's Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
Despite his literary success, Dahl was a complex and sometimes controversial figure, known for his strong opinions and difficult personality. Nonetheless, his books continue to be treasured for their wit, originality, and the sense of wonder they inspire. Many of his stories have been adapted into successful films, stage plays, and television specials, further cementing his legacy.
Dahl's impact on children's literature is immeasurable. His ability to connect with young readers through a mix of irreverence, heart, and imagination has made his stories timeless. Even after his death, his books remain in print and continue to be read by millions of children worldwide. His writing not only entertains but also encourages curiosity, courage, and compassion.
Roald Dahl's work lives on as a testament to the power of storytelling and the magic of a truly original voice. He remains a towering figure in literature whose creations continue to spark joy, mischief, and inspiration across generations.

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
4,454 (62%)
4 stars
1,765 (24%)
3 stars
729 (10%)
2 stars
154 (2%)
1 star
66 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 107 reviews
Profile Image for scout cook.
28 reviews
February 2, 2010

Meet Sophie: a young girl whose parents died when she was a baby. Meet the BFG: A big friendly giant, who refuses to eat little children with the other big mean giants. One night, Sophie is watching out her window and she spots the BFG! He sees her watching him and snatches her from her bed and takes her to his cave. After talking for a while, they become best friends. They work together to try and save the children of the world from the other big, mean giants who eat little "chiddlers". Will they succeed???


I can connect this book to the world. I can make this connection because every day, people protest against things that they think is wrong. Sometimes those things actually are wrong, and sometimes those people are just ignorant butt-heads. Sophie and the BFG are fighting against the big, mean giants who eat kids. Other groups protest against animal torture or types of stuff taught in school.


I gave this book four stars because (although i really liked the story) it was a really easy read. I was thinking of maybe getting a bunch of my friends together and acting out a different scene every week for little kids and for community service, which some of my friends think is cools :) . I recommend this book to Roald Dahl fans, actors, and people who like reading scripts better than actual books.

9 reviews
March 21, 2020
This is one of my favorite authors of all time
Profile Image for م. الماجد.
Author 15 books865 followers
August 31, 2020


قصة رائعة

لماذا لا يلج الروائين العرب قصص الخيال للاطفال؟ لما لا نعيد قصص السندباد و البساط السحري و علاء الدين والمصباح السحري؟
هل نضب الخيال العربي ام ماذا؟
اليس من الخطر ان اطفالنا يقرؤون فقط القصص الاجنبية للقراءة
Profile Image for Ketie.
60 reviews1 follower
July 16, 2022
Ja jsem realne zapomněla dat tuhle ikonu do read
Profile Image for Seanna.
67 reviews
July 16, 2022
Read aloud to my students at the end of the year and they loved loved loved it :)
Profile Image for Nicole.
140 reviews9 followers
February 12, 2023
This was such a fun, easy read for my Children’s Theatre class! All the plays were very creative and I loved how it provided details on the characters, setting, and props.
Profile Image for Ashley.
15 reviews
May 30, 2024
It was a heart warming story, I liked it
Profile Image for Cornell Poder.
174 reviews
December 9, 2016
Roald Dahl you did it again a fantastic book about what you say well let you dreams come true.
Sophie is one lucky girl she got to she a giant but what kind of giant was it mean, mad, sad ,ugly, nasty, no it was the B.F.G., The Big Friendly Giant. Sophie goes on an amazing adventure with The B.F.G including seeing the other mean giants. Sophie and The B.F.G also got to meet the queen of the UK. The queen helps them get rid of the mean old giants but there is a little problem. To find out what The B.F.G and Sophie go through you will have to read the book to find out what an amazing adventure they have together

-JAELYN :)
Profile Image for Evie Hannon.
4 reviews1 follower
March 30, 2024
It was amazing! I loved the story line and the writing I totally recommend.
Profile Image for Alexandra In Căpușan.
11 reviews3 followers
February 1, 2019
The Big Friendly Giant.
3,5🌟, but I'm sure I would have given it at least 4 🌟 if I were a child:))
Insightful. Funny. Charming.
The whole book seems to be a metaphor to me. All the children in the world have their monsters and their nightmares, but they also have beautiful dreams and wonderful friends. That's childhood and BFG is certainly one of those wonderful friends. He is a hero to all the children in the world. He is like a father, not just for Sophie, but for children in general. He is selfless, wise, patient, caring and brave. He makes the children dream and gives them wings. Sophie, a poor orphan, comes to meet and befriend him. Couldn't any child do the same? The whole idea of it is just magical.
When I found out how exactly the book included the queen I thought this is so funny - to include the queen of England in a children's book as a friend of Sophie's and of BFG's! This makes it even more plausible! But the most stunningly believable moment in the book - the one that brings uncertainty and makes you wonder ''Had this actually happened?'' - is the last page, when it is said that BFG is the actual author. This genuinely brings the uncertain, ambiguous character of the fantastic literature.
I admit there were things that disturbed me, but I think they belong to the childish aspect of the book. This is, of course, a children's book and children's adorable selfishness and absurdity must be found here - for example in the fact that it is said to be funny that the other giants are in pain; the fact that, at first, BFG actually kidnaps Sophie and wants to keep her there forever; in the way BFG speaks to the commanders. But I'm not that radical. I understand that all these things are meant to be entertaining and adventurous and I bet children really had fun! I am not going to lie. As a teenager, I had fun too! Or, better said, my inner child had fun!
I liked BFG, as I said, and I also really liked Sophie - so bright for her age, so kind and curious! I'd think that Sophie is the one every child wants to be like and that BFG is the hero every child wants to meet!
My favourite parts of the book were those about dreams! About finding them, preparing them and delivering them! The passion BFG has regarding them. A lonely giant spreading dreams to children all around the world, forcing himself not to eat them because of his love for humans. This idea. This idea is fantastic.
Reading this book made me smile. It brought me hope and positive energy!
I want to thank Lia, my nine-year-old sister who persuaded me to read it! ❤️
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
1 review
Read
September 9, 2024
The ‘BFG’ by Roald Dahl was publish in 1982, this book explores the theme of the power of friendship, through the characters personality and mindset. The novel starts with a girl name Sophie, and it shows her orphanage in England and one night she notices a big giant sneaking through the streets. The giant takes Sophie to a ‘Giants country’ and the ‘Giants country’ is like a desert-like place where mean giants live.

