41 pages • 1 hour read
Gangsta Granny
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Themes
Navigating Family Relationships
Eleven-year-old Ben has very different views from his parents and struggles with their inflexible parenting. While Mum and Dad indulge in their passion for ballroom dancing and urge him to consider becoming a dancer, Ben keeps his interest in plumbing a secret to avoid upsetting them. Meanwhile, Ben also has a troubled relationship with his granny until her mischievous plan turns his notions of her upside down. As Ben, his parents, and Granny navigate their relationships with each other, they learn that they have to respect each other’s differences to get along.
Throughout the story, Ben feels ashamed of his dream of entering the trades as a plumber when he grows up. He has long had a talent for the craft, as he “was as good with his hands as he was rubbish at reading” (30); however, Ben still felt embarrassed about his dream because it was less impressive than his parents’ hopes for him. Ben “always felt like a disappointment to his Mum and Dad” (30), making their relationship tense and distrustful.
Ben’s growing friendship with Granny provides him with an outlet for his anxieties and some reassuring acceptance from another parental figure. When part of Ben’s plan to steal the Crown Jewels goes awry, he claims, “Mum and Dad were right. I am useless” (236). Granny firmly denies this and expresses how clever he is. This reinforces the positive impact already set by her willingness to indulge his desire to do the heist, an act that allows him to focus on his interest in plumbing. Granny’s validation is especially meaningful to Ben because he does not receive the same support from his parents.
The story’s conclusion demonstrates how Ben and his family become better at communicating with each other and respecting each other, even when they disagree. When Ben shares that he feels like a disappointment to them, his parents can prioritize him over their obsession with ballroom dancing: “‘We love you so much, Ben!’ added Mum. ‘You must never think differently. Who cares about a silly dancing competition hosted by TV’s Flavio Flavioli? I am so proud of you, whatever you do’” (277). By ending the book with Ben and his parents resolving their conflict in this way, Walliams shows that honesty and mutual respect are key to happy family relationships.
Overcoming Generational Differences
Throughout the story, Ben and Granny must try to overcome their generational differences to understand each other and enjoy each other’s company. The story initially depicts Granny and Ben as opposites, and their contrasting preferences are typical of their different generations. While Granny prefers to play Scrabble and lets her broken TV collect dust, Ben longs to watch a movie or show. Granny loves her cabbage soup and cabbage pie, which Ben detests. Old-fashioned Granny believes that he should go to bed early, and she often calls him infantilizing nicknames, both of which he resents deeply. Granny’s commitment to tradition and routine alienates young Ben, who concludes that all elderly people are “boring.”
Once Granny realizes that Ben does not enjoy her company, she does her best to close the generation gap between them by inserting some adventure into his life with her storytelling and escapades. Ben is pleasantly surprised by Granny’s sense of adventure as he joins her: “Ben looked back at her as she drove. He’d just seen her preparing to rob a jeweler’s shop, how could he be more surprised? Clearly there was a lot more to his granny than he had ever known” (77). She recognizes that Ben is at an age at which outlandish, daring adventures are most appealing to him, and creating one will help them bond. This encourages her to partake in behavior that is not only dangerous or potentially criminal but also in contrast with stereotypes about elderly people. She constantly strives to impress Ben with tricks and stories, and this helps bring her out of her strict routine.
By being sensitive to Ben’s needs, Granny helps them both overcome the generational differences between them. By the end of the story, Ben sees Granny as an interesting companion and looks back fondly on his time with her. He realizes that her false tales of jewelry heists were interesting, but they weren’t what he loved about her. Granny’s caring attitude and willingness to try new things are what Ben values most, and this dispels any false notions of “boring” old people or her being a “textbook granny.” This makes him more open-minded toward older people in general. For instance, when an elderly friend of Granny’s approaches him at his grandmother’s funeral, Ben graciously accepts her invitation to visit her at her home—and even agrees to a game of Scrabble.
Deepening Relationships with Curiosity and Discovery
Ben’s burgeoning interest in Granny leads to important discoveries about her and creates a strong bond between them, adding to the author’s theme of Deepening Relationships with Curiosity and Discovery. At the beginning of the story, Ben struggles to connect with his elderly Granny despite her caring nature. Bored by her rigid routines that keep him confined in her little house, Ben harshly judges Granny and struggles to see her as anything other than a boring grandma. Ben’s narrow view of Granny makes it even harder for him to imagine that she had lived a long and eventful life before he ever knew her.
Ben’s friend Raj, the owner of the corner store, advises Ben to foster some curiosity about Granny instead of being so dismissive of her. He tells Ben,
Just because your granny is old, young Ben, […] ‘doesn’t mean that she is boring. I am getting on a bit myself. And whenever I have met your granny I have found her to be a very interesting lady. […] We will all be old one day. Even you (38).
Ben struggles to take Raj’s advice until he discovers Granny’s hidden jewels in the cookie tin. Ben’s questions about Granny’s secret stash of jewelry fuel his interest in Granny, prompting him to see her as a full person with a past and her own pursuits, rather than simply his grandmother.
Even though Granny’s past as a jewel thief was an elaborate lie, Ben does not regret opening his mind about Granny. In doing so, he realized that he enjoyed her storytelling and conversations and that she was a fantastic partner in crime, and life in general. Their shared time together, though predicated on Granny’s fib, helped the two find common interests and solidify their bond, so their relationship stays intact even when Granny reveals her lie. Ben thinks, “Granny had lied to him, and that was horrible—but she’d only done it because she was upset that he thought she was dull” (246). This helps him to realize that his willingness to learn more about her helped them bond. She was always interesting; he just had to be curious enough to find that out. Ben’s parents mirror this epiphany, committing to recognizing and valuing his hobbies after learning how insecure they made him feel. Putting effort into appreciating others’ passions and personality traits helps strengthen the relationships of all the main characters in the end.
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By David Walliams
