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Alice's Adventures in Wonderland #1-2

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

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Lewis Carroll's anarchic, disturbing, and boisterously funny Alice stories, conjured up one afternoon to entertain a young girl, are a unique blend of wordplay, logic, parody, puzzles, and riddles.

Their dream worlds of nonsensical Wonderland and the back-to-front Looking Glass kingdom depict order turned upside-down: a baby turns into a pig, time is abandoned at an unruly tea-party and a chaotic game of chess makes a seven-year-old girl a Queen. But, amongst the eccentric humour and witty conundrums, are poignant moments of nostalgia for a lost childhood.

247 pages, Paperback

First published December 27, 1871

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About the author

Lewis Carroll

5,503books8,212followers
The Reverend Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, better known by the pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, mathematician, logician, Anglican clergyman and photographer.

His most famous writings are Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its sequel Through the Looking-Glass as well as the poems "The Hunting of the Snark" and "Jabberwocky", all considered to be within the genre of literary nonsense.

Oxford scholar, Church of England Deacon, University Lecturer in Mathematics and Logic, academic author of learned theses, gifted pioneer of portrait photography, colourful writer of imaginative genius and yet a shy and pedantic man, Lewis Carroll stands pre-eminent in the pantheon of inventive literary geniuses.

He also has works published under his real name.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 17,058 reviews
Profile Image for J.G. Keely.
546 reviews12.1k followers
June 3, 2007
I think that the failure not only of Children's Literature as a whole, but of our very concept of children and the child's mind is that we think it a crime to challenge and confront that mind. Children are first protected from their culture--kept remote and safe--and then they are thrust incongruously into a world that they have been told is unsafe and unsavory; and we expected them not to blanch.

It has been my policy that the best literature for children is not a trifling thing, not a simplification of the adult or a sillier take on the world. Good Children's literature is some of the most difficult literature to write because one must challenge, engage, please, and awe a mind without resorting to archetypes or life experience.

Once a body grows old enough, we are all saddened by the thought of a breakup. We have a set of knowledge and memories. The pain returns to the surface. Children are not born with these understandings, so to make them understand pain, fear, and loss is no trivial thing. The education of children is the transformation of an erratic and hedonistic little beast into a creature with a rational method by which to judge the world.

A child must be taught not to fear monsters but to fear instead electrical outlets, pink slips, poor people, and lack of social acceptance. The former is frightening in and of itself, the latter for complex, internal reasons. I think the real reason that culture often fears sexuality and violence in children is because they are such natural urges. We fear to trigger them because we cannot control the little beasts. We cannot watch them every minute.

So, to write Children's Literature, an author must create something complex and challenging, something that the child can turn over in their mind without accidentally revealing some terrible aspect of the world that the child is not yet capable of dealing with. Carroll did this by basing his fantasies off of complex, impersonal structures: linguistics and mathematical theory. These things have all the ambiguity, uncertainty, and structure of the grown-up world without the messy, human parts.

This is also why the Alice stories fulfill another requirement I have for Children's Lit: that it be just as intriguing and rewarding for adults. There is no need to limit the depth in books for children, because each reader will come away with whatever they are capable of finding. Fill an attic with treasures and the child who enters it may find any number of things--put a single coin in a room and you ensure that the child will find it, but nothing more.

Of course, we must remember that nothing we can write will ever be more strange or disturbing to a child than the pure, unadulterated world that we will always have failed to prepare them for. However, perhaps we can fail a little less and give them Alice. Not all outlets are to be feared, despite what your parents taught you. In fact, some should be prodded with regularity, and if you dare, not a little joy.
Profile Image for emma.
2,428 reviews84.6k followers
January 24, 2024
THIS BOOK IS MY DREAM.

It鈥檚 Alice鈥檚 Adventures in Wonderland, plus Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There, plus a ton of critical analysis and fun facts and biographical info and poetry and background and cultural and period information and bonus illustrations and basically all you need or could ever want to know, except if you鈥檙e me and your love for and curiosity about Alice and Lewis Carroll and Wonderland will never be satiated.

And also it鈥檚 about a square yard and the font is tiny and it weighs about 30 pounds and takes an eternity to read.

I loved this so much that it made my heart hurt to finish it. My version of paradise is probably something like this, where I鈥檓 alternating between reading the original text I love more than anything and eloquent, wise, humorous elaboration on things I had never known. The more I learned, the more I wanted to know.

I guess you could say I grew鈥�curiouser and curiouser.

I love myself.

Anyway, my bookmark for this book was a folded-up sheet of lined paper on which I wrote down the titles and works of art and research queries I wanted to know more about as I read. I filled up both sides of that sheet.

Absolutely every aspect of this book is gorgeous and curated and fascinating. I don鈥檛 really know how to review this because it basically transcended reading for me.

It was just a perfect experience.

Bottom line: If you love Alice like I do, or really really like it, you need to read this book. It鈥檚 a gift. That鈥檚 all I can say.

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pre-review

i have never, in my entire life, cried in public over a book.

until today.

THIS BOOK MADE ME CRY IN PUBLIC!

more of a review to come??
Profile Image for Mario the lone bookwolf.
805 reviews5,147 followers
February 12, 2023
Try to avoid hyperactive white rabbits

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland aka Alice in Wonderland

How did Caroll get his ideas?
Many questions arose both around Carroll麓s alleged drug consumption and the mental state of the author and besides himself, nobody will ever know. But it has been used to argue for pro drug consumption by hippies, for damnation by all of their political and ideological opponents, and as part of

The myth of how authors find inspiration
The idea of how the mental state of a writer, or artist in general, influences her/his works is even more fascinating, because the line between sane imagination and creativity and madness or getting lost in a world one created her/himself is thin. Just genetic luck or pure coincidence may make the difference between a world-building, ingenious, and very successful author superstar and severe, lifelong mental illness. Being in the zone and flow state of positive creative overkill or of uncontrollable mindfucks one really isn麓t into. Mental strength and self-discipline, to let the demons work for one instead of killing them, or a small pharmacological help may make the difference between world fame and mental asylum and completely blocking or losing the controllable and not harmful symptoms might destroy the ability to make such works, take away the needed basis of dreams, hallucinations, and loss of reality necessary to create unique works. A manifestation of how precious and fragile those human egos, fictional surrogates of what the brain wants, are.

One of the first comedic fantasy works with depth
At a time when there was close to no fantasy literature available, Carroll wrote a precursor of today's bizarro fiction/fantasy/ crossover/horror/comedic whatever genre, focussing on the hero麓s journey of one main plot with the strangeness and surreality of the other characters and environment as main driving engines.

Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There

Don麓t look behind the mirrors

Maybe a bit too strange
Because of the violence and weirdness, I wouldn麓t consider it as a clean, normal read for all ages anymore, but closer to the elder kid section. A true classic, having a lasting impact on pop culture and many other works and tinkering with the ideas of reality, consciousness, the layers of dimensions that might lie beyond the known three, and the realm of interpretations, connotations, and innuendos.

