Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions)

By Lewis Carroll and John Tenniel

Lewis Carroll's novels Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass (first published in 1865 and 1871, respectively) have entertained readers young and old for more than a century. Their magical worlds, amusing characters, clever dialogue, and playfully logical illogic epitomize the wit and whimsy of Carroll's writing.
 
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland transports you down the rabbit-hole into a wondrous realm that is home to a White Rabbit, a March Hare, a Mad Hatter, a tea-drinking Dormouse, a grinning Cheshire-Cat, the Queen of Hearts and her playing-card retainers, and all manner of marvelous creatures. Through the Looking-Glass is your passport to a topsy-turvy world on the other side of the mirror, where you have to run fast just to stay in place, memory works backwards, and it is possible to believe as many as six impossible things before breakfast. Both stories feature the classic illustrations of John Tenniel in full color. 
 
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass is one of Barnes & Noble's Collectible Editions classics for children. It features classic illustrations, an elegant bonded-leather binding, a ribbon bookmark, and distinctive gilt edging. It will provide hours of enjoyment for readers of all ages. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Barnes & Noble
• Release date: Oct 5, 2015
• ISBN: 9781435160743

Lewis Carroll

Lewis Carroll (1832-1898) was an English children’s writer. Born in Cheshire to a family of prominent Anglican clergymen, Carroll—the pen name of Charles Dodgson—suffered from a stammer and pulmonary issues from a young age. Confined to his home frequently as a boy, he wrote poems and stories to pass the time, finding publication in local and national magazines by the time he was in his early twenties. After graduating from the University of Oxford in 1854, he took a position as a mathematics lecturer at Christ Church, which he would hold for the next three decades. In 1865, he published Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, masterpiece of children’s literature that earned him a reputation as a leading fantasist of the Victorian era. Followed by Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There (1871), Carroll’s creation has influenced generations of readers, both children and adults alike, and has been adapted countless times for theater, film, and television. Carroll is also known for his nonsense poetry, including The Hunting of the Snark (1876) and “Jabberwocky.”

Book preview

Alice’s Adventures in

Wonderland

and Through the Looking-Glass

Lewis Carroll

Illustrated by

John Tenniel

BARNES & NOBLE

NEW YORK

This edition copyright © 2015 by Barnes & Noble, Inc.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without prior written permission from the publisher.

Cover design by Arthur Burlingame/Fractured Pixels

Barnes & Noble, Inc.

122 Fifth Avenue

New York, NY 10011

ISBN: 978-1-4351-6074-3

1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2

CONTENTS

ALICE’S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND

THROUGH THE LOOKING-GLASS

CONTENTS

CHAPTER

     I    DOWN THE RABBIT-HOLE

    II    THE POOL OF TEARS

   III    A CAUCUS-RACE AND A LONG TALE

   IV    THE RABBIT SENDS IN A LITTLE BILL

    V   ADVICE FROM A CATERPILLAR

  VI    PIG AND PEPPER

 VII    A MAD TEA-PARTY

VIII    THE QUEEN’S CROQUET-GROUND

  IX    THE MOCK TURTLE’S STORY

   X    THE LOBSTER-QUADRILLE

  XI    WHO STOLE THE TARTS?

 XII    ALICE’S EVIDENCE

I

DOWN THE RABBIT-HOLE

Alice was beginning to get very tired of sitting by her sister on the bank, and of having nothing to do: once or twice she had peeped into the book her sister was reading, but it had no pictures or conversations in it, and what is the use of a book, thought Alice without pictures or conversation?

So she was considering in her own mind (as well as she could, for the hot day made her feel very sleepy and stupid), whether the pleasure of making a daisy-chain would be worth the trouble of getting up and picking the daisies, when suddenly a White Rabbit with pink eyes ran close by her.

There was nothing so very remarkable in that; nor did Alice think it so very much out of the way to hear the Rabbit say to itself, Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be late! (when she thought it over afterwards, it occurred to her that she ought to have wondered at this, but at the time it all seemed quite natural); but when the Rabbit actually took a watch out of its waistcoat-pocket, and looked at it, and then hurried on, Alice started to her feet, for it flashed across her mind that she had never before seen a rabbit with either a waistcoat-pocket, or a watch to take out of it, and burning with curiosity, she ran across the field after it, and fortunately was just in time to see it pop down a large rabbit-hole under the hedge.

In another moment down went Alice after it, never once considering how in the world she was to get out again. The rabbit-hole went straight on like a tunnel for some way, and then dipped suddenly down, so suddenly that Alice had not a moment to think about stopping herself before she found herself falling down a very deep well.

