Customer Reviews:
Huh ?.......2007-02-27
This book reminds me of watching Henry Kissinger being interviewed by William F. Buckley, Jr. on FIRING LINE. Poor Henry spoke so deliberately and so s-l-o-w-l-y that I genuinely couldn't follow what he was saying. His cannonballs could barely make it out of the barrel of his cannon.
Up until reading this book I thought I would never again have to experience that excruciating pain. This volume is an excellent edition of esoterica and historical trivialties. Whatever "magic" one might hope to find in "Alice's ..." is almost immediately lost in trying to read the copious notes in the margins. (My bad?) I had hoped for something less pedantic and sterile. (My bad? ... doesn't some slang just make you wince?)
Anyway, be advised - if you're having trouble getting to sleep, this book is for you. (wink, wink)
Do not go to a foreign country with out a road map........2002-06-24
In this case the foreign country is in time and space. This book appears to be stand alone logic and fun on the surface. Some may even think it is a children's book. If so why all the courses and scholarly writings on the story?
Some things are self evident as being so short that you can touch your toes. Others may take some time as the reason hatters are mad is the process includes mercury. Still when was the last time you used a bathing machine? Knowing some of information can enhance the enjoyment of reading the story.
You get the original illustrations to boot. So when you are finished perusing this book it can be used as a coffee table conversation book.
No need to "Go Ask Alice" when you have the Annotated one.......2002-06-16
Perhaps no other set of works in literature benefits more from annotation than "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking Class." Martin Gardner, the author of a regular monthly column on recreational mathematics for "Scientific American," provides expert commentary on all the jokes, games, puzzles, tricks, parodies, obscure references and other curiosities with which Lewis Carroll saturated his writing. That means that you will find out who was the original model for the Chesire Cat and how the "Jabberwocky" poem translates into French. Actually, the definitions of all of those strange words in "Jabberwocky" is quite a load off of my mind. Besides, this edition also contains the full text of each tale, together with all of the original Sir John Tenniel illustrations in their proper places. The annotation runs concurrently with the text and Gardner also provides an introduction that covers both the story of how the books came to be written and some of the most interesting analyses of Carroll's works, such as those always fun Freudian interpretations. The bottom line is that either one of these books gets 5 stars by itself, so when you put the two of them together and add all this annotation, there is nothing to complain about. This is the perfect book for re-reading these books; I would never send anybody here for their first exposure to Alice, but once they are hooked on Carroll's sublime nonsense this will open up a whole new dimension or two (or three) of his work for them.
Wonderful Gift.......2000-11-02
I was given this as a birthday gift as a child, and find it is one of the few gifts I can remember receiving. And probably the only one I still use, nearly 30 years later. If you enjoy Alice, you will love to know more of the background, and inside jokes that you will no doubt miss without this book.
This book is necessary, in all senses of the word.......2000-04-12
Victorian-era readers of Lewis Carroll's delightful fantasies knew the poetry and song and public figures referred to; we moderns need to have the jokes explained to us, and Martin Gardner does a masterful job of it. We're fortunately past the more bizarre Freudian and Marxist interpretations of Alice that Gardner takes to task in his preface, but Gardner's annotations survive, as they should. The White Knight's encounter with Alice is heartbreaking when you know the background information, the lyric the White Knight's doggerel alludes to. By all means, give this to children at risk of being pithed by exposure to a certain indigo reptile; as children, they'll appreciate the story, and as they mature, they'll appreciate the commentary, and you'll have saved a budding intellect.
