Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass

By Lewis Carroll

Introduction by A. S. Byatt
Illustrations by John Tenniel
Includes commissioned endnotes
 
Conceived by a shy British don on a golden afternoon to entertain ten-year-old Alice Liddell and her sisters, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass have delighted generations of readers in more than eighty languages. “The clue to the enduring fascination and greatness of the Alice books,” writes A. S. Byatt in her Introduction, “lies in language. It is play, and word-play, and its endless intriguing puzzles continue to reveal themselves long after we have ceased to be children.”

Includes a Modern Library Reading Group Guide

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Mar 28, 2012
• ISBN: 9780553902808

Lewis Carroll

Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (1832-1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, published Alice's Adventures in Wonderland in 1865 and its sequel, Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There, in 1871. Considered a master of the genre of literary nonsense, he is renowned for his ingenious wordplay and sense of logic, and his highly original vision.

Reviews for Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass

[takeitorleaveit_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

so, he liked little girls. a bit quirky but if he didn't, he wouldn't have had no motivation to write this ultimate classic that activates any odd-thinkers thinking capacities and should be made into a musical not another movie for the songs in it are brilliant.

[catherine_gv · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is my favorite book EVER! Love the stories, love the nonsense, the Cheshire Cat and the Mad Hatter..the tea party scene...the rhymes and the little children songs turned to Lewis Carroll's thinking way. AWE-SOME!! It's my fave ever!

Really! Own them all!!!

[kemilyh1988 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Who doesn't love Alice in Wonderland?

[phoenixterran · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There are two well-loved, oft-adapted, and extremely influential novels written by Lewis Carroll, the pseudonym of English author Charles Lutwidge, in 1865 and 1871 respectively. I was initially a little surprised when Seven Seas announced that it would be publishing a newly illustrated omnibus edition of the novels in 2014, especially as the company had moved away from publishing prose works in recent years in order to focus on manga and other comics. However, the novels do nicely complement Seven Seas' releases of the various Alice in the Country of manga. What makes Seven Seas' edition of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass stand out from others are the incredibly cute and charming manga-influenced illustrations by Kriss Sison, an International Manga Award-winning artist from the Philippines. In addition to a gallery of color artwork, hundreds of black-and-white illustrations can be found throughout the volume.Alice was enjoying a leisurely afternoon on a riverbank with her older sister when a very curious thing happened—a rabbit with a pocket watch hurries by talking to itself. When Alice follows after it she tumbles down a rabbit hole to find herself in a very strange place indeed. What else is there to do for an inquisitive and adventurous young girl but to go exploring? And so she does. As Alice wanders about she discovers food and drink that cause her to grow and shrink, animals of all sizes and shapes that can talk, and people who have very peculiar ways of thinking about and approaching life. Eventually she returns home to her sister, but several months later she finds herself once again slipping into a fantastical world when she crawls through the mirror above a fireplace mantel. Of course, Alice immediately sets off exploring, encountering even more strange and wondrous things and meeting all sorts of new and perplexing people.Despite already being familiar with the story of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass (mostly through the seemingly infinite number of adaptations and otherwise Alice-inspired works) and despite having been encouraged for years by devotees of Carroll's writings, I had never actually read the original novels for myself until I picked up Seven Seas' edition. I'm really somewhat astonished that it took me so long to do so and it truly is a shame that I didn't get around to it sooner. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass is absolutely marvelous and an utter joy to read. It's easy to see why the novels have been treasured and continue to be treasured by so many people for well over a century. The books are incredibly imaginative and delightfully clever. Carroll liberally employs puns and other wordplay, turning nonsense into logic and vice versa. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass has been translated into something like seventy different languages; though certainly worthwhile, I can't imagine these interpretations were easy to accomplish due to the novels' linguistic complexities.What particularly impresses me about Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass are the novels' broad appeal. Both children and adults can easily enjoy the works. Younger readers will likely be amused and drawn to their silliness while more mature readers will be able to more fully appreciate the cleverness of Carroll's prose, poetry, and song. I would wholeheartedly encourage just about anyone to read Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. Even without counting the multitude of adapted works, there are a huge number of editions of the original two novels available. There is bound to be a version that will appeal, whether it be Martin Gardner's extensively annotated editions, which reveal references that modern readers are apt to miss, or one of the many illustrated releases. While I may one day move on to The Annotated Alice, I was very pleased with Seven Seas' Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. Carroll's novels and Sison's illustrations are a delightful combination. I am very glad to have finally read the novels and anticipate reading them again with much enjoyment.Experiments in Manga

[justagirlwithabook · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Classic Alice! I loved this book (both of them really), though loved Wonderland more so than Looking Glass. Lewis Carroll definitely had a bit of an imagination and it translates really well in the story. It's in many ways a story of acceptance, being yourself, and being kind (because who else hates how the Queen treats everyone!?).