More in it than in stereotypical standard classics
Because it is highly subjective, it is very difficult to draw the line between witty, hidden criticism and satire and simple plot devices with coincidental benefits, and just the author knows what the true intention was. But just that so many, big, clever, whatsoever generations of adults and parents are thinking about and puzzling around what hidden meanings might be behind that lovely story with beheadings, bipolar, schizophrenic, and generally prone to mental illness side characters, highly developed nanotech that let麓s one grow and shrink and stuff, differentiates it from other classics.

The extra easter goodie for the adult readers
One of the rare examples where timeless, all-devouring questions have been compressed and distilled to an allegedly benign, nice, little tale for the kiddies, but the deeper the interested adult digs, the further she/he explores the Matrix-style abyssal depths of the hidden human thoughts, fears, and imaginations, the bigger the WTF factor becomes.

Inspiration unknown
I don麓t know where Carroll took his ideas from and what inspired him to invent this tale, as for instance other pioneers of fantasy tended to use, steal, and adapt old mythology, but much of the content is just so bizarre that it can麓t be compared with the typical standards of the innocent (except the violence, opportunism, sexism, racism, extremism, and many other evil isms) old tales.

Tropes show how literature is conceptualized and created and which mixture of elements makes works and genres unique:
Profile Image for Lisa of Troy.
878 reviews7,362 followers
August 18, 2024
If anyone ever tells you that you can鈥檛 write a book, keep in mind Lewis Carroll.

Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice鈥檚 Adventure in Wonderland, is actually a pen name (As Lisa of Troy isn鈥檛 my real name, he already gets bonus points from me). His real name was Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. Wikipedia describes him as 鈥渟omewhat asymmetrical.鈥� He walked rather stiffly and awkwardly, and he was deaf in one ear. He had a weak chest from a bout of whopping cough and a stammer.

And yet鈥�..

He wrote Alice in Wonderland.

Everything was smooth sailing from there on out, right?

Of course, not!

In June 1865, the first two thousand copies of Alice鈥檚 Adventure in Wonderland were printed. However, the illustrator, John Tenniel, was so dissatisfied with the printing of the pictures that Carroll decided that all 2,000 copies would be sold as wastepaper. Carroll wrote in his journal about how he probably would not even break even.

According to Wikipedia, there are only 22 known copies of the 鈥渨astepaper鈥� version in existence, and they are incredibly valuable.

Here鈥檚 hoping that my mistakes will one day be worth millions!

What did I think of the story itself?

Dodgson made some huge gambles. For starters, he picked a female protagonist in the 1860鈥檚. Alice is having adventures, not talking about boys or love. Thank you, Mr. Dodgson!

The author is also highly creative, inventing all different kinds of characters from the Cheshire Cat to the Queen of Hearts. Alice also drinks and eats to become smaller and larger. This was such a great concept to think about. Aren鈥檛 there instances where you feel like you have very little power, almost voiceless, and other instances where you feel like you can make a great big difference, where you are a key player?

鈥淲hat is an unbirthday present?鈥�
鈥淎 present given when it isn鈥檛 your birthday, of course.鈥�

The opening to Alice鈥檚 Adventure in Wonderland is such an intriguing scene. Alice sees a rabbit dressed up, looking at his watch, and stating, 鈥淥h dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!鈥� For me, this is the perfect blend of reality and fantasy. I can imagine being in a park and seeing a rabbit hopping out from his or her hiding place. It isn鈥檛 too far of a stretch to imagine it also clothed and talking.

In Through the Looking-Glass, there is a poem within the book entitled, Jabberwocky, which I read back in nineth grade. Reading it again, it almost cries out to be read aloud. It is so much fun!

Also, traces of Through The Looking-Glass can be seen in Neil Gaiman鈥檚 Coraline which I loved.

However, this type of literary genre is not my favorite. Philip Pullman (my favorite author) says this of how to write, 鈥渢hink of some interesting events, put them in the right order to make clear the connections between them, and recount them as clearly as you can.鈥� In this particular case, I didn鈥檛 see the connection between scenes. Alice seems to shift quickly between her interactions, and I don鈥檛 understand how this is one united story. Because the story is so disjointed, I didn鈥檛 feel like we were making any progress and didn鈥檛 feel the suspense rising.

The other question when you go into an alternate realm is 鈥淗ow are we going to get home?鈥� The answer to that question in this book is entirely underwhelming.

Based on my research, it appears that there is some symbolism underneath the story, but I don鈥檛 fully understand what that is. Perhaps it is a function of not living in the Victorian era or understanding the politics and mores of Oxford.

Now if only I can think of a children鈥檚 story that will stand the test of time鈥︹€f not, I guess at least I鈥檓 not asymmetrical.

2025 Reading Schedule
Jan A Town Like Alice
Feb Birdsong
Mar Captain Corelli's Mandolin - Louis De Berniere
Apr War and Peace
May The Woman in White
Jun Atonement
Jul The Shadow of the Wind
Aug Jude the Obscure
Sep Ulysses
Oct Vanity Fair
Nov A Fine Balance
Dec Germinal

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Profile Image for Ahmad Sharabiani.
9,562 reviews573 followers
February 22, 2022
(Book 868 from 1001 books) - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass (Alice's Adventures in Wonderland #1-2), Lewis Carroll

Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There (1871) is a novel by Lewis Carroll (Charles Lutwidge Dodgson), the sequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865).

Set some six months later than the earlier book, Alice again enters a fantastical world, this time by climbing through a mirror into the world that she can see beyond it. Through the Looking-Glass includes such celebrated verses as "Jabberwocky" and "The Walrus and the Carpenter", and the episode involving Tweedledum and Tweedledee. The mirror which inspired Carroll remains displayed in Charlton Kings.