Either the well was very deep, or she fell very slowly, for she had plenty of time as she went down to look about her and to wonder what was going to happen next. First, she tried to look down and make out what she was coming to, but it was too dark to see anything; then she looked at the sides of the well, and noticed that they were filled with cupboards and book-shelves; here and there she saw maps and pictures hung upon pegs. She took down a jar from one of the shelves as she passed; it was labelled ORANGE MARMALADE, but to her great disappointment it was empty: she did not like to drop the jar for fear of killing somebody, so managed to put it into one of the cupboards as she fell past it.

Well! thought Alice to herself, after such a fall as this, I shall think nothing of tumbling down stairs! How brave they’ll all think me at home! Why, I wouldn’t say anything about it, even if I fell off the top of the house! (Which was very likely true.)

Down, down, down. Would the fall never come to an end! I wonder how many miles I’ve fallen by this time? she said aloud. I must be getting somewhere near the centre of the earth. Let me see: that would be four thousand miles down, I think— (for, you see, Alice had learnt several things of this sort in her lessons in the schoolroom, and though this was not a very good opportunity for showing off her knowledge, as there was no one to listen to her, still it was good practice to say it over) —yes, that’s about the right distance—but then I wonder what Latitude or Longitude I’ve got to? (Alice had no idea what Latitude was, or Longitude either, but thought they were nice grand words to say.)

Presently she began again. "I wonder if I shall fall right through the earth! How funny it’ll seem to come out among the people that walk with their heads downward! The antipathies, I think—" (she was rather glad there was no one listening, this time, as it didn’t sound at all the right word) —but I shall have to ask them what the name of the country is, you know. Please, Ma’am, is this New Zealand? Or Australia? (and she tried to curtsey as she spoke—fancy curtseying as you’re falling through the air! Do you think you could manage it?) And what an ignorant little girl she’ll think me for asking! No, it’ll never do to ask: perhaps I shall see it written up somewhere.

Down, down, down. There was nothing else to do, so Alice soon began talking again. Dinah’ll miss me very much to-night, I should think! (Dinah was the cat.) I hope they’ll remember her saucer of milk at tea-time. Dinah my dear! I wish you were down here with me! There are no mice in the air, I’m afraid, but you might catch a bat, and that’s very like a mouse, you know. But do cats eat bats, I wonder? And here Alice began to get rather sleepy, and went on saying to herself, in a dreamy sort of way, Do cats eat bats? Do cats eat bats? and sometimes, Do bats eat cats? for, you see, as she couldn’t answer either question, it didn’t much matter which way she put it. She felt that she was dozing off, and had just begun to dream that she was walking hand in hand with Dinah, and saying to her very earnestly, Now, Dinah, tell me the truth: did you ever eat a bat? when suddenly, thump! thump! down she came upon a heap of sticks and dry leaves, and the fall was over.

Alice was not a bit hurt, and she jumped up on to her feet in a moment: she looked up, but it was all dark overhead; before her was another long passage, and the White Rabbit was still in sight, hurrying down it. There was not a moment to be lost: away went Alice like the wind, and was just in time to hear it say, as it turned a corner, Oh my ears and whiskers, how late it’s getting! She was close behind it when she turned the corner, but the Rabbit was no longer to be seen: she found herself in a long, low hall, which was lit up by a row of lamps hanging from the roof.

There were doors all round the hall, but they were all locked; and when Alice had been all the way down one side and up the other, trying every door, she walked sadly down the middle, wondering how she was ever to get out again.

Suddenly she came upon a little three-legged table, all made of solid glass; there was nothing on it except a tiny golden key, and Alice’s first thought was that it might belong to one of the doors of the hall; but, alas! either the locks were too large, or the key was too small, but at any rate it would not open any of them. However, on the second time round, she came upon a low curtain she had not noticed before, and behind it was a little door about fifteen inches high: she tried the little golden key in the lock, and to her great delight it fitted!

Alice opened the door and found that it led into a small passage, not much larger than a rat-hole: she knelt down and looked along the passage into the loveliest garden you ever saw. How she longed to get out of that dark hall, and wander about among those beds of bright flowers and those cool fountains, but she could not even get her head through the doorway; "and even if my head would go through, thought poor Alice, it would be of very little use without my shoulders. Oh, how I wish I could shut up like a telescope! I think I could, if I only know how to begin." For, you see, so many out-of-the-way things had happened lately, that Alice had begun to think that very few things indeed were really impossible.

