Lewis Carroll Books

Lewis Carroll has always been a mystery man. Raphael Shaberman has brought Sherlock Holmes onto the case and looks at aspects of Lewis Carroll which have not really been examined before. I don't agree with everything he says, but if the mysterious element of Carroll appeals to you, then this book will undoubtedly intrigue and interest you.

What would Prof. Charles L. Dodgson think of this "update" on his classic Beowulf-esque ballad? I think he would be shocked. He would not like how the illustrator portrays the society, the hero's father, the battle, and the price of citizens' quiet, uncritical acquiesence to the war leader's incessant message (find the image on the last right-hand page to see what I mean. Ouch!) That's the point: to make you think, to question, and to respond constructively, courageously, and collaboratively to fear- and war-merchants.

O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay! From offbeat illustrator Joel Stewart comes this utterly charming picture book adaptation of the celebrated nonsense rhyme "Jabberwocky" from Lewis Carroll's classic children's novel "Through the Looking Glass." In muted, sepia tones sparked with lime green, lemon yellow and apple red, Stewart paints the mysterious Jabberwocky as a creature part English dandy, part Beetlejuice and part hedge. "And, as in uffish thought he stood, the Jabberwock, with eyes of flameý" and -- according to Stewart's whimsical drawings -- teeth of checker boards, guts of a robot, and elongated claws of regular manicure appointments. A supporting cast of characters appear and disappear without explanation (though, of course, none is needed) as do the odd cameo appearances of different postage stamps on every spread. None of this lovely nonsense should be surprising, as we've seen Stewart's quirky style before, in the picture book "The Adventures of a Nose," the strange story of a nose's quest for belonging. What is surprising, however, is that there is currently only one competing "Jabberwocky" book on the market: the intricate 1989 interpretation by Graeme Base, the author/illustrator of the bestselling "Animalia." 'Tis a brillig effort, to say the least. The most vorpal picture book effort in mome raths.

My 2-year old grandson loves me to read this book to him. Of course, he doesn't know what all the words mean but, neither do I! However the sound of Lewis Carroll's words are melodius and the illustrations delightful. I think both of us understand that the Jabberwocky is a bad creature.

I cannot think of a better way to introduce the poetry of Lewis Carroll than this small volume. The selection is excellent and of interest you the young reader. The commentary is quite relevant as are the pictures which accompany it. I find that often now, our young people go all the way through the early grades in school and many of them have never heard of carroll,much less read their poetry. This was the sort of stuff my generation and the generation before it grew up on and cut our teeth on. I do not feel I am any worse for the wear. I am fearful that we are bringing up an entire generation (rightfully or wrong, although I feel it is the later) of young folks who will have no appreciation to this great art form and will miss a lot. This book helps. This entire series helps, as a matter of fact and I certainly recommend you add this one and the others to your library. Actually, it is rather fun reading these with the young folk and then talking about them. Not only do you get to enjoy the work your self and perhaps bring back some great memories, but you have the opportunity to interact with your child or student. It is actually rather surprising what some of the kids come up with. I read these to my grandchildren and to the kids in my classes at school. For the most part, when I really get to discussing the work with them, they enjoy it. Recommend this one highly.

For any kind of reserch paper on Lewis Carroll, this a good book to look through. This book is like Anotated Alice, yet different. It includes some annotations, but is still mostly about his life. How many people knew that the Lewis Carroll based his books on a real Alice? Going even further, how many people know that he used a different Alice in the sequel? You can find all this and more in the book. For example, some people may not know that Charles Dodgson had O.C.D. And his best friends were little girls? The things that are in that book are amazing, and very helpful. Cheers!!!!!!!! : )

Found this book at a Borders or Barnes & Noble - Cost me somewhere around $40-$50, definitely NOT $150.00 as some sellers claim. But it is the BEST collection of Lewis Carolls works I have ever seen. Beautiful gold-trimmed edges, and real leather. This is made to last. If you love Lewis Carrolls works, this is a keeper and must-have.

Book was in surprisingly good condition and arrived in a timely fashion. A pleasure to do business with.

This is a book worth special ordering... Jean Gattâegno does an stunning job at analizing the man we know as Lewis Carroll. Every detail- nothing left unsaid- great format with tons of references- and it comes with line drawings and pictures. This book is for Lewis Carroll fanatics or people just wanting to learn about our famous Charles Dodgen.

Angelica Carpenter has added to her impressive catalogue of author biographies written for children this one on Carroll, and the acknowledgement page indicates that she took pains over its accuracy by consulting the works and/or persons of several leading members of the Lewis Carroll Society. But she clearly had the good sense not to be overawed or confused by so many viewpoints, and has written here a clear and comprehensive survey of Carrollýs life which covers most of the important occurrences in a way which is accessible and appealing to the young audience at which she is aiming. Presumably on the relatively safe assumption that most of her readers will only know Carroll's Alice books (and maybe even only the Disney film version), she sensibly begins by recounting the story of the original telling of Alice's tale on a nineteenth-century July afternoon, and having enticed her young and therefore easily distracted audience in, is then able to segue neatly into the authorýs actual history. The book is profusely illustrated, and although few if any of the images are unfamiliar to adult devotees of Carroll, their very variety ý ranging amongst others from reproductions of Carrollýs and Tennielýs drawings, to photographs of and by Carroll and others, to ýMr Walker, Profilistýsý 1840 silhouette of Charles Dodgson as a child ý should help to ensure the continued attention throughout the book of the wayward young reader, as well as providing a valuable pictorial background to the biographical information.

I confess I was slightly taken aback to see reference made to the contentious topic of Carrollýs nude photography in Chapter 8, although the author deals with it there accurately and in the laudably proper context of both its perfect normality at the time and the extremely small number of such photographs that Carroll took. My unease was solely at whether this was, in view of the unhealthy interpretations imposed upon it nowadays, an appropriate subject to be mentioned in a childrenýs book at all, but I suspect that I am both very out-of-touch with how sophisticated young people have grown these days, and also with how widespread the wicked rumours are about Carroll that make it no longer possible to write such a book without in some manner dealing with them. Angelica Carpenter expertly dispatches the matter in little more than a page, pulling off the difficult feat of making it clear that the photographs were wholly innocent without implying any suggestion that they might not have been, and if the subject must be dealt with, I doubt it could be done much better. I am less comfortable with the second reference to the subject in the final chapter (Morton Cohenýs discovery of several nude child photographs in the Rosenbach Collection in the 1970s, which fuelled if not initiated the contemporary distrust of Carrollýs motives), but that chapter looks at Carrollian developments since his death, so I suppose this occurrence could not be omitted without rendering the biography dishonest.

In any event, I do not want to give a false impression of Angelica Carpenterýs book by dwelling too long on things which are beyond her control. Her biography is written for twenty-first century children, and although there are difficult matters to be briefly addressed along with the more agreeable account of Carrollýs unblemished life, she presents all her material with the same light touch, deftly ensuring that her young audience will be entertained whilst scarcely realising that they are being thoroughly informed at the same time. I think this excellent biography by Angelica Carpenter might well be helpful in creating enthusiasm among modern youngsters for Carroll himself, a delightfully funny and whimsical author whom they really should read!