carstairs38's Full Review: Lewis Carroll - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
A couple times growing up, I read Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. But I haven't done more than watch the Disney movie since then. I decided it was time to revisit this childhood friend. The book may not be quite as fun as I remembered, but it was still plenty of fun.
It all started when Alice was spending a lazy afternoon on a river bank. Suddenly, she looked up to find a White Rabbit in a waistcoat go hopping by. Curious, she got up to follow him into his hole. Suddenly, she found herself falling down, down, down. And when she landed, she was in Wonderland, a strange place full of even stranger creatures. Yes, the animals all talk. But Alice seems to find herself growing or shrinking whenever she eats something. There's a locked door she can't seem to get through. A Caterpillar demands she recite. She visits the strangest tea party she's ever attended. And she plays croquet with the Queen of Hearts where the penalty for winning is a rather harsh "Off with her head!" Will Alice ever find her way home?
I've heard the book was at times a lampooning of Victorian England (when the book was first written). I don't know enough about the time period to view it as such. Instead, I just read it as an absurd novel.
And absurd is the write word for it. The things that happen here are absolutely crazy. At one point a baby turns into a pig. We can't leave out how often Alice seems to grow and shrink. And the game of croquet sounds like absolute chaos. As a kid, I found these elements downright fun and enchanting. I guess I've grown up a touch since I found them a bit tedious and repetitive this time around. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoyed the book. But the first half spent a bit too much time worrying about Alice's size.
I had never really realized just how well the book plays with the ultimate revelation. Yes, the final few pages explain what has happened to Alice. Knowing this while I read it this time around, I was able to see how that theme was played out during the book.
And the book is an excuse of Lewis Carroll to share some of his nonsense poems. I would argue none of the ones here are especially famous, although I did enjoy the one Alice quotes to the Caterpillar.
I wouldn't argue that any of these characters are very well developed. Many are just around for a few pages. Even the ones that are around longer are basically one note/one joke characters. Alice herself is developed a tad more, but she spends most of the time reacting to the strange events happening to her. However, that isn't a bad flaw. The story moves forward quickly enough to keep kids' attention. And I seriously doubt that they would appreciate more character development.
Despite being almost 150 years old, I didn't feel the language was that out of date. I think most mid to late elementary school kids would be able to read the book with little help from the dictionary. Every version I have seen has pictures, and the one I just read is no exception. There were around three or four illustrations in each chapter.
So Alice's Adventures in Wonderland lost a little of its charm when reread as an adult. That's just another reason to introduce the imagination to your kids now when they will best appreciate it.
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