Customer Reviews:
Great book; better illustrations........1999-10-27
The story of Alice in Wonderland is repeated in a very readable text and is as delightful as ever. This is not, however, a childrens' book. Barry Moser's illustrations tell the story of Alice in a different, dark and somewhat menacing way. Is the rabbit hole just the means to reach an amusing world of people and animals with strange names and stranger habits, or is it the path to a nether region where the normal rules of social conduct and the shape and size of "people" don't apply? If his illustrations mean anything, Moser thinks perhaps it is the latter. For example, the Queen of Hearts appears not as the crazy, but ultimately harmless, creature of a Disney movie. Moser shows her as a dark and foreboding character and by his illustartion suggests that "off with her head" is a real threat. The text of the book is standard Alice, but the real reason to buy it is to get Moser's illustrations. This is definitely not a book for 10 year olds. But those of us who grew up on Alice as half comedy, half light hearted spoof will enjoy this twist on a traditional tale. Moser's other illustrations of classical works such as Moby Dick and The Devine Comedy are also well worth acquiring.
Average customer rating:
- In a word, turgid
- Incomplete, but understandably so
- Bittersweet Relief
- Mutable Time & Geography
- Setting the stage
|
To the King a Daughter (The Cycle of Oak, Yew, Ash, and Rowan; Vol. 1)
Andre Norton , and
Sasha Miller
Manufacturer: Tor Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books | 18th Century | 19th Century | 20th Century | African American | Asian American | Classics | Collections & Readers | Drama | General | Hispanic | History & Criticism | Humor | Jewish American | Letters & Correspondence | Native American | Poetry | Short Stories | Women Writers
Miller, Sasha | ( M ) | Authors, A-Z | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
Norton, Andre | ( N ) | Authors, A-Z | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
General | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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Silver May Tarnish (Witch World Chronicles)
ASIN: 0312873360 |
Amazon.com
This novel from beloved writer Norton and coauthor Miller begins a new fantasy series: The Cycle of Oak, Yew, Ash, and Rowan. Fans of Norton's classic Witch World stories will find familiar terrain in this tale of a crumbling kingdom besieged by dark forces. Oak, Yew, Ash, and Rowan are the four legendary powers of the world, now fallen on hard times after years of warfare and mutual betrayal. Weak-willed Boroth, King of Oak, and his scheming wife, Ysa, sorcerous Queen of Yew, hold the monarchy for now. Desperate to escape the ancient prophesy that a Daughter of Ash will claim the throne, Ysa orders the death of Boroth's runaway lover, Lady Alditha of Ashe--without knowing Alditha has already given birth to Boroth's bastard daughter, Ashen. Years pass. Boroth's health fails. As Ysa grooms her unworthy son, Florian, to inherit the throne, Ashen is raised by Zazar, a wise woman living with the Bog Folk. When Zazar dies before she can warn the girl of her true heritage, Ashen must trust her instincts and the little magic she knows for protection. After she saves Obern, the dashing son of Snolli, High Chief of the Sea Rovers, who seek alliance against enemies from the north, Ashen and Obern travel to court with Lord Harous, who distrusts Ysa's intentions. Here book 1 concludes, almost as soon as the story really begins. While Norton fans will be eager to read her newest book, they're likely to be disappointed by its slow pace and minimal storyline. --Charlene Brusso
Book Description
To the King a Daughter begins the cycle of Oak, Yew, Ash, and Rowan. The Clan of Ash is dying, there is a prophecy that a daughter of Ash will rise again, but none have survived the mass killings. But deep in the swamps, in the care of the witch-healer there is a young girl-woman who is not the witchs daughter, but the one who will rise to fulfill the prophecy.
Customer Reviews:
In a word, turgid.......2006-01-23
What an utter disappointment to read this work with the expectations of an Andre Norton work! What, I wondered, had happened to the old master, even knowing now she was nearly at the end of her life.
The answer turned out to be simple. The alien feel resulted from the dubious skills of her co-author, Sasha Miller. Read her solo work and the lugubrious tedium and stilted language will become all too familiar when reading this cycle she wrote with Norton.
It is customary for aging authors to take on a young protegy to share the writing honors and title with the "pro" and it is understood that the famous author may be pretty much a figurehead. That would certainly seem to be the case.
The plot is not bad and the potential is still there. But the writing itself is often tedious and sometimes painfully artificial. Most of all it is not Andre Norton.
