Alicia en el país de las maravillas

Por Lewis Carroll

En la producción de Lewis Carrol, Alicia destaca, sin duda, con luz propia. Referente incuestionable de la cultura occidental, el presente volumen recoge los dos relatos protagonizados por el genial personaje creado por Carrol, en una cuidada traducción de Francisco Torres Oliver que plasma con fidelidad el delirante universo literario del autor británico.

Libro que ofrece, en versión de Francisco Torres Oliver, los dos relatos protagonizados por Alicia, el inmortal personaje creado por Lewis Carroll.

Obra indiscutible que el lector no debe dejar pasar por su relevancia y placer en su lectura.

• Idioma: Español
• Editorial: Ediciones Akal
• Fecha de lanzamiento: 15 oct 2003
• ISBN: 9788446036098

Lewis Carroll

Lewis Carroll (1832-1898), was the pen name of Oxford mathematician, logician, photographer, and author Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. At age twenty he received a studentship at Christ Church and was appointed a lecturer in mathematics. Though shy, Dodgson enjoyed creating delightful stories for children. His world-famous works include the novels Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass and the poems The Hunting of the Snark and Jabberwocky.

Vista previa del libro

978-84-460-3609-8

AVENTURAS DE ALICIA EN EL PAÍS DE LAS MARAVILLAS

En plena tarde dorada navegamos lentamente;

pues unos brazos inhábiles, manejan nuestros remos,

y unas manitas pugnan en vano por guiar los vagabundeos.

¡Ah, crueles Tres! Pedir, en esas horas de sueño,

un cuento a un aliento demasiado débil para agitar la más leve pluma.

Pero ¿qué puede una pobre voz contra tres lenguas juntas?

Prima, imperiosa, lanza su edicto: «A empezar»;

en tono más dulce, Secunda, espera que «contenga tonterías»,

mientras Tertia interrumpe sólo una vez por minuto.

Luego, llegado el silencio, siguen imaginariamente

a la niña soñada por un país de nuevas, delirantes maravillas

donde ella charla con aves y bestias... y medio se creen que es realidad.

Y cada vez que se secaban las fuentes de la fantasía,

y la voz cansada quería débilmente diferir el relato:

«El resto para la próxima vez». «¡Ya es la próxima vez!», exclamaban las voces felices.

Así surgió el País de las Maravillas; así, uno a uno,

se fueron forjando sus hechos extraños; y ahora el cuento se acabó.

Y, alegres tripulantes, ponemos rumbo a casa bajo el sol de la tarde.

¡Alicia! Toma este cuento pueril, y con mano bondadosa,

ponlo donde los sueños de la Niñez se trenzan

con la cinta mística de la Memoria

como marchita corona de peregrino, de flores cortadas en un lejano país.

Capítulo I

Por la Madriguera del Conejo

Alicia empezaba a estar muy cansada de permanecer junto a su hermana en la orilla, y de no hacer nada; una vez o dos había echado una mirada al libro que su hermana estaba leyendo, pero no traía estampas ni diálogos; y «¿de qué sirve un libro», pensó Alicia, «si no trae estampas ni diálogos?».

Así que estaba deliberando en su interior (lo mejor que podía, ya que el día caluroso la hacía sentirse muy soñolienta y atontada) si el placer de trenzar una cadena de margaritas merecía la molestia de levantarse a coger las margaritas, cuando de pronto llegó junto a ella un conejo blanco de ojos rosados.

No había nada de particular en aquello; ni consideró Alicia que fuese muy excepcional oír al Conejo decirse a sí mismo: «¡Dios mío! ¡Dios mío! ¡Voy a llegar demasiado tarde!» (al pensar en ello más tarde, se le ocurrió que debía haberle extrañado una cosa así; sin embargo, en aquel momento le pareció la mar de natural); pero cuando el Conejo se sacó un reloj del bolsillo del chaleco, lo consultó, y luego reanudó apresuradamente la marcha, Alicia se incorporó de un brinco, ya que se le ocurrió de pronto que jamás había visto un conejo con un bolsillo de chaleco, o con un reloj que sacar de él; y, muerta de curiosidad, echó a correr tras él por el prado, justo a tiempo de ver cómo se metía por una gran madriguera bajo el seto.

Un instante después se coló Alicia también, sin pararse a pensar cómo saldría.