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鬲丕乇蹖禺 亘賴賳诏丕賲 乇爻丕賳蹖 22/03/1400賴噩乇蹖 禺賵乇卮蹖丿蹖貨 02/12/1400賴噩乇蹖 禺賵乇卮蹖丿蹖貨 丕. 卮乇亘蹖丕賳蹖
Profile Image for Maureen .
1,655 reviews7,250 followers
January 11, 2021
Another reread for me, and what a pleasure it was to reconnect with Alice鈥檚 Adventures in Wonderland/ Through the Looking Glass. Many years since I read this but it still raises a smile!
Profile Image for Henry Avila.
535 reviews3,325 followers
April 19, 2024
Dreams , figments of the wondrous mind, what things can it create...A little girl named Alice, 7 with her big sister a few years older, sitting on the banks of the gentle river Thames, on a calm , warm sunny day, in 1862 how delightful , still she is bored watching her sibling read a book, not paying any attention to her, with no pictures, imagine that... getting sleepy...Out of nowhere a nervous White Rabbit dashes by Alice, no big deal even though it has clothes on, not thinking it peculiar when the animal speaks, looking at a watch, and declares he will be late to an important party. Intrigued the child follows the rapid rabbit down a large hole, a long tunnel , soon finding a precipice, then falling and falling, the never ending drop continues as the frightened girl starts to believe, maybe, quite possible , arrive finally on the other side of the world, welcome Australia. Nevertheless landing safely in a pile of leaves, unhurt Alice in a strange hall sees a bottle that says drink me. She the brave girl does, being much too big, for this land, needing to get out, to the beautiful place outside that Alice views, through the door, too small for her and shrinks... this will not be the last time either, her size will vary in future adventures in this magical tale. Meeting a plethora of mad characters, as one of them matter of fact boasts we're all mad here. The Cheshire Cat with his always grinning smile as he fades away and reappears ...the Queen of Hearts the annoyed ruler frequently shouts and proclaims, "Off with their heads", and her curiouser and curiouser croquet match...with real animals for equipment, the Mad Hatter and his perpetual tea party with the March Hare who enjoys puzzling Alice. The mellow Caterpillar likes sitting on top of a mushroom smoking leisurely and showing scorn for the little girl's silly questions, the Mock Turtle who head looks like a cow and is sad, the ugly Duchess sneezing because her maid's over use of pepper, other weird souls in this enchanting book appear. If you are a type of person who relishes the road less traveled, this will be up your alley. A classic children's fable that will always be a favorite, having sold more than 100 million copies, and adults can be entrapped also, and benefit by the amusing satire of their foibles, which everyone has.That is being human ...
Profile Image for Lisa.
1,102 reviews3,298 followers
March 18, 2018
鈥淥nce she remembered trying to box her own ears for having cheated herself in a game of croquet she was playing against herself, for this curious child was very fond of pretending to be two people.鈥�

If I ever had to choose to be another literary person than my beloved soulmate , it would have to be Alice in Wonderland. Why would I need to be another character than the one and only Don? Well, it is good to have a backup if you are asked to come to a masquerade as a favourite book character (a not completely unlikely risk and side effect of my profession), and you realise that your blonde hair and the emphasis on blue dresses in your wardrobe makes that a much more natural choice than the Medieval male dresscode of La Mancha.

On the other hand, Alice is a perfect complement to the Don in many ways. While he sets out to give the ordinary world some magic, she dives into Wonderland to make it sparkle with her common sense approach to madness. A perfect pair, those two characters.



In times like these, they are needed more than ever, to fight the windmills or Jabberwockys of modern craziness. As coffee is a means of survival to me, and I like the idea of drinking it out of a mug featuring an illustration of a famous tea party - as nonsensical as most, but more fun - I once went to London and bought myself a Mad Hatter mug, the handle nicely formed like one of those keys Alice had such trouble with. The quote on the back of the mug has helped me (along with the caffeine and a sense of humour as dark as my no-milk-and-no-sugar coffee) survive many a lesson with teenagers:

"If you knew Time as well as I do,鈥� said the Hatter, 鈥榶ou wouldn鈥檛 talk about wasting it."



I know for a fact that this book can be reread as many times as needed to figure out your own identity and level of madness, without any waste of time whatsoever:

鈥淲ho am I then? Tell me that first, and then, if I like being that person, I'll come up; if not, I'll stay down here till I'm someone else.鈥�

I can almost give the same promise that Milo got in :

"RESULTS ARE NOT GUARANTEED, BUT IF NOT PERFECTLY SATISFIED, YOUR WASTED TIME WILL BE REFUNDED."
Profile Image for rhea 鈽�.
122 reviews234 followers
August 12, 2024
鈹€鈹€ 岬庒祹 鉁� re-read 岑� aug 24
3.5 猸愶笍

idk why but i enjoyed the story much more the second time around!! it's such a goofy story, and alice is SO RELATABLE (and so ahead of her time) for most of the book,, the entire thing is a bit nonsencial but you just gotta go with it because it鈥檚 oddly entertaining 馃槴馃

饟彶 . 藱 藮 馃儚馃獎馃珫 陹� 鈥渋f i had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. and contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be.鈥�



鈽�


鈹€鈹€ 岬庒祹 鉁� read 岑� may 24
2.5 猸愶笍

FINALLY GETTING BACK TO READING AFTER A HORRENDOUS 3 MONTHS OF EXAMS AND STRESS 馃ス馃槶馃槶馃槶馃槶 starting with this book bc im currently watching a murder mystery show with this AIW concept so im reading for some background clues!!
this book was so confusing i was literally like 馃槯馃槓馃え馃槼馃鈦夛笍鈦夛笍 THE ENTIRE TIME LMFAOOO
Profile Image for Holly Hearts Books.
396 reviews3,253 followers
June 18, 2017
I don't get it.. I just don't get it.
I went into this story ready to fall in love! Ready to buy all of the merch upon finishing this story that's loved by so many but here I am, sulking. Disappointed. I guess this story just goes completely against my nature. There's no logical reason for anything that happens and that frustrated me beyond belief. Every conversation was so exhausting to read. I literally had to take ibuprofen every time I was finished reading for the night because my god, the headaches were no joke.
I'm very saddened that I won't be fangirling over this fandom.
Side note: Am I a terrible person to admit that Alice got on my nerves!? Arghhhhhhhhhh. AND EVERY CHARACTER WAS SO FLIPPIN' RUDE!!
Profile Image for Chrissy.
153 reviews249 followers
July 28, 2022
I'm pretty sure everyone knows what these books are about. Both Alice's stories are completely bonkers and very much loved. I've read them many, many times over the years, they are part of the reason I got hooked on reading as a child and remain among my favourites of all time. Disney took elements of both the stories to create the classic Alice In Wonderland film, which was originally released on this day in 1951.
Put on some Jefferson Airplane and read them if you haven't!
Profile Image for Heather.
1,076 reviews76 followers
March 22, 2009
This is a weird one. The more I read the more I'm okay with the weirdness. Does that say something about me? I thought at first I wouldn't read it to my kids because it's too strange, but I'm thinking now I might. They just might like it. We'll see how it ends. Am I lame that I've never read this before?

Okay, done with them both. Alice in Wonderland was okay. Still weird. Weird and I didn't understand it. Through the Looking Glass took weird to a whole new level. A bad level. The whole time I was reading it I was thinking, "Is Carroll on crack? This makes no sense." And then I thought maybe I needed to be on crack to understand it. I've had crazy dreams sort of like this, all disjointed and random and all, but that doesn't mean I want to read a book about psycho dreams. And what's up with shaking the poor kitten all the time?

I might read Wonderland to the kids. I won't read Through the Looking Glass.

And does anyone really know what this all means? Because if it's "just for fun", it wasn't.
Profile Image for Paul Bryant.
2,362 reviews11.9k followers
May 15, 2018
Then Alice saw a large wall in the middle distance. Someone was sitting on the top of it. When Alice had come within a few yards of it, she saw that the thing sitting on the wall had eyes and a nose and mouth and a large pile of golden hair; and when she had come very close, she saw clearly that it was TRUMPTY DUMPTY himself. "It must be him because that鈥檚 what is written on his baseball cap," she said to herself. He was already speaking to her.

