History Literature / EsioTrot

* AgeLift: In the book Mrs Silver is described as an attractive middle aged lady with a part time job while Mr Hoppy is an elderly retiree. In the 2015 film adaptation Mrs Silver is aged up to be a similar age to Hoppy and is made a retired midwife. [[spoiler:This was possibly done to avoid the squick factor of Hoppy getting together with a much older woman at the end.]]

* AdaptationExpansion: Necessary to make a 90-minute film out of a relatively-short children's book. The movie benefits from expanding on the characterisation (and backstory) of its leads, explaining Mrs Silver's relations with her deceased husband and working hard to make Mr Hoppy a much more likeable person - he's more of a highly-shy DoggedNiceGuy (with emphasis on the Nice) who while acting partly out of self-interest is, in his own way, just trying to make the woman he loves happy; when called on his dishonesty he admits his fault. [[spoiler:The family living in his building, who he tells the story to (revealing the father to be the NarratorAllAlong) are used to emphasise that, even from an outsider's perspective, he's a genuinely kind man with a gentle nature and that he truly does just want the woman he loves to be happy first and foremost.]]

A 1990 children's novel written by Creator/RoaldDahl and illustrated by Quentin Blake.

* AnimalMotifs: Hoffman's casting in the adaptation evokes the characteristics and features of a tortoise, emphasising how he can relate to Alfie and the tortoises in general.

A story by [[Creator/RoaldDahl Roald Dahl]].

A story by [[Creator/RoaldDahl Roald Dahl]]. A retired man, Mr Hoppy, is in love with the widow who lives in the apartment below him, Mrs Silver. However, he is too shy to express his feelings, and Mrs Silver showers her affection on her tortoise, Alfie. One day, she tells Mr Hoppy that she wishes he could grow bigger and he decides to use this as an opportunity to win her love. He tells Silver, while in Africa he learnt that you can talk to tortoises by saying words backwards, and gives her a paper with words telling the tortoise to grow bigger backwards, claiming he'll grow if she keeps telling him that. Secretly, he buys similar looking tortoises, and while Mrs Silver is out he uses a long claw on a stick to kidnap Alfie and replace him with a slightly bigger tortoise. He keeps doing this, and finally "Alfie" can't get into his house. Mrs Silver weighs him and thinks her tortoise has grown bigger. Hoppy then makes up another backwards rhyme, and tells her it will make him slightly smaller. When it "works" he asks her to marry him and she accepts. He takes all the tortoises back to the pet shops and they get married soon after.

A television movie was released in early 2015, which expands on the story and addresses the issues of the original book. It stars Creator/DustinHoffman as Mr Hoppy and Creator/JudiDench as Mrs Silver.

* WhatTheHellHero: The 2015 incarnation is eventually discovered and called out on his behaviour. He ''is'' eventually forgiven, but Mrs Silver takes a while to do so.

* OddballInTheSeries: ''Esio Trot'' is one of the very few children's books by Roald Dahl that does not feature a KidHero.

A story by [[Creator/RoaldDahl Roald Dahl]]. A retired man Mr Hoppy is in love with a Widow who lives in the apartment below him, Mrs Silver. However he is too shy to express his feelings and Mrs Silver showers her affection on her tortoise Alfie. One day she tells Mr Hoppy that she wishes he could grow bigger and he decides to use this as an opportunity to win her love. He tells Silver while in Africa he learnt that you can talk to tortoises by saying words backwards and gives her a paper with words telling the tortoise to grow bigger backwards, claiming he'll grow if she keeps telling him that. Secretly he buys similar looking tortoises. While Mrs Silver is out he uses a long claw on a stick to kidnap Alfie and replace him with a slightly bigger tortoise. He keeps doing this and finally "Alfie" can't get into his house. Mrs Silver weighs him and thinks her tortoise has grown bigger. Hoppy then makes up another backwards rhyme and tells her it will make him slightly smaller. When it "works" he asks her to marry him and she accepts. He takes all the tortoises back to the pet shops and they get married soon after.

