One of the best books ever written for children (and adults), Matilda is a story of good over evil, brains over brawn, and books over...everything! Matilda is a black sheep in her tv-loving family, finding safety in books when home life and an evil headmistress seem to be against her. With all the wicked, brilliant and funny adventures and characters that Dahl is known for, this is a wonderful story. I was so excited to see this new edition to celebrate the woman Matilda no doubt grew up to be, and Quentin Blake's cover illustrations are just wonderful. Personally, I always thought she'd grow up to be a librarian in a magical library, but she definitely had something of the scientist about her too. A great addition for your bookshelf, and a lovely way to keep this story alive.

Love the new cover and has provided a great excuse to read this classic all over again this time with my daughter. Would love to know what she went on to do. Is she the chief exec of the British library? Most definitely a possibility

Really disappointed. Tried absolutely everything to read this book but it wouldn't let me open it! Was really looking forward to giving this a read as well.

Matilda is a modern classic, beloved by so many readers. It's a book that makes children into avid readers, encourages a love of reading and highlights the escapism that books can provide.

Like many bookworms, I adored the story of Matilda growing up and saw myself in Matilda - a bright young girl who loves reading and learning. But, again like many bookworms, I wished that I too had magic powers like Matilda! Being able to control things with your mind is something that many of us have tried growing up, and Roald Dahl's incredible writing really makes you believe that you can.

These Matilda at 30 editions are absolutely stunning. It's fascinating to think about how Matilda has grown up and where she would end up. Of the three designs, I personally think that the Chief Executive of the British Library is the most likely, but in reality I would not be surprised to see Matilda as a teacher or a lawyer. Her sense of justice and fairness would be very much suited to these two careers.

Matilda is a story that will continue to enchant readers for years to come, and will continue to be a rite of passage for young bookworms.

This is possibly my favourite Roald Dahl book. Matilda is an enchanting character who has a hint of magic as well as a tremendous love of books and a determination to overcome the nastiness she sees around her. this anniversary edition is brilliant because it has her become the head of the British Library and as a Children's Librarian I can only cheer on such a thoroughly committed individual. Hopefully this will bring the story to yet another generation of book lovers

I was 23 years old when Matilda was first published and therefore deprived of discovering its inspirational protagonist at an age when she would have had the greatest impact on my life. Like her, I was a bookish child who learned to read long before my contemporaries – although, unlike Matilda Wormwood, I cannot claim to have devoured Great Expectations, The Sound and the Fury and Tess of the D’Urbervilles by the age of four.

I did, however, read and thoroughly relish Roald Dahl’s novel almost as soon as it went on sale in my local branch of WH Smith’s, which, it now transpires, is exactly 30 years ago this month. It’s almost that long since I last glanced inside its covers, so a reread was long overdue.

Rereading Matilda, I found myself audibly chuckling, chiding and cheering in all the same places. Dahl’s characters still delight. There’s the girl’s dreadful spiv of a father and her atrocious Diana Dors aping mother, neither of whom give a hoot about their gifted daughter and would rather watch the telly than read a book. Then there’s the compassionate and discreet librarian, Mrs Phelps, who is “filled with wonder and excitement” by Matilda’s advanced abilities and introduces her to a “formidable” selection of titles. There’s everyone’s favourite grown-up: Matilda’s teacher, Miss Jennifer Honey, with her “madonna face” and “rare gift for being adored by every small child under her care.” Finally, who could ever forget Miss Trunchbull, the brutish headmistress at Crunchem Hall Primary School, with her “massive thighs”, “extraordinary breeches” and penchant for grabbing small children by the ears and hurling them through windows?

Add to all this Dahl’s witty wordplay and his wicked sense of humour, combine Quentin Blake’s iconic illustrations, and the story of a plucky little girl with both brains and bottle becomes an enduring and widely loved children’s classic with global sales of over 17 million.

Three decades on and 28 years after the death of Roald Dahl, Quentin Blake has imagined the heroine as she might be today in three uniquely jacketed collector’s editions of the book. The publishers hope those who enjoyed reading Matilda in their youth will purchase the story again as adults, choosing the cover that matches their view of the modern Matilda.

In a foreword to Matilda at 30, Blake, now 85, reveals he had “fun imagining what that little girl might be doing now she’s all grown up.” Since, as a child, she was gifted in so many ways, he has visualized her succeeding in a variety of fields, from Chief Executive of the British Library, to Astrophysicist, to World Traveller. “I imagined that for each version of our grown-up Matilda one of her extraordinary talents and achievements would have come to the fore and shown her a role in life,” he writes.

Always an aspirational character and way ahead of her time, Matilda was spirited, she believed in herself and stood up to bullies. In a genre that continues to be dominated by male characters, she remains as relevant today as ever.

Roald Dahl is still one of my all time favourite authors, the exaggerated characters, vile awful villains and the amazing, brave children who are the heroes. All his stories and characters captured my heart at a young age, I had his entire collection which I would read time and time again. As I got older I read his autobiographies and his adult fiction stories but, Matilda was always a firm favourite of mine.

I was so excited to start reading Matilda again after so many years. The last time I read this book I must have been about 11 or 12. A huge rush of nostalgia swept through me as I got sucked back into the story of the terrible Wormwords, the sweet Miss Honey, the dreaded Miss Trunchbull and of course the intelligent Matilda.