鈥淭hey said I wouldn鈥檛 build the wall and I built the wall. They were wrong because they weren鈥檛 right. Really really really great wall.鈥�
鈥淚鈥檓 sure it is,鈥� said Alice. 鈥淲hat is it for?鈥�
鈥淏elieve me, this is the greatest wall there ever was,鈥�
鈥淚鈥檓 sure it is,鈥� said Alice, 锟斤拷but please, what is it for?鈥�
鈥淭he people, there were people, who said the wall would never be built, they were not smart people, as you see, the wall is right here, it is extremely extremely here, believe me.鈥�
鈥淵es, I do see that it is, but please,鈥� said Alice, getting rather impatient, 鈥渨hat is it for?鈥�
鈥淭hose people, there were so many many of them, they said the wall was never ever ever going to be built, that鈥檚 what they said, you can check that, it鈥檚 there in the record. They were really really not smart those people. Everyone here can see that this is a great great day. That is what people are telling me. 鈥�
鈥淏ut 鈥�" started Alice.
鈥淲e are making Wonderland great again. Really really great. Dozens, hundreds of people, have said that there would be no wall. No wall at all. They said it would never never never happen. You can鈥檛 find those people any more because they are on the other side of the wall. Oh yes, there is another side of the wall. Really really other side. Can you hear them?鈥�
Trumpty put his hand to his ear, exaggeratedly listening. Alice listened hard too for a moment but could not hear a sound, except for Trumpty talking continually. She had by now given up trying to ask Trumpty Dumpty anything at all. It was as if he did not know what a conversation was.
鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be amazing, really amazing. You will see Wonderland great again. So great.鈥�

*


Sorry about that..... I really just wanted to flag up that this Definitive 150th Anniversary edition by Martin Gardner is exquisite and replaces all previous editions. So if you have a birthday coming up, you could ask for this! And if you get it you'll have a smile that will take a really really great long time to fade away. Believe me.
Profile Image for Alejandro.
1,241 reviews3,727 followers
January 2, 2018
Curiouser and curiouser edition!


This is the annotated edition, collecting both novels in the Alice book series: 鈥淎lice鈥檚 Adventures in Wonderland鈥� and 鈥淭hrough the Looking-Glass and What Alice found There鈥�.


WE鈥橰E ALL MAD HERE

Begin at the beginning鈥�

This was technically a re-reading since I鈥檝e already read both novels previously, the key difference here was that this is an 鈥渁nnotated鈥� edition, which includes a comprehensive section, at the end of each chapter, with tons of notes revealing 鈥渂ehind-the-scenes鈥� detailing moments in the life of Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (aka Lewis Carroll), the 鈥渞eal鈥� meaning of scenes, the 鈥渞eal鈥� inspirations for several of the characters in both novels, historic meaning (in the Victorian England) of casual expressions that got outdated nowadays, studies in the metrics of the poems included in the novels, etc鈥�

I don鈥檛 think鈥�

Then you shouldn鈥檛 talk鈥�

It was a curiouser and curiouser reading experience since this was my first 鈥渁nnotated edition鈥� of any book, and I believe that if you want to engage into this sort of books, it鈥檚 advisable having read the regular version of the novel first, since reading all those annotations after each chapter, it鈥檚 a kinda of 鈥渂raking鈥� effect, since depending the chapter, you鈥檒l invest almost the same time reading the explanations than the chapter itself, so you lose a great deal of the rhythm of your reading, therefore, if you haven鈥檛 read the story before, you may not enjoying as much as it was supposed to be.

It鈥檚 a poor sort of memory that only works backwards.

Of course, almost all the information was made by scholars in the Lewis Carroll鈥檚 works, doing assumptions and best guesses, since the author was already gone when this annotated edition began to be conceived. Therefore, it鈥檚 a priceless access to get a better understanding of the novels at the era when they were published, BUT鈥�

鈥ometimes I鈥檝e believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.

鈥ou can鈥檛 fully take without a doubt the exposed explanations, since you can鈥檛 ask the author anymore to validate if their interpretations are truly accurate. So, as many things in life, it鈥檚 up to you if you wish to believe them.

I can鈥檛 go back to yesterday because I was a different person then.

And as those scholars mentioned at some momento of the annotations, that sometimes we are so obssessed to find a secret meaning behind any single quote, any single character, any single scene, etc鈥� and while it鈥檚 evident that some quotes, characters and scenes have indeed a double significance, some of them are merely things needed to keep flowing the narrative, as simply as that, without any conspiration or secret plot,鈥�

I鈥檓 not strange, weird, off, nor crazy, my reality is just different from yours.

鈥o don鈥檛 get too deep into the annotations section and simply enjoy this wonderfully mad tale about a little girl who fell down into a rabbit鈥檚 hole and she kept finding curiouser and curiouser things, even through the looking-glass.

鈥nd go on till you come to the end: then stop.
Profile Image for Rachel  L.
2,079 reviews2,480 followers
January 3, 2023
3 stars



If you鈥檝e been following me on 欧宝娱乐, you know I have a tradition of reading a classic novel at the beginning of every new year. I always want to read more classics, and never do, so this is one of the few ways I can read more. I adore the Disney movie Alice in Wonderland, and have owned the book for years, but never read it.

Well鈥� this book really was like reading a fever dream. Not much of it really made sense to me and everything changed so fluidly, as if you were in a dream. It鈥檚 easy to get sucked into the story and Carroll does have a very inventive mind. But I think this is one of those books where the legacy it created is better than the original (please don鈥檛 shoot me anyone). I love the pictures included and will always be a fan of Alice in Wonderland, but not sure I will read anything else by Lewis Caroll.
Profile Image for Bonnie.
169 reviews304 followers
May 15, 2009
Read both as a child, and again as an adult. Loved and appreciated it then; love and appreciate it now.

A book everyone should read at least once, and one that I hope children are still reading today.
Profile Image for Jonathan O'Neill.
234 reviews551 followers
January 30, 2022
4.5 猸�

鈥漌hat dreadful nonsense we are talking!鈥� -
Alice concludes amidst a typically bizarre and directionless conversation with the Red and White Queens.

Wrong again, Alice! 鈥淩eally you are very dull!鈥� For it is, in actual fact the most wonderful kind of nonsense; that unpredictable, dream-like absurdity that one only finds in exceptional works of surrealist fiction.


It seems both 鈥楢lice in Wonderland鈥� (1865) and 鈥楾hrough the Looking Glass鈥� (1871), along with the life of Lewis Carroll (Charles Lutwidge Dodgson) himself, have been turned inside-out in a manic search for a definitive hidden meaning, allegorical or otherwise, to neatly attach to the two works. The author's close association with George MacDonald (a prolific author of allegorical fiction), Carroll being a satirist himself and the fact that, you know, Alice does indulge in some questionably-sourced, mind-altering consumables and converse with a blue hookah-smoking Caterpillar who persuades her to eat magic(al) mushroom causing further hallucinations, all lead me to believe that the abundance of analysis is likely justified.