There seemed to be no use in waiting by the little door, so she went back to the table, half hoping she might find another key on it, or at any rate a book of rules for shutting people up like telescopes: this time she found a little bottle on it (which certainly was not here before, said Alice), and round the neck of the bottle was a paper label, with the words DRINK ME beautifully printed on it in large letters.

It was all very well to say Drink me, but the wise little Alice was not going to do that in a hurry. No, I’ll look first, she said, "and see whether it’s marked ‘poison’ or not"; for she had read several nice little histories about children who had got burnt, and eaten up by wild beasts, and other unpleasant things, all because they would not remember the simple rules their friends had taught them: such as, that a red-hot poker will burn you if you hold it too long; and that if you cut your finger very deeply with a knife, it usually bleeds; and she had never forgotten that, if you drink much from a bottle marked poison, it is almost certain to disagree with you, sooner or later.

However, this bottle was not marked poison, so Alice ventured to taste it, and finding it very nice (it had, in fact, a sort of mixed flavour of cherry-tart, custard, pine-apple, roast turkey, toffee, and hot buttered toast), she very soon finished it off.

What a curious feeling! said Alice; I must be shutting up like a telescope.

And so it was indeed: she was now only ten inches high, and her face brightened up at the thought that she was now the right size for going through the little door into that lovely garden. First, however, she waited for a few minutes to see if she was going to shrink any further: she felt a little nervous about this; for it might end, you know, said Alice to herself, in my going out altogether, like a candle. I wonder what I should be like then? And she tried to fancy what the flame of a candle is like after the candle is blown out, for she could not remember ever having seen such a thing.

After a while, finding that nothing more happened, she decided on going into the garden at once; but, alas for poor Alice! when she got to the door, she found she had forgotten the little golden key, and when she went back to the table for it, she found she could not possibly reach it: she could see it quite plainly through the glass, and she tried her best to climb up one of the legs of the table, but it was too slippery; and when she had tired herself out with trying, the poor little thing sat down and cried.

Come, there’s no use in crying like that! said Alice to herself, rather sharply; I advise you to leave off this minute! She generally gave herself very good advice (though she very seldom followed it), and sometimes she scolded herself so severely as to bring tears into her eyes; and once 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. But it’s no use now, thought poor Alice, "to pretend to be two people! Why, there’s hardly enough of me left to make one respectable person!"

Soon her eye fell on a little glass box that was lying under the table: she opened it, and found in it a very small cake, on which the words EAT ME were beautifully marked in currants. Well, I’ll eat it, said Alice, and if it makes me grow larger, I can reach the key; and if it makes me grow smaller, I can creep under the door; so either way I’ll get into the garden, and I don’t care which happens!

She ate a little bit, and said anxiously to herself, Which way? Which way? holding her hand on the top of her head to feel which way it was growing, and she was quite surprised to find that she remained the same size: to be sure, this generally happens when one eats cake, but Alice had got so much into the way of expecting nothing but out-of-the-way things to happen, that it seemed quite dull and stupid for life to go on in the common way.

So she set to work, and very soon finished off the cake.

II

THE POOL OF TEARS

Curiouser and curiouser! cried Alice (she was so much surprised, that for the moment she quite forgot how to speak good English); now I’m opening out like the largest telescope that ever was! Good-bye, feet! (for when she looked down at her feet, they seemed to be almost out of sight, they were getting so far off). "Oh, my poor little feet, I wonder who will put on your shoes and stockings for you now, dears? I’m sure I shan’t be able! I shall be a great deal too far off to trouble myself about you: you must manage the best way you can—but I must be kind to them, thought Alice, or perhaps they won’t walk the way I want to go! Let me see. I’ll give them a new pair of boots every Christmas."

And she went on planning to herself how she would manage it. They must go by the carrier, she thought; "and how funny it’ll seem, sending presents to one’s own feet! And how odd the directions will look!

Alice’s Right Foot, Esq.

Hearthrug,

near the Fender

(with Alice’s love).

Oh dear, what nonsense I’m talking!"

Just then her head struck against the roof of the hall: in fact she was now more than nine feet high, and she at once took up the little golden key and hurried off to the garden door.

Poor Alice! It was as much as she could do, lying down on one side, to look through into the garden with one eye; but to get through was more hopeless than ever: she sat down and began to cry again.

You ought to be ashamed of yourself, said Alice, a great girl like you, (she might well say this), to go on crying in this way! Stop this moment, I tell you! But she went on all the same, shedding gallons of tears, until there was a large pool all round her, about four inches deep and reaching half down the hall.