La madriguera siguió recta como un túnel durante un trecho, y luego torció hacia abajo tan bruscamente que Alicia no tuvo ni un momento para pensar en detenerse, antes de caer por lo que parecía un pozo muy profundo.

O el pozo era muy profundo, o ella caía muy despacio; porque tuvo tiempo de sobra, mientras descendía, para mirar en torno suyo, y preguntarse qué ocurriría a continuación. Primero, trató de mirar hacia abajo para averiguar hacia dónde iba, pero estaba demasiado oscuro para ver nada; luego miró las paredes del pozo, y observó que estaban llenas de alacenas y anaqueles: vio mapas aquí y allá, y cuadros colgados con escarpias. Cogió un tarro de uno de los anaqueles al pasar; en la etiqueta ponía: «MERMELADA DE NARANJA», pero para su desencanto estaba vacío; no quiso soltar el tarro por temor a matar a alguien de abajo, así que se las arregló para meterlo en una de las alacenas al pasar ante ella en su caída.

«¡Vaya!», pensó Alicia para sí, «¡Después de una caída como ésta, rodar por una escalera no me va a parecer nada! ¡Qué valiente van a pensar que soy en casa! ¡Bueno, incluso si me cayese del tejado, no dirían nada!» (cosa que era lo más probable).

Siguió cayendo, cayendo, cayendo. ¿Es que la caída nunca iba a tener fin? «Me pregunto cuántas millas llevaré ya», dijo en voz alta. «Debo de estar cerca del centro de la tierra. Veamos: el centro estará a unas cuatro mil millas, creo...» (como veis, Alicia había aprendido varias cosas de este tipo en el colegio, y aunque no era ésta muy buena ocasión para presumir de lo que sabía, ya que no había nadie que la escuchase, sin embargo, era buena práctica repetirlo) «... sí, creo que es ésa la distancia... pero entonces, ¿en qué Latitud y Longitud me encuentro?» (Alicia no tenía la menor idea de lo que eran Latitud y Longitud, pero le pareció que eran palabras importantes).

Luego empezó otra vez: «¡No sé si atravesaré la tierra de parte a parte en la caída! ¡Qué divertido sería aparecer entre la gente que anda cabeza abajo! Los antípatias, creo...» (casi se alegró de que no hubiese nadie escuchando esta vez, ya que no le sonó correcta la palabra, ni mucho menos); «... pero tendré que preguntarles cómo se llama el país, naturalmente: Por favor, señora, ¿es esto Nueva Zelanda o Australia?» (y al decirlo trató de hacer una reverencia... ¡figuraos, haciendo reverencias mientras caía por los aires! ¿Podríais hacerlas vosotros?). «¡Qué niña más ignorante pensaría la señora que soy, por preguntarlo! No, no conviene preguntar; quizá lo vea escrito en alguna parte.»

Siguió cayendo, cayendo, cayendo. No tenía otra cosa que hacer, así que en seguida se puso a hablar otra vez: «¡Creo que Dinah me va a echar mucho de menos esta noche!» (Dinah era la gata). «Espero que se acuerden de darle su plato de leche a la hora de la cena. ¡Mi querida Dinah! ¡Cómo me gustaría que estuvieses aquí abajo conmigo! Me temo que no hay ratones en el aire; pero podrías cazar algún murciélago, que es muy parecido a un ratón. Aunque no sé si comerán murciélagos los gatos.» Aquí empezó Alicia a sentirse soñolienta, y siguió diciéndose, medio en sueños: «¿Comerán murciélagos los gatos? ¿Comerán murciélagos los gatos?», y de cuando en cuando, «¿Comerán gatos los murciélagos?», pues comprenderéis que, como no sabía contestar a ninguna de las dos preguntas, no importaba mucho que las hiciera de una forma o de otra. Notó que se estaba quedando dormida; y había empezado a soñar que andaba de la mano con Dinah, a la que le preguntaba muy seria: «A ver, Dinah, dime la verdad: ¿te has comido alguna vez un murciélago?», cuando de repente, ¡bum! ¡bum!, cayó encima de un montón de ramas y hojas secas, y concluyó la caída.