[stahl2ricco · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I watched the movie, "Terminal", and after thought, "Why have I never read "Alice in Wonderland"? So I did! And to use an Alice-ish phrase, it was just a bunch of gobblydeegook! I mean, it was cool to read as a chance to discover where all of the popular characters and poems came from, and to compare it with the Disney film I grew up with! But really, it's just a lot of nonsensical adventures that mostly dabble in wordplay and weird-as-heck creatures! Don't get me wrong, some are rather witty and insightful. But, for me, it all reads like the author may have eaten too much of that mushroom himself!

[chrisweir-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Having seen a number of versions of the book made into movies was not at the top of my reading list. Was interesting to see how the movies have taken bits and pieces of both of the stories and made them into one. Most of us are familiar with Tweedle Dee and Dum being in the story which is actually from Through the Looking Glass. But didn't know that the Mad Hatter and March Hare are stuck at tea time due to an argument with time. Also who knew that Humpty Dumpty is a whole chapter in the book. was interesting to read. Wonderland is much easier to read than Looking Glass. Looking Glass seems to jump around a lot.

[purplequeennl · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed reading this classic in it's original form, although it amazed me any publisher touched it - they certainly wouldn't today. And it amazes me more that it became a 'classic'! Alice's Adventures in Wonderland was enjoyable in it's nonsense, but Through the Looking-Glass made little to no sense in the majority of its scenes. Now I am at least family with where stories of Humpty Dumpty, TweedleDum & TweedleDee and many others originated. Happy I read it, but glad it is over!

[liscarey · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a really beautiful recording of Lewis Carroll's classic children's books. In the first, Alice sees a rabbit wearing a waistcoat, who pulls a watch out of his pocket and frets about being late, and she follows him down his rabbit hole. She finds herself in a surreal and comical landscape, with food that makes her shrink or grow when eaten, talking animals, a cat that appears and disappears in stages, and a royal court composed of a deck of cards ruled by the King and Queen of Hearts.

In the second, on a dark winter day, Alice walks through a looking glass that has turned to mist, into the mirror house. Once through, she finds that outside the range of what's visible in the mirror, it's very different indeed. Here, she finds herself in a chess game, with living Red and White chess pieces, as well as talking flowers, fairy tale creatures such as Humpty Dumpty, and even the food served at a fancy dinner party speaks and has personality. Also, here, it's summer, not winter.

Whether you've read Alice's adventures before or not, this is a delightful listen.

Recommended.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from the publisher.

[lorisbook · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I absolutely love Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. It is good to have a wonderfully magical place to escape to that can be as confusing as in real life. And, a wonderland quest is a perfectly curious escape. Plus, I am a huge lover of unusual anthropomorphic creatures. And, I want you all to picture bunny's wearing waistcoat-pockets as they scamper about. I loved the Disney picture book and movie too. There is the benefit of the bold colors to stimulate the senses and elevate the mood. And, I have often questioned if this is why I love Masonic checkered floors.

[valerieandbooks · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass has been so highly quoted, and adapted into several movies, that I just didn't feel a strong urge to read the originals. I'm glad I finally did -- motivated by the fact that this is included in the list of 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die.

[etxgardener · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Alice falls down the rabbit hole and has many adventures Just as charming now as when it was published in 1965

[tammyhennig · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Pretty disappointed with the book. :(

I thought I would like it a lot but so many of jumping around and constant changing that made me feel like I got lost...several times. Had a hard time to stay motivated to read but I did finish the book.