After a time she heard a little pattering of feet in the distance, and she hastily dried her eyes to see what was coming. It was the White Rabbit returning, splendidly dressed, with a pair of white kid gloves in one hand and a large fan in the other: he came trotting along in a great hurry, muttering to himself as he came, "Oh! the Duchess, the Duchess! Oh! Won’t she be savage if I’ve kept her waiting! Alice felt so desperate that she was ready to ask help of any one; so, when the Rabbit came near her, she began, in a low, timid voice, If you please, Sir—" The Rabbit started violently, dropped the white kid gloves and the fan, and skurried away into the darkness as hard as he could go.

Reviews for Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions)

[jwhenderson_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is one of my lifetime favorite books. The Alice stories never grow old and I learn more about them every time I read them. That is one of the hallmarks of classic literature and these two novels are part of that pantheon.

[cbl_tn · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Alice in Wonderland was the first book I remember reading after learning to read. It was time to revisit it! There’s nothing quite like this fantasy about a little girl who falls down a rabbit hole and meets all manner of strange creatures and adventures. I was just as delighted this time around as I was as a child. I don’t recall ever having read Through the Looking Glass before, although I am very familiar with many of its characters and elements. I’ve had Jabberwocky memorized since high school, when my choir performed a musical adaptation.The stories might initially seem like pointless nonsense, but both are journey/exploration stories. Alice overcomes a series of obstacles in her first journey of exploration, such as growing very large and shrinking very small. In her second adventure, Alice is trying to reach the eighth square in order to become a queen in the living chess game she finds herself in.Alice in Wonderland gets a full five stars. Through the Looking Glass doesn’t have quite the same magic, so I give it four stars.

[auntie0nanuuq · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I have no idea what to write except to say; I just did not like "Through the Looking Glass" and I couldn't wait until it was ended.I fared a bit better with "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland", but I found Alice to be a quite rude & arrogant little girl.What I did like, were the illustrations, which I'll use on my ATCs (Artist Trading Cards) as well as the text, which is why I'm rating this 1 star.

[bookconcierge · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Digital audiobook performed by Christopher PlummerBelieve or not, I had never read this classic of children’s literature before. Oh, I knew the basics of the story. And, of course, I had seen the Disney movie when I was a child. I even had one or two of the chapters included in a series of books I had as a child (and still have to this day). But it took a challenge to read a banned book to finally get me to crack this one open. I certainly understand why this story is so beloved by so many legions of children. There is absurdity, fun word play, unusual situations, talking animals, and a slew of outlandish characters. Still, I think I just too old to really appreciate it. I was bored with much of the craziness. I just couldn’t let my imagination run wild and enjoy it. Christopher Plummer does a fabulous job of narrating the audio version, however! His gift for many voices and accents added to the experience; I absolutely LOVED the way he voiced the white rabbit. Also, there is a bonus chapter at the end – an alternate ending to the knight’s tale that Carroll wrote but which was never published. I’d rate Plummer’s audio performance 5***** (but I won’t increase the overall rating).

[abigailadams26 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Alice plummets down a rabbit hole in the first part of this bind-up edition of Lewis Carroll's classic children's novels, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and Through the Looking Glass (1871), and she steps through a mirror in the second. In both cases she finds herself in a fantastical alternate world, encountering extraordinary creatures and having a series of surreal adventures...Despite their status as towering classics in the field of children's literature, and the undoubted influence they have had on that literature and on the wider culture, I had never read either Alice's Adventures in Wonderland or Through the Looking Glass until they were assigned as texts in my masters course. I was pleased to be given the impetus I apparently needed in picking them up, as they had long been on my to-read list. The stories themselves were every bit as delightful as I'd hoped they'd be, the accompanying artwork by John Tenniel was lovely. This particular edition, from Oxford University Press, included a wealth of critical notes, which proved invaluable in helping to bring to light many significant details which might otherwise have eluded me. The significance of Carroll's parodies of well-known poetry from Isaac Watts, for instance, might otherwise have escaped me. We had an interesting discussion about these books in my class, and whether they could still be considered children's literature, given that today's children would miss so much of what made them entertaining to their 19th-century counterparts. For my part, I think they can still be enjoyed by children, even though I myself didn't read them when young. I highly recommend the stories themselves to all readers, and I recommend this Oxford publication to readers looking for a good critical edition.

[linyarai · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A great classic.

[scottcholstad · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

An excellent work of art! I actually took a class in college that focused solely on this work for the entire semester! I didn't think it could possibly retain any interest beyond a few weeks, but I was wrong. This is a masterfully many layered work and one can read it on many levels. Recommended!

[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!!!

[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.

[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!

[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

[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.

[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.

[wilwarin_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

So brilliantly whimsical - or whimsically brilliant!