Sophie and her new friend (the giant) find out that the big mean giants find her little blanket, and now the mean giants are looking for her without having a rest. When the giants cannot find Sophie, they finally believe the nice giant and they all take a rest. When the nice giant checks every single mean giant to see if they are asleep, Sophie and the giant quickly leave and go back to the giant’s house.

In the end Sophie finds a safe place with the Queen under Mary’s care, when everything went right for Sophie and the giant, they both live next to each other next to the Queen.
33 reviews1 follower
January 7, 2019
“ The BFG” written by Roald Dahl, talks about a girl called Sophie met a giant, he’s not a bad giant as the other giants. At the beginning, it talks about one night in the orphanage, Sophie couldn’t slept. She waited at the window and she met the giant, the giant brought her away to his house but he didn’t harms her. In the middle of the story, that the other giants seems they knew there was a person, and they eat humans. Sophie and the good heart giant went away trying to flee. But it’s not a good plan to just ran away. So in the end of the story, Sophie had a plan, she let the good heart giant brought a nightmare to the queen of England talked about the giants destroying the place. Finally, their plan did work, the queen of England let the soldiers went to get the giants away, the good heart giant stayed with Sophie and they’re very good friends.
4 reviews
June 14, 2024

BFG
THE BIG FRIENDLY GIANT
I am doing a deep book review of The Big Friendly Giant by Rol Dal
This book is about a BIG FRIENDLY GIANT and sofies hero's journey together.
The reason that I chose this book? Is because it is a very classic book and I forgot the story so I wanted to read it again
How has this book changed me? It inspired me to do big things, to be determined, and to work hard
The part that stood out to me. is the finale shoe down when they are capturing the man-eating joints and bring them to Paris and put them in a hole
I recommend this book to people who like books with a good hero's journey and an intriguing, inspiring, and funny book.
Do you have any questions?


6 reviews
September 30, 2021
So there is a girl named Sophie and her parents died before she was born. She is not sad about her parents dead because she never met them. But she does have to go to a orphanage which is like a foster home. While she was there in the middle of the night other Giants besides the BFG would soon be having breakfast what they eat for breakfast is nice little chiddlers. So her and the BFG are trying to help stop them!
Profile Image for Kayleigh.
147 reviews
February 17, 2024
I really enjoyed this book even though in parts of the book it was a little upsetting a little girl called Sophie was taken from an orphanage in the middle of the night by the big friendly Giant also Sophie was taken to Giant County and also got to go to Buckingham place and met the Queen after the Bfg invented a horrible nightmare dream and blow it through the Queen's bedroom window while she was asleep.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Laiba Basit.
Author 4 books9 followers
November 28, 2022
In my opinion, this is Roald Dahl's best work! I felt that the narration wasn't as light-hearted as usual, but this book definitely made me smile!

My rating: 5 stars.
3 stars for the characters.
2 stars for everything else.

P.S: I read the novel, NOT the set of plays.
Profile Image for Zaynab.
17 reviews
December 15, 2023
one of my favorites. A wonderful story about friendship. ive re read it multiple times since it positively impacted me as a kid. (it has a movie too btw which is perfect to watch if paired w hot chocolate and a friend(optional))
Profile Image for SebBo Wilde.
6 reviews
January 28, 2019
Very nice and interesting story
Giants can come in all shapes and sizes
some are nasty, scary and cruel
other are nice, friendly and polite
Profile Image for Temuulen O..
6 reviews4 followers
June 17, 2019
It was true mr. Roald Dahl dreams do come true! It is creatively narrated, not a dull second had passed while i was reading.
6 reviews
Read
January 8, 2020
this book took a while to read because I started it but I could not finish until the other day cause i got busy faster then I thought
37 reviews
April 26, 2020
I loved this book. I loved the words and could just imagine a GIANT saying these words. There were many sweet moments and a great friendship made.
81 reviews
August 11, 2020
Cute. Bit of a tongue-twister to read aloud to one's child (I know Roald Dahl likes to play with language, but I think this one has more of it than most. Still, my son and I both enjoyed.
41 reviews
December 8, 2020
Classic book on friendship and how it can appear anywhere, any time. No matter how different, a friendship is priceless.
Profile Image for Sboysen.
335 reviews3 followers
April 22, 2021
Nice for various literacy uses. Used in grade four for reading fluency and also compared and contrasted to the novel.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 107 reviews

Join the discussion

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.