Alicia no se había hecho ni pizca de daño, y al instante se puso en pie de un salto, miró hacia arriba, pero estaba totalmente oscuro; ante sí vio otro largo pasadizo, y aún tenía a la vista al Conejo Blanco que se alejaba presuroso por él. No había un instante que perder; allá fue Alicia, veloz como el viento, y llegó justo a tiempo de oírle decir: «¡Ah, por mis orejas y mis bigotes, qué tarde se me está haciendo!». Estaba muy cerca de él, pero al torcer en un recodo no vio ya al Conejo; se encontró en una sala larga y baja, iluminada por una fila de lámparas que colgaban del techo.

Había puertas alrededor de toda la sala, pero estaban todas cerradas; y cuando Alicia hubo recorrido todo un lado y todo el otro, probando a abrir cada una de ellas, se dirigió decepcionada al centro, pensando cómo conseguiría salir.

De repente, descubrió una mesita de tres patas, toda hecha de cristal macizo: no tenía encima más que una minúscula llavecita de oro, y lo primero que se le ocurrió a Alicia fue que quizá perteneciese a una de las puertas de la sala; pero ¡ay!, o las cerraduras eran demasiado grandes, o la llavecita demasiado pequeña; el caso es que no abría ninguna. Sin embargo, al recorrerlas por segunda vez, descubrió una cortina baja en la que no había reparado antes, y detrás encontró una puertecita de quince pulgadas de alto: probó la llavecita de oro en su cerradura, y (para su alegría) ¡entró!

Alicia abrió la puerta y vio que comunicaba con un pasadizo diminuto, no mucho más amplio que una ratonera; se arrodilló, miró por este pasadizo y descubrió el jardín más hermoso que hayáis visto jamás. ¡Cómo deseó salir de la oscura sala y deambular por entre aquellos arriates de flores brillantes y aquellas frescas fuentes!; pero no podía ni meter la cabeza por el vano de la puerta; «y aunque me cupiera la cabeza», pensó la pobre Alicia, «de poco me valdría sin los hombros. ¡Ah, cómo me gustaría plegarme como un catalejo! Creo que podría, si supiese empezar». Pues, como veis, le habían sucedido tantas cosas extraordinarias últimamente, que empezaba a pensar que había poquísimas que fueran realmente imposibles.

Parecía inútil seguir esperando junto a la puertecita, así que regresó a la mesa, casi con la esperanza de encontrar otra llave encima, o en todo caso un libro de instrucciones sobre cómo plegarse como un catalejo. Esta vez encontró un frasquito («que desde luego no estaba aquí antes», se dijo Alicia); y atada al cuello del frasquito había una etiqueta con la palabra «BÉBEME» primorosamente escrita con letras grandes.

Eso de «bébeme» estaba muy bien; pero la prudente Alicita no se iba a beber aquello sin más ni más. «No; primero», se dijo, «miraré a ver si pone veneno por alguna parte o no»; porque había leído varios cuentos muy bonitos sobre niños que se habían abrasado o habían sido devorados por fieras salvajes y demás cosas desagradables, sólo por no haber tenido en cuenta los sencillos consejos que sus amigos les habían enseñado; tales como que un atizador al rojo te quemará si lo tienes cogido demasiado tiempo, o que si te haces un corte muy profundo con un cuchillo, lo normal es que sangres; y ella nunca olvidaba que si bebes demasiado de una botella donde pone «veneno», lo más seguro es que te pase algo, tarde o temprano.

Sin embargo, en este frasco no ponía «veneno», así que Alicia decidió probarlo; y, al encontrarlo delicioso (de hecho, su sabor era una mezcla de tarta de cerezas, flan, piña, pavo asado, caramelo y tostadas calientes con mantequilla), se lo terminó todo en un santiamén.

* * * *

–¡Qué sensación más rara! –dijo Alicia–, ¡me debo de estar encogiendo como un catalejo!

Y en efecto: ahora sólo medía diez pulgadas; y se le iluminó la cara ante la idea de que ahora tenía la estatura adecuada para cruzar aquella puertecita que daba al hermoso jardín. Primero, no obstante, esperó unos minutos para ver si se seguía encogiendo: se sentía un poco preo­cupada por este motivo: «porque», se dijo Alicia, «podría terminar desapareciendo del todo, como una vela. ¿Cómo sería entonces?». Y trató de imaginar cómo es la llama de una vela cuando se la apaga de un soplo, ya que no recordaba haber visto nunca una cosa así.