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

Fantastically surreal and enjoyable.

[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'.

[kemilyh1988 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Who doesn't love Alice in Wonderland?

[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.

[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.

[jennysbookbag.com · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I read this as a child, but I had to reread it as an adult. It's even better the second time around.

[thebookmagpie · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Carroll's brand of nonsense just ain't my thing. I respect that a lot of people feel differently, but I cannot abide his absolute nose-dive into the abstract that feels like it's supported by hot-air. Honestly? I was just bored by his writing. And I didn't like Alice - she was so flat and terribly middle-class, but without anything else to recommend her to me.

[mattries37315 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The childhood classics Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass for almost 150 years have been referenced and adapted numerous times over the years, but it’s not until you’ve read the originals that you truly understand why Lewis Carroll’s work has stood the test of time.In both stories, young Alice has fantastical adventures in two different worlds entered through portals. The adventures are well known, though most times people believe that both stories deal with Alice in Wonderland both times based on other adaptations, mostly in film and television. However, Wonderland and Looking-Glassland are completely different though illustrator John Tenniel was the first two “crossover” characters from one imaginary world to another with the March Hare and Mad Hatter as the Red King’s Messengers. It’s Tenniel’s original illustrations that really help one realize how Carroll’s stories truly became a classic while turning the Victorian “growing up” children’s genre on it’s head of realizing how absurd adult life can be.The Barnes & Nobles class edition of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass is a wonderful book for those looking for classics, if you’re looking to get your hands on the original stories of Alice by Carroll then I recommend this particular edition.

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

I know I read this as a child, and mostly found it boring and a little confusing. I also read Alice to my older son, and he found it boring and confusing (I spent a lot of time explaining).

Reading it to myself, it is great. Though Alice is 7.5, it's really more of a book for 10 year olds--much younger, and many of the jokes would make no sense. The wordplay is magnificent.

[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?

[oraclejenn · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Just about every child knows of the story of Alice in Wonderland. The first part of this book was really good at fleshing out the stories one hears as a child. The second hanf, Through the Looking Glass, wasn't as captivating to me.

[filialibri-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Diese und weitere Rezensionen findet ihr auf meinem Blog Anima Libri - Buchseele

Ich denke, zur Geschichte, die Lewis Carroll in seinem berühmten Klassiker „Alice im Wunderland“ und der Fortsetzung „Alice hinter den Spiegeln“ erzählt, braucht man gar nichts mehr zu sagen, wer den Roman noch nicht kennt, sollte das schleunigst ändern, denn dieses Buch ist definitiv nicht umsonst ein Klassiker.

Passend zum 150. Jahrestag der Erstveröffentlichung hat der Gerstenberg Verlag beide Teile des populären Kinderbuchs in einem Band raus. Und zwar in einem wirklich schmucken Band.

Dank der Arbeit der niederländischen Illustratorin Floor Rieder, die hier eine Kombination aus historischen Techniken und digitalen Möglichkeiten verwendet hat, erwacht der Text zum Leben und bekommt seine ganz eigene Note, denn die Niederländerin hat ihrer Alice – statt des allseits bekannten Outfits mit blauem Kleidchen und weißer Schürze – Chucks und Brille verpasst. Das erscheint vielleicht erstmal ein wenig seltsam, passt aber eigentlich ganz hervorragend in die eh schon skurrile Geschichte.

Dazu kommt die Art, auf die diese beiden Romane hier in einen Band gepackt sind: Statt die Geschichten lediglich aneinander zu reihen, ist „Alice im Wunderland & Alice hinter den Spiegeln“ aus dem Gerstenberg Verlag ein Wendebuch, auf der einen Seite versteckt sich hinter dem grünen Cover mit roten Akzenten „Alice im Wunderland“ und dreht man das Buch dann einmal um, hat man ein weiteres Cover, rot mit grünen Akzenten, vor sich, hinter dem sich „Alice hinter den Spiegeln“ verbirgt – der Titel ist übrigens passend in Spiegelschrift auf dem Cover abgedruckt.

Alles in allem ist „Alice im Wunderland & Alice hinter den Spiegeln“ aus dem Gerstenberg Verlag eine wirklich rundum gelungene, wunderschöne Ausgabe, die den Klassikern von Lewis Carroll alle Ehre macht! Für alle Fans dieses Meisterwerks absurder Logik, Nonsens, Paradoxa und Absurdem ist diese Ausgabe definitiv eine große Empfehlung wert und auch für alle, die die Romane bislang noch nicht gelesen haben, denn das sollte schnellstens nachgeholt werden ;)