鈥楢lice in Wonderland鈥� began, however, as a children鈥檚 story written for Carroll鈥檚 eight-year-old acquaintance and photography subject, Alice Pleasance Liddell. Carroll was well known for telling stories to the children in his parish and it becomes clear as early as the first book, but particularly in 鈥楾hrough the Looking Glass鈥� that he truly lamented the inevitability of growing up and losing one鈥檚 innocence and imagination. In keeping with the irrational depth of analysis performed on this work, does Alice not cry so much, as she grows (up), that she nearly drowns in her own tears? In a way, these works are Carroll鈥檚 prosaic ode to the pure, unadulterated imagination of children.

鈥滻t brings a tear
Into my eyes
When I begin
To realize
I've cried so much
Since you've been gone
I guess I'll drown in my own tears鈥�
- Ray Charles


It鈥檚 not just pure imagination though; Carroll attempts, with resounding success, to imitate a dream-like state which is of course not exclusive to children but to all of us; the one time our sub-conscious is permitted to run amuck, on night release from the prison that is the rational mind! The disorientation that Alice experiences with her surroundings, the morphing environments, shapeshifting characters, the non-linear timeline, the universal state of free-association; these are all characteristics of the unfettered dreaming mind.


鈥漑Alice鈥檚 sister] pictured to herself how this same little sister of hers would, in the after-time, be herself a grown woman; and how she would keep, through all her riper years, the simple and loving heart of her childhood: and how she would gather about her other little children, and make their eyes bright and eager with many a strange tale, perhaps even with the dream of Wonderland of long ago: and how she would feel with all their simple sorrows, and find a pleasure in all their simple joys, remembering her own child-life, and the happy summer days.鈥�


I think it鈥檚 an absolutely charming tale for adults and children alike, particularly those with a fondness for surrealist humour. The copy I read was the 2019 Harper Design edition with illustrations by the MinaLima graphic design studio. The illustrations are great but I read this on Kindle and have since seen images of the physical Hardcover which is obviously much more vibrant not being black and white, as well as having interactive elements, so if you do read this edition, go for the physical copy if possible! I鈥檒l probably get a copy myself; with so much to love about the story, not least of all the quirky cast of characters, this one lends itself almost too perfectly to a daddy-daughter read!
Hasta la proxima chamos!


And, though the shadow of a sigh
May tremble through the story,
For 鈥渉appy summer days鈥� gone by,
And vanish鈥檇 summer glory--
It shall not touch with breath of bale,
The pleasance of our fairy-tale.
Profile Image for lydia 鈥� ia.
246 reviews634 followers
April 3, 2024
鉂� so many out-of-the-way things had happened lately that alice had begun to think that very few things indeed were really impossible. 鉂�

鈧娝气潃.喑冟繑*:锝�

this is a very strange and whimsical collection of a little girl鈥檚 almost disjointed interactions with a bunch of mentally ill people and creatures. There鈥檚 a certain charm in the weird dialogue and scenery that any author would fail miserably at trying to imitate today. I had a wonderful time reading it, and I鈥檒l always love wonderland and the magic it holds and nostalgia it brings me!
Profile Image for Peter Topside.
Author听5 books1,355 followers
January 5, 2025
I really did make several attempts at reading these stories, but unfortunately couldn't get past the dialogue of Alice. I understand that this was the intention, and I'm sure most would disagree with me, but it was very 'rapid-fire,' scattered and downright anxiety-producing at times. I never thought I could have that experience while reading, prior to this experience. While the book was intriguing, I just couldn't stick with it, which was a shame, as I really wanted to finish the story.
Profile Image for zainab .
121 reviews75 followers
December 1, 2022
Alice suddenly falls into a hole and sees an empty corridor, where she is, she does not know. Often she does not know if she is herself or maybe someone else? In her dreams, Alice encounters many strange kings and queens, talking animals, a hatter, playing cards, a chessboard and many other strange creatures. It is a fable wrapped in a fairy tale. The book includes many beautiful drawings and makes the story more vivid. It is quite confusing at times, but that is what makes the story this adventure.

Profile Image for Nahed.E.
621 reviews1,939 followers
July 6, 2019
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!!
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氐丕賳毓 丕賱賯亘毓丕鬲 丿賵乇賴 賲丨丿賵丿 噩丿丕 賮賷 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞貙 賱丕 賷鬲噩丕賵夭 賮賰乇丞 丕賱丨丿賷孬 毓賳 丕賱夭賲賳 賮賷 亘囟毓 爻胤賵乇 噩賲賷賱丞貙 賵賱丕 賷賮賯丿 毓丕卅賱鬲賴貙 賵賱丕 賷乇賯氐 丕賱乇賯氐丞 丕賱睾乇賷亘丞
兀賱賷爻 賱賳 鬲賯鬲賱 丕賱鬲賳賷賳貙 賱兀賳 兀氐賱丕 賱丕 賷賵噩丿 鬲賳賷賳 ! 賵賱丕 賰賱亘 毓賲賱丕賯 爻賷噩乇丨 賷丿賴丕
賵賱賳 鬲爻丕賮乇 亘丕賱夭賲賳 廿胤賱丕賯丕貙 賵賱丕 鬲賵噩丿 賳亘賵亍丞 賲毓賷賳丞 鬲鬲毓賱賯 亘賴丕
賵丕賱丿賵丿丞 丕賱丨賰賷賲丞 賱賷爻 賱賴丕 丕爻賲 賲丨丿丿貙 賵賱賳 鬲乇丕賮賯賴丕 賮賷 乇丨賱丕鬲賴丕貙 賵賱賳 鬲丿毓賵賴丕 賱兀賳 鬲毓亘乇 毓亘乇 丕賱賲乇丌丞貙 賵丕賱賲賱賰丞 丕賱丨賲乇丕亍 賱賷爻鬲 卮乇賷乇丞 廿賱賷 賴匕賴 丕賱丿乇噩丞貙 賵賱賴丕 夭賵噩 胤賷亘貙 賵賱賷爻 丨丕乇爻 卮乇賷乇
!!