Whilst reading Matilda I felt like Roald Dahl was sweeping me away into his crazy, wonderful world, yet my adult brain kept ruining it for me. At the back of my mind there was a little niggle of how awful Mr and Mrs Wormwood treated Matilda, how they belittle and bully her when she is a sweet, polite child prodigy! The things Miss Trunchbull did to the kids, could you imagine this happening in the world today?! She would be in prison for life. Of course I know this is a kids book and things are exaggerated and I still found it funny and silly, I just found it fascinating how differently my brain clicked over reading this as a 27 year old, than when I read this at 12 years old.

I am probably over thinking things as most adults do, but I still loved re-reading Matilda. There is just something so special about this book, maybe because I relate to her, as in her adoration for reading not the crazy parents and teachers. I love what Matilda stands for being an intelligent girl, standing up to her bullies and tormentors without a fear inside of her, she is polite sweet and kind. A fantastic role model for all children to look up to. This book tells young kids that having a brain isn't anything to be ashamed of and it can be cool! Also it's okay to stand up to your bullies, it is not okay to be treated the way Miss Trunchbull was treating the children or how The Wormwoods treated Matilda. One of my favourite parts of the book is when Miss Trunchbull forces Bruce Bogtrotter to eat the giant chocolate cake, not only is is a funny part of the book to read, but he also stands up to The Trunchbull by proving her wrong and has the whole school on his side backing him up. I always loved in Roald Dahl books how the kids were triumphant over the mean adults.

Throughout the book were the infamous Quentin Blake's illustrations, I loved this so much as my book as a child didn't have these. I can imagine for younger children as it breaks up a lot of the larger chapters and text. The idea of what Matilda is doing at 30 is also really fun. In my opinion I think she would want to help the world and especially young children, I think she would of set up schools to teach adults and kids to read, maybe set up libraries and really made a difference to children's education. After all her biggest passion was reading and she looked up to Miss Honey, her teacher.

It was a real delight re-reading Matilda, it has inspired me to re-read more of my childhood favourites, especially more Roald Dahl. I just need to remember to turn off my boring analysing adult brain and try and read them as an innocent child.

What can I say? This book is beyond beautiful and I had to go out and buy a physical copy immediately. This book was my favourite as a child and is the reason I love reading so much today. It's such a brilliant idea to release these updated covers to inspire a new generation of girls.

Matilda was a wonderful character who I loved through out my childhood. A book I reread a lot as a child is still worth reading as an adult. I still couldn't put the book down till I finished it, that is the magic of Roald Dahl. This story was still able to make me laugh as an adult, the characters are just as wonderful now as they were when I was a child.

This is a wonderful edition with the extra cover art by Quentin Blake that shows Matilda as an adult in some perfectly fitting jobs such as the Chief Executive of the British Library.

This is definitely a book worth purchasing for children and adult book collectors. The hardcover version will make excellent gifts for this holiday season for both new & old Matilda fans.

Thank you Penguin Random House for my my digital ARC through NetGalley.

A classic Roald Dahl story that I have loved since I was a child and have read many times since then.

This story is shows how a member of a family can be so different they aren't accepted and how this can mean they feel an outsider in their own family. It also highlights that anyone can be a bully either old or young and the impact this can have on those around them. A lovely story with a beautiful happy ending .

More than just a children's book. It's easy to forget just how great Roald Dahl is. Not just a storyteller but an integral part of our reading life, starting us on a path for a tremendous lifetime of books. Love it as much now as I did as a child!

I think these reprints with new covers by Quentin Blake, imagining Matilda in various careers aged thirty are really lovely. My copy was from NetGalley so I got to see all of the new covers and if I was a collecting sort of person I'd definitely want them all. There's a lovely short introduction by Quentin talking about his reasoning behind the covers too. Having said that, everything else about the books is the same. So if you are hoping for an update in the last chapter it won't happen. It is, however, still an excellent book in its original form.

Loved this book as a child and now as a not very grownup grownup!!
Hard to believe Matilda is 30 but i guess age comes to the best of us!
Perfect for a trip down memory lane or to introduce Matilda to your younger ones :-)

God who doesn’t love Matilda. I’m 40 and still love this story. One my kids loved when younger and still holds the magic for me this many years on.

Matilda is the quintessential book that every young (or old) girl needs in her life. Even for a "disgusting" grown up like me, I still adore the narrative, Matilda herself and possibly still have a soft spot for Ms. Trunchbull. I especially love Quentin Blake's imagining of what Matilda would be doing now as a career for the updated cover. Out of the three, I think Chief Executive of the British Library is the most fitting post she could hold. I'll definitely be purchasing this special edition in hardback.

Really great read. It takes you on a really great journey of different emotions. Thoroughly enjoyed it.

A favourite from my childhood I would recommend this book if you have children or without ,reading this brought back childhood memories. Life just needs this magic sometimes..

I can't believe Matilda is 30. I've loved all the covers which Quentin Blake has illustrated in celebration of her 30th. It's interesting to see what Matilda could have become. It's been a joy to re-read Matilda, especially to experience her love of libraries which is an opinion so many libraries need 30 years later.

Great read. Not my usual genre but I was gripped throughout. I will definitely look out for more from this author and will be recommending to others.

An all time classic that entombs joyful memories of many nights reading to the kids before bed.
Was great to take a step back and think about possibilities and where they could have led Matilda to today.