Billy and the Minpins

“Beware! Beware! The Forest of Sin! None come out, but many go in!”

This is the rhyme that people in Billy’s town repeat about the Forest of Sin and his mother says it to him to discourage him from exploring it. The whimsical rhyming couplet also creates the feel of a fairy tale, and the words of Billy’s mother emphasize the risks of Facing the Unknown.

“The whole floor of the forest is carpeted with wild strawberries, every one of them luscious and red and juicy-ripe. Go and see for yourself.”

The Devil whispers this encouragement to Billy in an attempt to persuade him to go to the Forest of Sin and disobey his mother’s rules. The mood of temptation in this scene is designed to be a sly echo of the original temptation of Adam and Eve, whom the serpent enticed to eat the forbidden fruit from the Tree of Knowledge in the Bible story from the Book of Genesis.

“Mummy said the Spittler blows smoke when it chases you. This one is blowing smoke! It’s the Terrible Bloodsuckling Toothpluckling Stonechuckling Spittler! And soon it will catch me up and I’ll be bloodsuckled and toothpluckled and stonechuckled and chewed up into tiny pieces, and then the Spittler will spit me out in a cloud of smoke and that will be the end of me!”

Billy says this to himself when he first encounters the Gruncher in the forest. The use of repetition in this passage mimics the narrative rhythm of a fairy tale and creates an almost cartoonish image of the unseen monster. Billy’s exclamation shows his struggle in Overcoming the Limitations of Fear, for in this moment, he is all but certain that his mother’s description of the forest is true. Although he is certainly in danger, he will soon learn that the threats lurking in the forest are rather different than his mother supposed them to be.

“It felt as though the tree he was sitting in and the green leaves all around him belonged to another world altogether, that he was a trespasser who had no right to be where he was.”

As Billy finds himself in the Minpins’ tree, Dahl takes the opportunity to slow the pace of the narrative and create a deeper sense of the forest setting. By describing the forest canopy as “another world,” the author emphasizes the fact that by entering the Forest of Sin, Billy has crossed over the threshold of some nebulous, liminal space and has entered a different reality.

“‘You’re in a bit of a twizzler, aren’t you?’ the voice was saying. ‘You can’t go down again because you’ll be guzzled up at once. But you can’t possibly stay here forever, either.’”

In this scene, Don Mini recognizes and sympathizes with Billy’s predicament of being stuck in the tree, but rather than using conventional language to describe this scenario, Dahl invokes the nonsense word “twizzler” to mean “predicament,” relying upon readers to discern the word’s meaning through context.

“Suddenly, all the other Minpins, men, women, and children, were climbing out of their windows and making their way toward Little Billy. Their suction-boots seemed to allow them to walk up and down the steepest branches with the greatest ease, and some were even walking upside-down underneath the branches. All of them were wearing these old-fashioned clothes from hundreds of years ago, and several had on very peculiar hats and bonnets. They stood or sat in groups on all the branches around Little Billy, staring at him as though he were someone from outer space.”

Upon meeting the Minpins, Billy is fascinated by their strange, old-fashioned clothing and their habit of walking easily on vertical branches. As Dahl reveals a whole civilization of tiny people who populate the forest, the novel’s setting gains new depths and dimensions, and the description is designed to suggest that even the most mundane landscapes carry marvelous but hidden secrets.

“‘This one is very grand because I am the Ruler of this tree. My name is Don Mini. What is yours?’

‘Mine is Little Billy,’ Little Billy said.

‘Greetings, Little Billy,’ Don Mini said. ‘You are welcome to look into some of the other rooms if you wish. We are very proud of them.’”

When Little Billy introduces himself to Don Mini, he gives him the name “Little Billy,” rather than just “Billy.” When the protagonist includes this adjective as part of his full name, this detail is another way that Dahl imbues his novel with common fairy tale conventions, for the epithet “Little Billy” bears a passing resemblance to characters such as Chicken Little or the Big Bad Wolf. Dahl also creates an ironic comparison of relative sizes, for if Billy is “little,” then his new friend is certainly “miniature.”

“Gruncher or no Gruncher, I’ve simply got to get home somehow.”

The determination in Billy’s voice indicates that rather than fearing the difficulties that surround him, he has decided to take charge and find a creative solution, thereby demonstrating The Leadership Qualities of Children.