丨賷賳 亘丿兀鬲 賯乇丕亍丞 賴匕賴 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞貙 賰賳鬲 兀亘丨孬 毓賳 賯乇丕亍丞 賴丕丿卅丞貙 亘爻賷胤丞貙 賮賱爻賮賷丞 貙 亘毓賷丿丕 毓賳 丕賱毓氐賮 丕賱匕賴賳賷 丕賱卮丿賷丿貙 賵賱賰賳賷 賱賲 兀鬲賵賯毓 廿胤賱丕賯丕 兀賳 兀噩丿 賴匕丕 丕賱賰賲 丕賱噩賲賷賱 賲賳 丕賱兀賮賰丕乇 丕賱賮賱爻賮賷丞 丕賱毓賲賷賯丞


賴匕賴 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞 賱賷爻鬲 賱賱兀胤賮丕賱 .. 賱賷爻鬲 賱賱鬲爻賱賷丞 貙 亘賱 賱賱鬲賮賰賷乇 丕賱毓賲賷賯貙 賵丕賱丕爻鬲丿賱丕賱 毓賱賷 賰孬賷乇 賰孬賷乇 賲賳 丕賱兀賮賰丕乇 丕賱賮賱爻賮賷丞 丕賱鬲賷 鬲氐賱丨 賱賰孬賷乇 賲賳 丕賱賲賵囟賵毓丕鬲


賷丕 胤賮賱丞 賰賱 卮賷亍 賮賷賴 丨賰賲丞 禺丕氐丞 亘賴 賮賯胤 毓賱賷賰 丕賳 鬲噩丿賷賴丕"
- 丕賱丿賵賯丞



賷賲賰賳賳賷 兀賳 兀禺亘乇賰 亘賲睾丕賲乇丕鬲賷鈥� 亘丿亍丕 賲賳 賴匕丕 丕賱氐亘丕丨貙 賱兀賳賴 賱丕 賮丕卅丿丞 賲賳 丕賱毓賵丿丞 賱賱兀賲爻貙 賱兀賳賳賷 賰賳鬲 賵賯鬲賴丕 卮禺氐丕 丌禺乇


廿匕丕 乇亘丨 丕賱噩賲賷毓貙 賲賳 爻賷賲賳丨 丕賱噩賵丕卅夭 責責


廿匕丕 賰賳鬲 賱丕 鬲賴鬲賲賷賳 廿賱賷 兀賷賳 鬲匕賴亘賷賳貙 賮賰賱 丕賱胤乇賯 爻賷丕賳


鬲爻丕亍賱鬲 賰孬賷乇丕 亘賷賳賷 賵亘賷賳 賳賮爻賷貙 賱賲丕匕丕 賱賲 丕賯乇兀賴丕 賲賳 賯亘賱 責 賱賲丕匕丕 丕毓鬲賯丿鬲 兀賳賴丕 乇賵丕賷丞 亘爻賷胤丞貙 賱賳 鬲兀禺匕 賵賯鬲丕 胤賵賷賱丕 賮賷 丕賱賯乇丕亍丞 兀賵 丕賱鬲賮賰賷乇責 乇亘賲丕 賱兀賳賳賷 乇兀賷鬲 賮賷賱賲 丕賱賰乇鬲賵賳 賲賳 賯亘賱貙 賵賱賰賳賷 丨賯丕 賱賲 兀賳鬲亘賴 賱賲丕 賮賷賴 賲賳 毓亘丕乇丕鬲 賮賱爻賮賷丞 賰孬賷乇丞













賵丕賱兀賲乇 賱丕 賷鬲毓賱賯 賮賯胤 亘丕賱毓亘丕乇丕鬲 丕賱賮賱爻賮賷丞貙 亘賱 丕賱乇賲夭賷丞 丕賱毓丕賱賷丞 賮賷 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞貙 丕賱鬲賷 鬲噩毓賱 賱賰賱 丨賷賵丕賳貙 丕賵 賳亘丕鬲貙 兀賵 廿賳爻丕賳 賲毓賳賷賸 禺丕氐丕貙 爻乇賷丕賱賷丕貙 乇亘賲丕 賷兀鬲賷 賮賷 匕賴賳賰 亘氐賵乇丞 賲毓賷賳丞貙 賵賷兀鬲賷 亘氐賵乇丞 丌禺乇賷 鬲賲丕賲丕 賮賷 匕賴賳 睾賷乇賰
賰賱 卮卅 賷丨鬲賲賱 丕賱鬲兀賵賷賱 .. 賰賱 氐賵乇丞 .. 賰賱 毓亘丕乇丞 .. 禺丕氐丞 丕賱丨丿賷孬 毓賳 丕賱夭賲賳 .. 賵賮賰乇丞 兀賳 丕賱毓丕賱賲 賰賱賴 毓亘丕乇丞 毓賳 賱賵丨丞 卮胤乇賳噩 毓賲賱丕賯丞
賴賱 鬲鬲禺賷賱 賴匕丕 責責

兀噩賲賱 賲丕賮賷 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞貙 廿賳賰 賲賳丿賴卮 賲孬賱 兀賱賷爻 鬲賲丕賲丕貙 鬲鬲毓噩亘 賲孬賱賴丕 賲賳 賰孬乇丞 丕賱丨賵丕乇 賵丕賱噩丿丕賱 賵鬲賯賱亘 丕賱兀丨丿丕孬 賮噩兀丞貙 賮賲丕 鬲鬲毓噩亘 賴賷 賲賳賴貙 鬲鬲毓噩亘 賲賳賴 兀賳鬲 丕賷囟丕貙 賵賲丕 賷亘丿賵 氐毓亘 丕賱賮賴賲 毓賱賷賴丕貙 賷丨賷乇賰 兀賳鬲 兀賷囟丕貙 賵賲丕 鬲丨丕賵賱 賴賷 兀賳 鬲賮賴賲賴貙 鬲丨丕賵賱 兀賳 鬲丿乇賰賴 兀賳鬲 兀賷囟丕 .. 賴賷 氐睾賷乇丞貙 賵兀賳鬲 氐乇丕丨丞 賱爻鬲 賰亘賷乇丕 賮賷 亘賱丕丿 丕賱毓噩丕卅亘
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賱賵賷爻 賰丕乇賵賱
兀賳鬲 兀爻胤賵乇丞 丨賯丕


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丌丌丕賴 鬲匕賰乇鬲 卮賷卅丕 丕賱丌賳 兀丨亘亘鬲 兀賳 兀囟賷賮賴貙 賮賷 丕賱噩夭亍 丕賱兀賵賱 賲賳 丕賱賮賷賱賲 丕賱兀噩賳亘賷貙 賴賳丕賰 賲卮賴丿 賱氐丕賳毓 丕賱賯亘毓丕鬲 賵賴賵 賷鬲匕賰乇 兀賱賷爻 賵賴賷 氐睾賷乇丞貙 丨賷賳 噩丕亍鬲 賱亘賱丕丿 丕賱毓噩丕卅亘 賱兀賵賱 賲乇丞 賵賴賷 賮賷 爻賳 爻亘毓 爻賳賵丕鬲貙 孬賲 丨丿孬鬲 丕噩夭丕亍 丕賱賮賷賱賲 賮賷 丕賱噩夭亍 丕賱丕賵賱貙 賵賰兀賳賴丕 鬲賰賲賱 賲睾丕賲乇鬲賴丕 賮賷 亘賱丕丿 丕賱毓噩丕卅亘 賵賴賷 賮賷 爻賳 賰亘賷乇丞
賵賱賰賳 賴匕丕 賱丕 賷賲賳毓 丕賳 丕賱噩夭亍 丕賱孬丕賳賷 賲賳 丕賱賮賷賱賲 貙 丌賱賷爻 毓亘乇 丕賱賲乇丌丞貙 賱丕 毓賱丕賯丞 賱賴 亘丕賱噩夭亍 丕賱孬丕賳賷 賲賳 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞 廿胤賱丕賯丕
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Profile Image for [ J o ].
1,962 reviews528 followers
July 10, 2018
鈥淏ut I don't want to go among mad people," Alice remarked.
"Oh, you can鈥檛 help that," said the Cat: "we're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad."
"How do you know I'm mad?" said Alice.
"You must be," said the Cat, "or you wouldn't have come here.鈥�


150 years ago, Charles Lutwidge Dodgson welcomed a new Dean to Christ Church College, Oxford, along with his family, including the three daughters, Lorina, Edith and Alice. Charles had been writing prose and poetry since a very young age, but it was young Alice Liddell who encouraged him to write down the stories he had made up for her and her sisters, thus Alice's Adventures in Wonderland was published and has since been a stalwart in children's reading treasuries.