%%WMG/EsioTrot

A story by [[Creator/RoaldDahl Roald Dahl]]. A retired man Mr Hoppy is in love with a Widow who lives in the apartment below him, Mrs Silver. However he is too shy to express his feelings and Mrs Silver showers her affection on her tortoise Alfie. One day she tells Mr Hoppy that she wishes he could grow bigger and he decides to use this as an opportunity to win her love. He tells Silver while in Africa he learnt that you can talk to tortoises by saying words backwards and gives her a paper with words telling the tortoise to grow bigger backwards, claiming he'll grow if she keeps telling him that. Secretly he buys similar looking tortoises. While Mrs Silver is out he uses a long claw on a stick to kidnap Alfie and replace him with a slightly bigger tortoise. He keeps doing this and finally "Alfie" can't get into his house. Mrs Silver weighs him and thinks her tortoise has grown bigger. Hoppy then makes up another backwards rhyme and tells her it will make him slightly smaller. When it "works" he asks her to marry him and she accepts. He takes all the tortoises back to the pet shops and they get married soon after. WMG/EsioTrot

* SpeaksFluentAnimal: Mr Hoppy claims this can be done with tortoises by saying words backwards, hence Esio Trot means "Tortoise".
* StalkerWithACrush: Mr Hoppy

* ValuesDissonance: In-story. At the beginning Roald Dahl writes that by now it is outlawed in England to buy tortoises as the conditions used for transporting them were cruel and many tortoises died on the way. When the story is set you could still buy tortoises.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: Averted at the end. Dahl says the original Alfie went to a girl who is now grown up with children and that by now Alfie has doubled in size.

A story by [[Creator/RoaldDahl Roald Dahl]]. A retired man Mr Hoppy is in love with a Widow who lives in the apartment below him, Mrs Silver. However he is too shy to express his feelings and Mrs Silver showers her affection on her tortoise Alfie. One day she tells Mr Hoppy that she wishes he could grow bigger and he decides to use this as an opportunity to win her love. He tells Silver while in Africa he learnt that you can talk to tortoises by saying words backwards and gives her a paper with words telling the tortoise to grow bigger backwards, claiming he'll grow if she keeps telling him that. Secretly he buys similar looking tortoises. While Mrs Silver is out he uses a long claw on a stick to kidnap Alfie and replace him with a slightly bigger tortoise. He keeps doing this and finally "Alfie" can't get into his house. Mrs Silver weighs him and thinks her tortoise has grown bigger. Hoppy then makes up another backwards rhyme and tells her it will make him slightly smaller. When it "works" he asks her to marry him and she accepts. He takes all the tortoises back to the pet shops and they get married soon after.

A story by [[Creator/RoaldDahl Roald Dahl]]. A retired man Mr Hoppy is in love with a Widow who lives in the apartment below him, Mrs Silver. However he is too shy to express his feelings and Mrs Silver showers her affection on her tortoise Alfie. One day she tells Mr Hoppy that she wishes he could grow bigger and he decides to use this as an opportunity to win her love. He tells Silver while in Africa he learnt that you can talk to tortoises by saying words backwards and gives her a paper with words telling the tortoise to grow bigger backwards, claiming he'll grow if she keeps telling him that. Secretly he buys similar looking tortoises. While Mrs Silver is out he uses a long claw on a stick to kidnap Alfie and replace him with a slightly bigger tortoise. He keeps doing this and finally "Alfie" can't get into his house. Mrs Silver weighs him and thinks her tortoise has grown bigger. Hoppy then makes up another backwards rhyme and tells her it will make him slightly smaller. When it "works" he asks her to marry him and she accepts. He takes all the tortoises back to the pet shops and they get married soon after. YMMV/EsioTrot

* TheOtherDarrin: Mr Hoppy does this repeatedly.

A story by [[Creator/RoaldDahl Roald Dahl]]. A retired man Mr Hoppy is in love with a Widow who lives in the apartment below him, Mrs Silver. However he is too shy to express his feelings and Mrs Silver showers her affection on her tortoise Alfie. One day she tells Mr Hoppy that she wishes he could grow bigger and he decides to use this as an opportunity to win her love.

* StockAnimalDiet: The tortoises much prefer lettuce to "thick old cabbage leaves".

A story by [[Creator/RoaldDahl]]. A retired man Mr Hoppy is in love with a Widow who lives in the apartment below him, Mrs Silver. However he is too shy to express his feelings and Mrs Silver showers her affection on her tortoise Alfie. One day she tells Mr Hoppy that she wishes he could grow bigger and he decides to use this as an opportunity to win her love.