[shepline · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Hard as it might be to believe, but I don't think I have ever read Alice's Adventures in Wonderland before. It is one of those books and those stories that is so ingrained in our culture that makes everyone think that they have read it. Indeed I have, at times, read some of the first book and I know much of the story, but even so there were surprises for me. Oh, this quote comes from there? That event comes from there...?I finally decided that I *must* read this book after reading The Story of Alice last year, and with it being 150 years since the publication of Alice In Wonderland last year and Creation Theatre Company's marvellous (if deliciously weird) adaptation of it in the gardens of St Hugh's College, Oxford. I'm glad that I finally have. There is a loose story running through the two books, but its a more of a series of events conncected with a mix of indefectible logic and nonsense, the like of which is bonkers but you just cannot argue with. To add to this, there are so many images and ideas in the book that I can take in quotation and reflection to layer beneath my own work-in-progress. Alice in this book is the heroine and is good, but what would happen if 'Alice turned bad'? What would happen if crossing the chessboard in Through The Looking Glass to become Queen took on a more sinister turn?

[rsplenda477 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Wow...this has to be one of the most bizarre, unusual, bugged-out, acid trips I've ever encountered. In others words, it's PERFECT! I have no words except that everyone should read this.

[kwigginspost · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I think this may be my favorite book. I've re-read this book like 20 times and I love the weirdness and great imagery.

[rickyhaas · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass are filled with unusual and unforgettable characters. I have to admit I was hesitant about reading this because as a child I despised the Disney Film, but I decided to give it a go anyways. I'm certainly glad I did. The books is filled with all sorts of weird situations and it's amusing to watch Alice try to figure how the entire world looks. Also I love that the author often clues you in on Alice's thoughts which are cute and provide a lot of comedy. While I loved this book, I know not everyone will and I suggest when reading it just to have fun and not try to think to hard about what's actually going on. I would recommend this book to both children and adults. Also I loved this edition. It was filled with awesome illustrations and I love all the phrases and character's names written on the front of the book.

[lord_boris-1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Maybe two stars is harsh given that this book must have been ground breaking in its day and for the fact that there is a lot of clever wordplay within it. However, the longer the book went on the more I began to really dislike it. It was one set piece with different characters after another and it got pretty tedious. Ok, it's a children's book but even as a child I was never drawn to this book or the Disney film. This version also contained Through the Looking Glass but although I generally strive to complete books I just couldn't face it when I saw Tweedledee and Tweedledum were to feature in it. Even John Tenniel's illustrations appeared slightly sinister. I was also disappointed to discover that the Dormouse never actually said 'feed your head'.

[stef7sa-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Delicious nonsense. I liked the second part more than the first, with such characters as Tweedledum and Tweedledee and Humpty Dumpty.

[brakketh-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Fantastically surreal and enjoyable.

[wilwarin_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

So brilliantly whimsical - or whimsically brilliant!

[oscarwilde87_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is one of the most well-known books ever written. Even people who have never read the novel have heard of characters such as Humpty Dumpty and Tweedledum and Tweedledee. When Alice falls into a rabbit hole her adventures begin and one is stranger than the other. In Through The Looking-Glass Alice walks through a mirror and finds herself in a live-action chess game. These fantasy stories are not just popular with children, they are also quite well-liked by adults. And there is a reason. The novel and its sequel Through The Looking-Glass play with language in a very intelligent way.'When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, 'it means just what I choose it to mean - neither more nor less.' 'The question is', said Alice, 'whether you can make words mean different things.' (p. 223)This quotation describes quite nicely what I enjoyed most about the novel. Sometimes, words have to be taken quite literally, and then there is always a second layer added to them. This interplay of literal and figurative meaning makes Alice's story work on more than just one level. However, I did not care for the fantasy part as much. While Alice's adventures are sure strange and sometimes funny I rather enjoyed the book for the how than for the what. The way the story is told was much more important for me than the story that is actually told. In the end of the second story, Alice asks herself whether it had all just been her dream or the dream of the Red King, one of the other characters in the novels. In the last line then, the reader seems to be included in the discussion: 'Which do you think it was?' (p. 278). I guess you have to see for yourself. I can recommend this book especially to adult readers interested in linguistics and logic as well as to kids, of course. is very enjoyable, rather short and easily read. On the whole, 3.5 stars.

[laurochka-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Having first read Alice as a child - whilst sick with tonsilitis - I never really fully appreciated it.
There is perhaps some irony in the fact that I enjoyed Alice more as an adult than a child.
Carroll's use of language puns and nonsense is extremely clever and entertaining and definitely my favourite aspect of the book. Exposing the inadequacies and ambiguities of the English language as a means of highlighting the illogical and confusing nature of Wonderland and the land Through the Looking Glass works perfectly. I loves these stories!