Charles, or more famously known by his alias Lewis Carroll, was an extraordinary man, graduating from Oxford with a first in Mathematics and going on to study and teach at Oxford, where he remained until his death in 1898. Not only did he write, but he was an early pioneer of photography and also painted. He predominantly wrote short stories and poems, but Alice's Adventures in Wonderland was a longer version of his unique writing style, and was published in 1865 to great acclaim. He became famous almost over night and wrote the sequel Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There, though this particular story seemed much darker than the much-loved Wonderland, most probably caused by the depression he felt after the death of his father in 1871. Sylvie and Bruno, a tale of fairy siblings is a lesser known story from Carroll in 1895 and did not fair as well as Alice ever did though it remains in print as a testimony to the wonderful writer Lewis Carroll was.

Lewis Carroll's writing is often described as surreal and nonsensical, a lot of his words are made up, but are used in today's language-think specifically of the poem Jabberwocky-and he has had almost as much impact on the way we use language as Shakespeare ever did. The word 'chortle' is used today as commonly as if it truly were a real word for laughing:


`Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.


"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!"

[...]

"And, has thou slain the Jabberwock?
Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!'
He chortled in his joy.

In my most recent re-read of Alice, I decided I would read aloud the poetry within the book. There is a lot more poetry in it than I originally remembered, all of which is told to Alice by the various characters she meets. The made-up Carrollian words sound both strange and familiar on the tongue and one can find a genuine lilting rhythm to the entire book when experienced out loud with sound.

Beneath the surface, the story can be seen as quite dark, particularly the latter story Through the Looking-Glass. Whilst both retain the whimsical, surreal nature of another world, Looking-Glass has more of a sinister overtone, with more things going wrong for Alice and many more characters being unkind to one another. It also showed another side to Alice herself, as she had grown out of the rabbit hole and crying her way out of situations and instead wished more than anything to be a Queen. Her previous adventure with the Queen must have sparked this desire, though Alice had shown nothing but disdain for the Queen of Wonderland who wanted to chop everyone's head off at any given moment.

I found myself enjoying the latter book to the former: I cannot place my finger on the reason why, however. If nothing else, it is probably the more grown-up version of Alice I prefer, though in reality she is still just a child. Her experiences in her first Wonderland adventure seemed to have impacted her fervently, as she navigated the Looking-Glass Wonderland exceedingly well, often outsmarting those who were native to it.

The two books-often just collated in to one large one known as Alice in Wonderland-are actually all I've ever read of Lewis Carroll's works, though I am intrigued by his other works, particularly his poetry. The surreal, nonsense nature of the poetry in Alice is unique to Carroll and I'd be curious to see if it carries over in to his other works. Have you ever read his other works?

There is some controversy surrounded Lewis Carroll, mostly brought up in biographies of him, particularly regarding his friendliness with young girls such as the Liddell children, but I shan't be commenting on that here. Instead we shall concentrate on the great piece of literature he left behind, which he wrote whilst he was both disappointed and unhappy with his job of teaching at Oxford (despite remaining there until his death) and saddened by the loss of his mother early on in his life and by his father after Alice's Adventures in Wonderland was published. It is too much to wonder whether the reputation of such an absorbing, wonderful book would be tarnished if his biographers ever learnt the exact truth of his nature and the absurdities of accusations are most likely driven by the era they find themselves in.

There are many events taking place in 2015 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of this wonderful, wondrous, wandering book all over the globe. Royal Mail are producing celebratory collection stamps in honour of the landmark and who can forget the wonderful (if rather libertarian) Disney film? The best thing you can do is to read and re-read this book an enjoy it for what it is: a beautifully written, surreal and nonsense book that has captivated the imaginations of children and adults alike.

[On the night I re-read Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, the moon decided to show me his best Cheshire Cat smile in celebration of the 150th Anniversary of the book.]


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Profile Image for Jessaka.
986 reviews211 followers
April 9, 2018
I was noticing a new friend鈥檚 book shelf and how he likes children鈥檚 books just as I do. He had read Alice in Wonderland. I had read it as a child. I ask myself: Did I really like that book back then? Was it just given to me and that was all I had to read? Did my mother pick my books? And why were they always a certain kind of book, like Cinderella and The Wizard of Oz? Why were they not Robinson and Crusoe and Treasure Island?

I can鈥檛 imagine liking these books now. I don鈥檛 like fantasy except say for Tolkien, but that may be unfair since I have not really tried any outside of Mockingjay, which I hated, but I read it because I was in a book group, not that I read everything they threw at me, which means I hated most.

As to Alice, who cares about a girl who takes pills, and how one pill made her larger and one pill made her small? The song was good, White Rabbit. Love Minus Zero was a far better song. Maybe this book would have been better if written by a hippie.

Speaking of which, I was never in to taking drugs in the 60s or 70s. So. as for Alice in Wonderland, I never wanted to read it again or even analyze it to even know why the hippies loved the book, or even if they did. Still, I liked the hippies, those back to the landers, that is, those who didn't sit around stoned all day.

And back to my youth: I read everything. I read labels, cereal boxes, bill boards, and I loved those Burma Shave signs along the highways, where one sign said: Shave the modern way, and one sign said: No brush. The next sign said, No lather / No rub-in / Big tube 35 cents - Drug stores / Burma-Shave. I say, Who can beat that?

When I grew older I always tried to see what a stranger was reading, the book in their hands. Sometimes I would ask. When I was in college I began collecting children鈥檚 books because I hadn鈥檛 read them as a child. Wind in the Willow was one I bought, but I never read it. I wondered why my mother didn鈥檛 take me to the library earlier in my life and stock me up on children鈥檚 books. I grew up with deprivation of environment, I thought. Maybe it was because she had just gone through a divorce when I was 8 years old and had to work, get her life back together. I only remember that as a teenager, we went together to the library sometmes. We read Bridey Murphy and Lost Books of the Bible and wondered if reincarnation was real, and why wasn鈥檛 Jesus鈥� childhood in the Bible and where did Cain get his wife.