Al cabo de un rato, viendo que no ocurría nada más, decidió entrar en seguida en el jardín; pero, ¡ay, pobre Alicia!, cuando llegó a la puerta, descubrió que había olvidado la llavecita de oro, y al volver a la mesa para recogerla, se encontró con que no alcanzaba: podía verla con toda claridad a través del cristal, y trató de trepar por una de las patas de la mesa, pero era demasiado resbaladiza; y cuando se hartó de intentarlo, la pobre se sentó y se echó a llorar.

–¡Vamos, no sirve de nada llorar de esta manera! –se dijo Alicia a sí misma con cierta severidad–. ¡Te recomiendo que dejes de hacerlo ahora mismo! –por lo general, solía darse a sí misma muy buenos consejos (aunque muy raramente los seguía); y a veces se regañaba con tanto rigor que le asomaban las lágrimas a los ojos; aún se acordaba de haber intentado una vez darse una bofetada por hacerse trampas jugando al croquet consigo misma, ya que esta niña singular era muy aficionada a hacer como que era dos personas distintas. «¡Pero esta vez», pensó Alicia, «es inútil hacer de dos personas! ¡Apenas queda de mí lo bastante como para hacer de una sola!».

Su mirada no tardó en descubrir una cajita de cristal debajo de la mesa; la abrió, y encontró una tarta minúscula sobre la que estaba preciosamente escrita con grosellas la palabra «CÓMEME». «Bueno, me la comeré», dijo Alicia: «si me hace aumentar de tamaño, podré coger la llave; y si me hace disminuir, podré deslizarme por debajo de la puerta: ¡De modo que, suceda lo que suceda, podré entrar en el jardín!».

Comió un poquitín de la tarta, y se dijo ansiosamente: «¿Qué pasará? ¿Qué pasará?», sosteniendo la mano a la altura de la cabeza para comprobar si menguaba o crecía; y se quedó sorprendida al ver que seguía teniendo el mismo tamaño. Naturalmente, esto es lo que suele ocurrir cuando comemos tarta; pero Alicia estaba tan acostumbrada a esperar que no le pasaran más que cosas raras, que le pareció de lo más soso y estúpido que la vida siguiera siendo normal.

Así que se puso manos a la obra, y en un periquete se acabó la tarta.

Capítulo II

El Charco de las Lágrimas

–¡Curiosismo y curiosismo! –exclamó Alicia (estaba tan sorprendida, que de momento se le olvidó por completo hablar bien)–. ¡Ahora me estoy estirando como el catalejo más grande del mundo! ¡Adiós, pies! –pues al mirarse los pies, le pareció que casi se perdían de vista, de tanto como se iban alejando–. ¡Ay, mis pobres piececitos, quién os pondrá ahora los zapatos y los calcetines! ¡Desde luego, yo no voy a poder! Estaré lejísimos para ocuparme de vosotros; os las tendréis que arreglar lo mejor que podáis... «pero debo ser amable con ellos», pensó Alicia, «¡o puede que se nieguen a andar hacia donde yo quiero ir! Vamos a ver. Les regalaré unas botas nuevas todas las Navidades».

Y siguió haciendo planes consigo misma sobre cómo lo haría. «Se las enviaré por el recadero», pensó; «¡qué divertido va a ser, enviar regalos una a sus propios pies! ¡Y qué raras serán las señas!».

Sr. D. Pie Derecho de Alicia

Alfombra de la Chimenea

Junto a la Pantalla.

(Con cariño, de Alicia.)

–¡Dios mío, qué tonterías estoy diciendo!

En ese preciso momento su cabeza chocó con el techo de la sala: de hecho, había sobrepasado ahora los nueve pies de estatura; cogió enseguida la llavecita dorada y echó a correr hacia la puerta del jardín.

¡Pobre Alicia! Todo lo que pudo hacer, tumbada de costado, fue mirar el jardín desde la puerta, con un ojo; pero cruzarla fue más imposible que nunca: así que se sentó y se echó a llorar otra vez.

–¡Debería darte vergüenza –dijo Alicia–, una niña tan mayor –desde luego, bien podía decirse esto–, y llorando de esa manera! ¡Basta ya! ¡Te lo ordeno! –pero siguió derramando litros y litros de lágrimas, hasta que se formó un gran charco a su alrededor, de unas cuatro pulgadas de hondo, que cubría la mitad de la sala.

