The Twits

The Twits (1980) by Roald Dahl is a fantastical and absurd children’s story about a mean couple and how they are eventually outsmarted by the animals they mistreat. The Big Read listed The Twits as one of the 200 greatest books of all time according to the British public in 2003, and in 2012, the Twits appeared on a commemorative postage stamp. The book was adapted for the stage in 2007, and an animated feature film is scheduled to be released in 2025. Dahl (1916-1990) was a prolific British author of books for young readers, having written classics such as Matilda (1988), James and the Giant Peach (1961), The BFG (1982), and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (1964), and his collective works have sold over 300 million copies worldwide. He was named the British Book Awards Author of the Year in 1990 and received the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement in 1983, among other awards and recognitions.

This guide follows the 2007 Puffin Books edition of The Twits.

Plot Summary

The Twits tells the story of Mr. and Mrs. Twit, a cruel and unkempt couple who spend their days playing tricks on one another and being mean to the animals around their home. Mr. Twit has a large and grotesque beard while Mrs. Twit has a glass eye and uses a walking stick, with which she primarily hits things. Their tricks include Mr. Twit putting a frog in Mrs. Twit’s bed and Mrs. Twit serving Mr. Twit worms in his spaghetti.

Once a week, the Twits have bird pie for dinner, and they capture birds by painting the dead tree in their yard with extra-strong glue that sticks the birds when they land. One day, the Roly-Poly Bird arrives from Africa, and after learning of the Twits’ bird pie ritual from the captive monkeys, the Roly-Poly Bird translates the monkeys’ warning to save the other birds.

The Twits grow angry that the animals keep outsmarting them, so they go to town to buy guns. While they are gone, the Roly-Poly Bird helps the monkeys escape their cage, and the animals use the glue to stick everything in the Twits’ house upside down to the ceiling. When the Twits come home, the birds put glue on their heads, and inside the house, the Twits panic that everything is upside down.

To fix the problem, the Twits stand on their heads and become stuck in place because of the glue. Since they aren’t meant to stand on their heads for so long, they develop the shrinks, causing them to fold in on themselves until they disappear. The monkeys return to Africa, and the animals live happily ever after.