“He makes so much steam and smoke you can never see him. If you are behind him sometimes you can catch a glimpse of little bits of him […] But nobody really knows.”

No one has ever truly seen the Gruncher, but everybody fears him greatly, and in this way, the beast becomes a personification of fear itself. In many ways, the Gruncher takes on the trappings of the monster in a horror movie. By creating an antagonist that can be heard and smelt but not seen, Dahl requires his characters to overcome their fear and become sanguine with the idea of Facing the Unknown.

“He adores humans and he doesn’t catch them very often. Humans are like strawberries and cream to him. You see, for months he’s been living on a diet of Minpins, and a thousand Minpins is not even a snack for him. The brute is ravenous.”

The matter-of-fact explanation that Don Mini gives Billy about the Gruncher’s eating habits marks a prime example of Dahl’s typically dark-themed writing. Despite the grim meaning of Don Mini’s words, the phrasing is quick and light-hearted, and the whimsical simile comparing humans to “strawberries and cream” also leavens the ominous fact that Don Mini is describing the carnage and mass murder of thousands of innocent beings.

“We can summon them anytime we want if we have to go somewhere. How else would we get our supplies of food up here? The Red-Hot Gruncher makes it impossible for us to walk anywhere in the wood.”

In this passage, Don Mini emphasizes the clever ways in which the Minpins avoid the dangerous Gruncher, and despite the brevity of the novel as a whole, Dahl introduces enough elements of practical world-building (such as methods for gathering food) that the bare sketch he creates of the Minpins’ world takes on a life of its own.In this passage, Don Mini emphasizes the clever ways in which the Minpins avoid the dangerous Gruncher, and despite the brevity of the novel as a whole, Dahl introduces enough elements of practical world-building (such as methods for gathering food) that the bare sketch he creates of the Minpins’ world takes on a life of its own.

“It was an astonishing sight. Every kind of wonderful bird was flying in and perching on the branches of the great tree, and as soon as one landed a Minpin would climb onto its back and off they would go.”

Billy is delighted and fascinated when he first sees the Minpins boarding birds so that they may fly freely around the forest despite the Gruncher below. When he learns that the birds can communicate with each other and have a symbiotic relationship with the Minpins, this realization foreshadows his partnership with Swan to overcome the ravenous Gruncher.

“‘Call up a swan,’ Little Billy said. Suddenly there was a new authority in his voice.”

Where Little Billy had once been a timid and obedient boy, he now has “new” confidence and assertively declares his desires. This sudden shift in his demeanor shows that he is embracing The Leadership Qualities of Children and is taking charge of the situation despite his relative youth. Because he is no longer sheltered by the strict boundaries and rules of his home, Billy has gained a new sense of identity and perspective, and rather than shrinking in fear, he is embracing this new strange world.

“Oh, it was thrilling to be flying on the back of this great swan! It was wonderful to be up in the air and to feel the air swishing past his face.”

The tone of excited delight in this passage celebrates the fantastical experiences that Billy finds himself enjoying, and although he knows that he is heading into deadly danger, he has the presence of mind to revel in the moment and appreciate this unique experience for the miracle that it is. Once again, Dahl invokes the imagery of birds to emphasize Billy’s newfound freedom and independence.

“‘Minpins of the forest!’ he cried, raising his small voice so that it could be heard all over the tree. ‘The murderous Gruncher, who has gobbled up so many thousands of Minpins, has gone forever! The forest floor is safe at last for us to walk on! So now we can all go down to pick blackberries and winkleberries and puckleberries and muckleberries and twinkleberries and snozzberries to our heart’s content. And our children can play among the wild flowers and roots all day long.’”

In this scene, Don Mini is proclaiming Billy’s victory over the Gruncher and celebrating the Minpins’ new freedom as they delight in exploring the forest floor again. Just as the Minpins have expanded Billy’s world, he has returned the favor by destroying the Gruncher and restoring their access to the forest floor. Don Mini’s effusive and enthusiastic listing of the many fantastical berry varieties also broadens the novel’s descriptions of the forest as a world apart from normal reality. The word “snozzberries” also creates an implicit link with Dahl’s other works, for this type of berry makes an appearance in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory as well.

