"The chief knowledge that a man gets from reading books is the knowledge that very few of them are worth reading ." H. L. Mencken
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:: October |
| The Annotated Alice (Lewis Carroll, 2000 / 1862)) | |
"The executioner's argument was, that you couldn't cut off a head unless there was a body to cut it off from: that he'd never had to do such a thing before, and he wasn't going to begin at his time of life. The King's argument was that anything that had a head could be beheaded, and that you weren't to talk nonsense. The Queen's argument was that, if something wasn't done about it in less than no time, she would have everybody executed, all around. (It was this last remark that made the whole party look so grave and anxious.) |
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Comments: Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, (Lewis Carroll), was a shy, eccentric bachelor who taught mathematics at Christ Church College. He was fond of logic, words, puns, and children - "except boys." Thus began the rumors that hamper his memory to this day, endlessly debated but mostly refuted, about his relationship with his muse, ten year old Alice Liddell. In this wonderful book, containing both Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Alice Through the Looking Glass, the many nineteenth century puns and linguistic rigamores that litter these stories are explained in entertaining and enlightening annotations, including all the moves of the functional chess match in Through the Looking Glass. Decorated with the original illustrations by John Tenniel (that haunted me throughout my childhood) and potographs of his 'muse', this book celebrates that 'golden afternoon' in 1862, when Dodgson and his friend, Rev. Duckworth, took the three charming Lidell sisters on a rowing expedition up the Thames, and Charles began to tell them a fairy-tale about what happened when the youngest, Alice, stumbed underground... Dodgson understood that children are usually more intelligent and curious than adults give them credit for, and that they have a natural fascination with the macabre and exploring their fears. How modern. How politically incorrect. How wonderful. A book suitable for all ages. |
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