Gangsta Granny by David Walliams

Gangsta Granny by David Walliams is a wonderful, hilarious novel with a dash of a heartfelt story sprinkled in. Ben hates spending time with his granny who smells like cabbage and loves playing scrabble. Ben is regularly forced to spend time with his grandma because his parents are off watching ballroom dancing. However, one day, Ben realizes that his grandma may not be as boring as he thinks. He finds a tin of stolen jewels in his grandma’s cabinet and starts to question if his granny is actually as mind-numbing as he thinks she is.

Ben asks his granny about the tin and she tells him stories about the old days when she stole from the lords and ladies of villages and robbed jewelry shops on the streets. Ben and his granny make a plan to make the biggest heist of granny’s life: stealing the crown jewels. Sadly, Ben doesn’t know, but his grandma has cancer and is very sick. Will granny make it to the day of the heist, and if she does will they successfully steal the crown jewels without getting caught?

Throughout the story, I felt a mix of many different emotions, sadness, joy, and many more. One page I was overjoyed, the next I was struck with a pang of sadness. It’s incredible how Walliams can harmonize such different elements so well.