“You, my boy, have done a wonderful thing for us and in return we wish to do something for you. I have had a word with Swan and he has agreed to become your own personal private airplane for just as long as you remain small enough to fly on his back.”

Don Mini rewards Billy for defeating the Gruncher by letting him ride Swan at night, but because this is only possible while Billy remains small, Don Mini’s words are meant to create a rather wistful note, for Dahl implies that children can only experience the true, hidden magic of the world while they are still young enough to do so. Thus, Dahl acknowledges that the world of adults is often leached of its magic, and the inevitability of Billy’s growth injects a wistful note into the narrative, for it is clear that someday, his amazing adventures must come to an end.

“‘Little Billy,’ came his mother’s voice from the kitchen. ‘What are you up to in there? You’ve been very quiet for a long time.’

‘I’m being good, Mummy,’ Little Billy called back. ‘I’m being very, very good.’”

In this scene, Billy returns to his house after his adventure in the forest, and his mother doesn’t even realize he’d been gone. This chapter also brings the narrative full circle and reiterates Billy’s promises to “be good” at the beginning of the novel. However, given all that Billy has experienced without his mother’s knowledge, his reassurance that he is “being very, very good” takes on a note of irony, for he has gotten away with disobeying her instructions. This moment also acknowledges the profound inner changes that travelers experience when they see new places and return to their loved ones who have remained exactly the same in their absence.

“‘Just one of those old trees outside,’ Little Billy said.”

With this blithe lie, Little Billy actively keeps his adventures a secret from his mother, claiming to have climbed a nearby tree rather than one that grows in the forbidden Forest of Sin. Ironically, she believes him without question, and this scene therefore indicates the distance between the two of them, for Billy’s mother clearly has little interest in his actions.

 “Oh, it was a wondrous secret life that Little Billy lived up there in the sky at night on Swan’s back! They flew in a magical world of silence, swooping and gliding over the dark world below where all the earthly people were fast asleep in their beds.”

For Billy, flying on Swan at night is the ultimate experience of freedom and magic. The effusive excitement of this passage emphasizes the many benefits of Billy’s “secret life” away from the scrutiny of his mother, for by continuing to leap into new experiences, he makes Facing the Unknown a favorite pastime rather than an insurmountable challenge, and it is implied that he will take this spirit of adventure into his adult life as well.

“Who were they? He wanted very badly to ask Swan this question, but he couldn’t speak a word of bird-language. Swan seemed unwilling to fly very close to these creatures from another world, and this made it impossible for Little Billy to see them clearly.”

Billy and Swan cannot communicate verbally, so the boy cannot ask why Swan refuses to bring him closer to the strange creatures in the clouds. However, those who have also read Dahl’s James and the Giant Peach will recognize the strange figures as the dangerous cloud-men: the creatures who make snow, rain, and even rainbows, magically creating the weather of the world.

“Little Billy wondered whether this was a secret meeting place of all the swans in the world, and he wished he had been able to ask Swan this question as well. But sometimes mysteries are more intriguing than explanations, and the swans on the blue lake, like the creatures on the golden cloud, would remain a mystery forever in Little Billy’s memory.”

Although Swan shows Billy many amazing things, the language barrier between the two prevents Billy from asking questions. However, rather than lamenting his lack of understanding, he reasons that the very mystery of some of these sights contributes to their innate magic.

“‘You are growing up fast, Little Billy. I’m afraid that soon you will be too heavy for Swan.’

‘I know,’ Little Billy said. ‘I can’t help it.’”

Both Little Billy and Don Mini are aware that the boy is growing up and will no longer be quite so “little.” Don Mini’s comment emphasizes the inevitability of losing one’s childhood and moving on to new things. Billy’s admission that he “can’t help it” touches upon the regret that many people feel upon being forced to leave the greatest delights of their childhood behind.

“I myself have been very careful not to tell you where they live, and I’m not about to tell you now.”

In this sentence, the narrator reveals himself to be an actual character in the story: someone who is acquainted with Billy and the Minpins himself. Dahl repeatedly uses this technique to conclude his children’s novels, and the narrator is often revealed to have known the protagonist—or in the case of James and the Giant Peach, to be both protagonist and narrator.