Un rato después oyó un leve golpeteo de pies a lo lejos, y se apresuró a secarse los ojos para ver quién venía. Era el Conejo Blanco que volvía, espléndidamente vestido, con un par de guantes blancos de cabritilla en una mano, y un gran abanico en la otra: venía trotando de prisa, murmurando para sí mientras avanzaba: «¡Oh! ¡La duquesa, la duquesa! ¡Oh! ¡Qué furiosa se pondrá si la he hecho esperar!». Alicia se sentía tan desesperada que estaba dispuesta a pedirle ayuda a quien fuese; así que cuando el Conejo estuvo cerca, empezó en voz baja y tímida: «Por favor, señor...». El Conejo se sobresaltó terriblemente, se le cayeron los guantes blancos de cabritilla y el abanico, y se

Comentarios para Alicia en el país de las maravillas

[phoenixterran · Calificación: 5 de 5 estrellas]

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

[takeitorleaveit_1 · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

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 · Calificación: 5 de 5 estrellas]

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 · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

Who doesn't love Alice in Wonderland?

[oscarwilde87_1 · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

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 · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

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 · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

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.

[stef7sa-1 · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

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

[brakketh-1 · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

Fantastically surreal and enjoyable.

[wilwarin_1 · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

So brilliantly whimsical - or whimsically brilliant!

[klefort_2 · Calificación: 5 de 5 estrellas]

I absolutely love Lewis Carroll and I would gladly read anything with his pseudonym on it, regardless of length. Alice's Adventures In Wonderland and Through The Looking Glass are both full of creativity and imagination. Even though you can find them in the children's section, I wouldn't recommend it for younger readers because it's not an easy read. It's more suitable, perhaps, for middle-school aged children. At the end of the book, we find out that Alice had been dreaming throughout the entire story. I find it curious that, at times, Alice can not understand the characters that her very own sub-conscience mind has made up. The characters that she meets in Wonderland often speak in riddles that have no answers, as Alice once pointed out. Certainly if Alice made up these characters, she of all people should be able to understand them. Just an interesting thought.

[alanwpowers · Calificación: 5 de 5 estrellas]

I taught this book in college Freshman Composition 2 off and on over a decade, as the last in a five-book course--sometimes replaced with local memoir, Slocum's Sailing Alone Around the World, or with Saul Bellow's Seize the Day, or occasionally Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer with its myriad insights into education and language. None gave any better insight into language than the brilliant mathematician's Alice. I love the account of Queen Victoria's appreciation, her order to "order whatever this author produces." His next book was a mathematical treatise that befuddled the Queen, where did we get this?

[tullius22 · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

It's not that I'm not willing to take children's literature seriously-- although it is true that I do not consider "Grimm's Fairy Tales" to be children's literature, but merely the finest book ever written (since Angela's Ashes is actually written *too* well)-- but I'm not sure that this meandering little adventure deserves to be compared to 'Stuart Little'-- or 'Charlotte's Web', if you like-- although I suppose that, in the field of children's literature, age must be equivalent to innocence. Tolstoy, for example, would have made a fine author of children's literature.... or Charlotte Lucas! (Actually Charlotte Lucas might have done a fine job.) But I suppose that I ought to be fair and admit that this 'Alice' of Lewis here is somewhat of an improvement over *that other Lewis*....Although, fine, full disclosure-- it's a little bit difficult for me to take Mr Lewis seriously after knowing that he wanted to use Euclid's original Greek manuscript as a learner's textbook-- and not just that, but as *the only one*!-- which is a stupid idea, and *not just* a stupid idea. It's as pedantic as possible, and it's the sort of thing that makes me wonder how open he really was to 'persuasion'~~ which in turn makes belief in his 'friendly uncle with small girl-child friend' story seem like a rather credulous sort of thing.... He starts to sound more like "Uncle Jack" from "Meet the Fockers" to me. Those little kids, like frightened little hens, can be so.... credulous. Although I know that all that might come off as being unduly in favor of the little goat-children, hahaha, but....Well, I will say that it is mildly less mildly disturbing than your average Tim Burton movie-- ha! ....But. But even though I thought that it was surely better than Tim Burton or C.S. Lewis, but, then, I saw that it was so boring, that it was.... pretty much the same. I mean, Latin grammar and French history? Really? I mean, is this a book for girls, or bearded old men gone cracked and gone off to climbing trees like boys? I mean, I was waiting for him to start going, 'Fifteen birds in five fir trees....'.... but at least *that* was not put out as being for *girls*! Oh! And chess! Yes, sir!Chess and Mr Collins for Alice! .... God, it almost makes me wish that Dvorak-- I mean, if Euclid's buddy can, then why not.... oh no, wait. 'Stabat Mater'. Never mind. Anyway, it's certainly not happy like Mozart or the Hugh Grant film about the pirates. (7/10)