And then in my early teens, I found the section of books about mountain people. I have no idea what attracted me to this genre. I do know that there was a wonderful librarian, a woman, who, when I came up to the desk and asked for more books on the mountain people would lead me to them. And now I know, a lightbulb just went off in my head. It was her that introduced me to my first book about mountain people. It was The Shepherd of the Hills, and then she took me to The Trail of the Lonesome Pine, or it was the other way around. Then came Gene Stratton-Porter, and next it was the Bald Knobbers, and all by myself I found Tobacco Road, which my mother took away, telling me that it was a dirty book. Next, I was reading one about the area where I lived, The Salinas: Upside Down River, and years later a friend gave it to me without realizing that I had read it. I got into the Nancy Drew and the Dana Sisters next, liking the latter series better. I loved westerns and read most on their shelves. I read about the outlaws and how Jesse James came to Paso Robles where I lived. I read one that I could never find again: The main character was a sheriff or a marshal, and his name was Jack Slader. I still wish that I could find it. Next, I was into the non-fiction books, veterinarian medicine, how to increase your memory and who knows what all. I wanted to know everything. I just didn't want to know about Alice or Cinderella or even Peter Pan anymore.

This reminds me of a older man who used to come into the library who talked with me. It probably wasn鈥檛 often, but I knew him just because he was around. He told me that he wanted to learn every word in the dictionary and then go on The Millionaire and get rich. I thought how good it would be to increase my own vocabulary, but it was always so boring, so I never got past Aardvark and used to call my brother one. If only the other words were just as interesting.

Then I met the man who cleaned up the park where the library was located. He showed me the pond with the mosquito fish that was hidden in the trees and gave me some for my aquarium. He showed me pine nuts and said that they were good to eat. He even showed me how I could find them in pine cones, that is, if the squirrels hadn鈥檛 gathered them first. And last of all he showed me how all the trees in the park had name tags in English and in Latin.

So, yes, my mother had to work to support us kids, and I heard a lot of 鈥淕o out and play,鈥� by my older sister who quit high school to take care of us, and that I did. That part was wonderful because I could go anywhere in town, to the library, down to the river with my dog or into the hills where I would sometimes come home with poison oak. I remember how I explored every shop in town, every corner, every street, even the alleys where people had wonderful gardens. One day my friend Mary and I went into the Mercantile to try on men鈥檚 hats. We told the clerk that we wanted to buy our dads a hat, and the clerk didn鈥檛 even care, although we knew that he didn鈥檛 believe us. Exploring was fun.

But as for this book, I would never think to read it again even though I have long missed watching Disney World on our TV on Sundays nights. What do I watch instead, The Walking Dead. My how times have changed.
Profile Image for Jason Koivu.
Author听7 books1,380 followers
February 15, 2013
People love this. Not me. Does that mean I'm not people?

Usually I like scatterbrained, nonsensical stuff and that's probably my problem: I don't get the references. At least some of the wild and crazy antics seem to happen to prove a point about the ridiculousness of some or other quirky British convention. So maybe all the wacky shit that goes down in Alice in Wonderland has a deeply satirical basis? I must give Carroll his due, the satire that I did get I enjoyed. However, for me much of this fell flat and even occasionally annoyed me. Just the same, I will take this issue upon myself and promise to eradicate my lack of knowledge in the realm of archaic 19th century British mannerisms. Haha! Like hell I will!

Still and all, three stars is not hating a book and I don't hate Alice in Wonderland. There are many delightful characters and scenes. I'm glad I finally read it and am now able to separate the original from Disney's bastardized version.
Profile Image for Ms. Smartarse.
683 reviews346 followers
February 2, 2023
Between its many animated and live action movie adaptations over the years, turned into this weird psychedelic drug-induced hallucination, rather than the original irony-filled charming children's story in my mind.
So it was high-time for a reread.

I wouldn't call myself a particularly perceptive person, having focused more on the many absurd adventures rather than the irony, as a child. So the constant barrage of "a-HA" moments that I now found myself experiencing, came as very welcome surprise. I love a book that ages well, especially when it reads like a completely different story at varying times in life.

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The contrast between Alice's educated demeanor, and its (lack of) use in real life situation was fun to follow. Alice's fumbling attempts at making use of the French lessons, while unintentionally insulting the mouse, hit quite close to home.

Nevertheless, I have mixed feelings about the protagonist's curiosity/bravery, which would often come across as rather thoughtless and/or selfish. Take for instance that Mad Hatter's tea party, which she joins uninvited, only to then feel offended by the participants' (lack of) manners and amenities.



features a much more intriguing premise, but is also much more boring to get through. Admittedly, I know precisely nothing about chess, so the many clever game references would've gone right over my head without the footnotes. The overall effect seemed much closer to an ambitious endeavour, than a story with a natural flow.

If the prequel gave us a story featuring several comedic episodes, this one seemed a series of funny banters, that so happened to have a story linking them together. It was still good, but the overall narration didn't flow quite as naturally as before.

Score: 3.5/5 stars

4 rounded-up stars for nostalgia and writing style
I would advise skipping the footnotes; while the poem references were useful, the emphasis put on the inspiration behind one or more of the events got tiring after a while. Like in the episode from where Alice forgets her name, and only remembers it's something with "L". The footnotes insist this is a reference to "Liddel", while I found it more likely to be a pun on how "Al" from "Alice" has the same pronunciation as the letter "L".

Red Queen's race

... plus the creepy revelation, that Charles Dodgson used to intentionally "cultivate friendships" with young girls, rather put me off any subsequent rereads. I probably shouldn't have googled documentaries on the subject.
Profile Image for William Gwynne.
472 reviews3,071 followers
January 19, 2025
BookTube channel with my awesome brother, Ed -
My personal BookTube channel -

I did not expect this to be on my reading list at university for the Victorian Literature module, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is weird. I mean really weird.... But also charming, and enthralling. This is creative to a whole new level, or you could call it crazy... either way, I enjoyed the journey.

鈥淭he hedgehog was engaged in a fight with another hedgehog, which seemed to Alice an excellent opportunity for croqueting one of them with the other: the only difficulty was, that her flamingo was gone across to the other side of the garden, where Alice could see it trying in a helpless sort of way to fly up into a tree.鈥�

The above quote is a classic example of the mayhem and confusion. This is not even a particularly random moment.... it is just normal. This is labelled as children's literature, but I am not sure how children would receive it, as the chaos confused me, and took me quite a while to grapple. I had to read this slowly and really mull over what was happening, as nothing can be taken for granted! But, just because it was harder did not correlate in a downward spiral in enjoyment. In fact, it was the chaotic nature and structure that engaged me the most. Part of that is the novelty of reading a story of this. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed reading this, and I am very glad it featured as a compulsory read on my module reading list!

鈥淪o she sat on, with closed eyes, and half believed herself in Wonderland, thought she knew she had but to open the, again, and al would change to dull reality.鈥�

4/5 STARS
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