[leslitgs · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Avoiding the humdrum happenstance of her quotidian existence, Alice wanders off and finds herself in new worlds of remarkable impossibilities. She goes on many disjointed adventures and meets the most unlikely of creatures and characters. A cheap summation, to be sure, but it's Alice's freaking Adventures in Wonderland. How are you supposed to accurately summarize that chaos? Sheesh. I have honestly never known what to do with these books. Aside from read them, of course. But even in reading them, one not only is transported away from one's base reality [as should occur while reading in the first place], but also from almost all things sensical. Even our protagonist is completely off the beaten path. Alice is seven years old, but she is an overly bright child with a peculiar penchant for daydreams and etiquette. But perhaps both of those relate to the period-based upbringing [which I know little about]. Moving on. While wandering the plotless paths of these texts, I was struck by Caroll's power as an author. Plotless is regularly regarded as a pejorative term; here he has not only managed to carry it off with some style but also to entrance generations with his madness. We practically relish the fairytale chaos. How is it that something so odd and so frequently against our understanding and order be beloved? The easiest answer, I imagine, is escape. Alice's story is to us what Wonderland is to her. Escape. Freedom. She and I are, perchance, not so different then. Tired of being bound within the constrictions of a purportedly ordered life, we take leave of our senses. Now, I am ill-equipped for any quality kind of examination or technical analysis of the text, and have no real interest in picking Alice's story apart for signs of Caroll's depravity. Alice is to me a rest from order, and will forever be so.

[quaintlittlehead · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

SLOW DOWN. This book is full of stories you think you know from the cobbling together of many movie versions and society's collective memories, and it jumps from one bit of nonsense to another, so it's easy, particularly as an adult, to dash through it like a white rabbit. But, though these works were ostensibly written to a young girl and are often treated as children's books (even by Carroll himself in the preface to a second edition of "Through the Looking-Glass," which is included in this volume), they are chock-full of ingenious language that you really need to stop and think about to truly appreciate. Lovely thing that, how the English don't write down to children. I've heard that "Alice" is some sort of allegory for the new mathematical ideas of the time. I don't know whether that's true. But from a linguistic standpoint alone, this book is a treasure trove. The poetry and punnery are second to none, and constructed not just with an eye on artistry, but with a real intent to comment on how language (and by extension society) works.The Barnes and Noble edition of this book is a great buy, featuring the original Tenniel illustrations and a very informative introduction. Unlike other volumes in the series, this one is not overly annotated, nor do the footnotes and endnotes presuppose that the reader must be seven years old. As always with these editions, the end of the book offers up works inspired by what you have just read, along with a variety of critical comments. As a 2004 edition, the former of these things is not up-to-date enough to acknowledge the recent Tim Burton adaptation, and is certainly not an exhaustive list anyway (after all, how could they forget the Star Trek episode "Shore Leave?"), but, as W. H. Auden suggests in the critical comments, Carroll is probably near the top of the list of the culture's "most frequently cited without attribution" authors, so where would one begin?

[silva_44 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

While the book is vastly better than any of the movie versions I've seen, it still fell short of the mark. Perhaps I would have enjoyed it more as a juvenile reader.

[wethewatched · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Alice in Wonderland is a story that I knew but never read. I finally picked up the illustrated version (via Kindle), and it surpassed my expectations -- it's refreshingly absurd and a great escape from the working life.

I wasn't as hooked on Through the Looking-Glass, perhaps due to the abundance of nonsensical poetry. But it's well worth reading too if you can get the two books in a set.

[stuart10er_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed it more than I expected. Certainly a staggering number of puns helped that along. In a Bullwinkle and Rocky type style there is something for both adults and children in this simultaneously.

[lnmeadows · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I love this book, but this is definitely one for older students. It is very confusing and doesn't necessarily make sense most of the time.

[schenk2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

finishing through the looking glass right now. its a strange chess-like dream trip versus Alice's Adventures in Wonderland which is more of a card-playing dream trip. this story is great with some fascinating mathematical puzzles that appear in the story of a young girl who follows a white rabbit through the rabbit hole into Wonderland.