[seriousgrace · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

Everyone knows the story of Alice in Wonderland. If they don't remember the duchess with the baby piglet or the gryphon they surely remember the queen who was constantly crying, "off with his head" or the white rabbit with the pocket watch and white gloves who was always late. And who can forget the caterpillar smoking the hookah on the giant mushroom or the episodes of Drink Me, Eat Me? There is no doubt that Lewis Carroll had a strange imagination. In rereading Alice's Adventures in Wonderland I was taken back to a fantastical world where flamingos and hedgehogs were used as croquet pieces, Alice's tears could create a flood, fish wore wigs and Alice grew and shrank so many times I lost count. My favorite scene was the trial and the king who wanted a sentence before the verdict. It's satirical and funny. Perfect for kids and adults.

[psychedelicmicrobus · Calificación: 5 de 5 estrellas]

A favorite book of mine. I love the silly and the surreal, and this satisfies. It will be a permanent fixture on my shelf for life, and read to my own children someday.

[rickyhaas · Calificación: 5 de 5 estrellas]

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 · Calificación: 2 de 5 estrellas]

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'.

[auntieknickers · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

I've read this at least twice, once as a child and once in a children's literature class. I think as a child I found it a bit too scary and maybe that's why I don't recall reading it aloud to my own children. But, it's certainly an important part of our culture.

[rrainer-1 · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

Along with Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, I reread this one nearly ever year. I enjoy it a lot, but it will never be quite as beloved as Alice.

[wethewatched · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

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.

[bryndahlquis · Calificación: 5 de 5 estrellas]

This is easily one of my favorite books of all time. Alice is so adorable, because she's so little and clueless and imaginative and curious. All the characters are amazing, and I feel like each time I read it, I get a new pun or joke.I know I will read this book over and over again for the rest of my life, and it's definitely one everyone should read at least once.

[jechtshot · Calificación: 3 de 5 estrellas]

Our dear friend Alice sets out once again on an adventure through Wonderland. However, rather than following a rabbit down a hole this time she travels through a mirror (looking glass) to a chess-like version of this magical realm. We follow Alice across the "squares" as she advances from the land of pawns to that of the queens. I prefer the story of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland slightly to this, but still a very enjoyable and fun read.

[audreyjane_1 · Calificación: 5 de 5 estrellas]

Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll is a my absolute favourite book ever. It delights me and reminds me of all the fun I had when I was young. It’s innocent and dark all at the same time. It makes me laugh and think and begin to speak in a very formal way after yet another re-read of this classic. Alice is a typical girl, she can be stubborn and isn’t afraid to pout or throw a tantrum, but she also seems genuinely concerned about these new friends she meets and also the absurdity of this alternate universe she’s plummeted into. I adore the mad hatter and the white rabbit, in fact I love all the characters in this book, even the tyrannical Queen of Hearts. I love that they are all insane. I find that after reading Alice in Wonderland I take more notice of my surroundings, finding things that I would usually dismiss or barely notice to be completely riveting or entertaining. Perhaps every time I read this book, I lose another piece of my sanity. If that’s the case, I’m thinking that crazy people might just be the happiest people alive.

[charlottejones952 · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

Although I enjoyed this book, I didn't find it as captivating as the first. The plot was a little more well-rounded but at points, some of the conversations and poems went on a bit too much.
I found reading Through the Looking Glass was more enjoyable visually than my experience of the first, but this was due to the wonderful illustrations that really help you to visualise the obsurd scenes.

[lhlogan1 · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

Crazy read. You'll feel all out of sorts, but want to keep reading.

[marcoguarda-1 · Calificación: 5 de 5 estrellas]

Charles Dodgson taught maths at Christchurch college, Oxford.

Beside knowing well the matter he was teaching, he was aware it's a teacher's duty to present his lessons in an exciting way to keep his pupils interested. Dodgson was eternally on the lookout for wits, mots and wordplay that dealt with maths, logic and the games which have to do with numbers—as cards and chess. The study of general and symbolic logic (syllogism,) united with a love for pure storytelling, are at the basis of many of his works.

Alice in Wonderland and Through The Looking Glass deal with a game of cards and a game of chess, respectively. Especially in the first book, Dodgson uses traditional figures of storytelling, as the shape shifter (who better than the Caterpillar embodies the skills of the shape shifter—he turns from an egg, to a cocoon, to a caterpillar, to a butterfly;) and the trickster (as the Cheshire Cat is, with his puzzling grin and his maddening skill of disappearing, deceiving the eye.)

Nonetheless, both books deal with logic and the elements which are the building blocks of mathematics. Alice confronts perspective; she's either too tall, or too small—establishing perspective when studying a system is often critical in maths. The Hatter is stuck in a time paradox, because his watch stopped at six o'clock—tea time. There are also many hilarious jokes, as in the Mock Turtle chapter, where they have shorter lessons because they less-on. The White Queen in the second book runs so fast because she actually darts from one corner to the other of the chessboard in one move, and promoting a pawn (Alice) to a Queen is a chess move.

Dodgson weaves in his telling the fondness for his little, beloved friends whom he told these tales first; it's no wonder the strong human dimension they contain has survived mere time.

[quaintlittlehead · Calificación: 5 de 5 estrellas]

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 · Calificación: 2 de 5 estrellas]

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.

[est2lm · Calificación: 5 de 5 estrellas]

I think most people are familiar with Alice to some degree; as children (and maybe more often as adults) we go through periods of complete and utter boredom. We sit with a vacant expression that provokes the dreaded question -

"Don't you have something to do?"

Or, during a lesson about how 12 times 1 is 12, 12 times 2 is 24, 12 times 3 is 36...

It is so easy to slip into a daydream when one is faced with boredom. For Alice, this daydream is a white rabbit with a pocket-watch, muttering some complete nonsense about how it is late! The next thing Alice knows, she is taken into a series of absurd adventures in a land where she is the most logical person there.

In a way, the Alice books are a parody of those children's stories that are very clearly written to teach a moral lesson to its young readers; Alice already knows what is right and wrong, as demonstrated by the way she handles conflicts with unreasonable characters. She even understands on some level how, as people grow up, they sometimes forget (or neglect) their common sense.

Alice, being a child, struggles with communicating her feelings and often runs into fake words that try to articulate those emotions. It is a very accurate representation, I think, of how children react to their emotions. There is a great deal of crying when they fail to string words together in order to articulate their thoughts or feelings.

This is a book full of wonderful nonsense - riddles not meant to be solved, poetry that sounds gorgeous but doesn't necessarily make sense at first glance, puns on words and names and situations; and despite all the improbable things that happen, it is not impossible to find true meaning in Alice's dreams. I think anyone who had a childhood can find a bit if familiarity and even comfort within the pages of these fantastic tales.

[flying_monkeys_1 · Calificación: 4 de 5 estrellas]

Rating: 3.5 of 5These two novellas (added together equal one short novel) were what I expected and NOT what I expected. I think the movies might be better than the books ... maybe, I haven't decided for sure yet. Your enjoyment of these two stories will probably hinge on your enjoyment of and attachment to any previously viewed TV or film adaptations.Fave quotes:"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 knew how to begin." (p.67)---------------------"And how do you know that you're mad?'Well, then,' the Cat went on, 'you see a dog growls when it's angry, and wags its tail when it's pleased. Now I growl when I'm pleased, and wag my tail when I'm angry. Therefore I'm mad.'" (p. 115)---------------------"'How is it you can all talk so nicely?' Alice said.'Put your hand down and feel the ground,' said the Tiger-lily.Alice did so. 'Its very hard,' she said.'In most gardens,' the Tiger-lily said, 'they make the beds too soft -- so that the flowers are always asleep.'" (p.169)---------------------"Alice laughed. 'There's no use trying,' she said: 'one can't believe impossible things.''I daresay you haven't had much practice,' said the Queen. 'When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast...'" (p.207)