My wife asked if she should read this and the second book when I finished them. I suggested a comic book or even the cereal box. A true disappointment to see Norton's name on second rate SF. I regret buying the second book at all and certainly won't bother with the rest. I also told her that "Sasha Miller" might be taken as a warning sign.
Incomplete, but understandably so.......2005-12-19
Unlike other first books of a series I read, this one seemed to be designed from the beginning to be part of a series. It certainly does not stand alone, as it ends with a huge, wide open space of story that needs to be filled in.
The book begins with a pregnant noblewoman, the last of the Ash family, on the run who reaches the edge of civilization, is taken in by an old medicine/magic woman, and dies in childbirth. This old woman lives in a village of bog-people, who are not particularly nice. The woman has to convince the others to accept that she intends to keep the new baby alive, and raise her. Recognizing the baby's features, she names the king's illegitimate daughter Ashen.
After this, the book goes in several storylines. I found one to be extremely boring and the other two to be very interesting for different reasons. One line follows the royal household, and in particular the queen Ysa, who was the one who caused the family of Ash to be killed off in order that only hers and the king's will live on. Ysa is tough for me to figure out. She seems more disturbed, worried, and hurt than evil, due partly to the king's bad treatment of her and cheating on her.
Another storyline is that of Ashen, who is now sixteen. She doesn't know who her real parents are but knows she is different from the rest of the bog-people. I found it quite fascinating to read about this girl who uses her intelligence, alert senses, and strong will to make her way through life, to survive, to prevent a group of boys from raping her, and to eventually travel from the bog and learn who she is. I wish she took more of the book's space than she did; this is only forgivable because this is only the first in a series.
The last thread regards a group of Sea-Rovers. I did not find their travels over the sea to be very interesting.
As time went on, it became obvious that Ashen, Ysa, and the Sea-people would eventually meet. Ysa would learn that the king has an heir other than her son. She would have to decide which of them should succeed the king: the older, better but illegitimate daughter, or her own spoiled, selfish, legitimate son. Indeed, I found Ysa's raising of her son to be very strange. She spoils him, and when he grows up into a brat, she thinks "so like his father" as if her son inherited his ways rather than being brought up to not care for others.
Another problem is that when Ashen enters civilization, she slips into her new lady role too easily. She is used to being outdoors, working, wearing breeches. She seemed a little too comfortable wearing dresses and being polite.
Still, I am extremely curious what will happen to Ashen after this book, and whether her strong-character features survived her transition to civilization after all. I am also curious about some loose ends, such as the implication that one character had killed another character and nothing is made of it so far.
The cover art is a very recognizable scene from the book, depicting Ashen finding a strange statue in the bog and holding a necklace in her hand. It seems only her hair (which ought to be bound) and her clothing (which should probably be a shirt and leggings) are inaccurate. She only wears a dress (and a high-necked one under a V-necked one) late in the book, and the cover seems to depict that dress as it would be after it got aged and ripped up. It's as though the artist combined different parts of the book, something I'm not too fond of.
Bittersweet Relief.......2004-11-29
I read/skimmed some of the other reviews and had to agree with what i read. The book is too sketchy and not enough focus on the main character, Ashen. But, what is most agonizing is not that it takes forever for the main characters to meet, but at the time frames of the story. In one section you are in one scene and time and the next you are back in time a few hours, even days ago. there doesn't seem to be an understandable reason for how the sections are split. there is no build up of anticipation over wanting to know what'll happen next. you know what will happen next.
this is a good start though. i was relieved knowing that this was a series. the authors of this book didn't do enough editing for the book to stand on its own.
i was intrigued by the other characters. Ysa was shown not to be a complete villian, but an actual human being. Zazar does seem interesting and i hope she'll show up again with a looser tongue. Ashen did disappoint a little. at the beginning her character seemed tougher, and toward the end she just seemed lost and weak.
I did expect more of Andre Norton having read her Elven Blood books co-written with Mercedes Lackey. I'll cut Ms. Miller some slack assuming that she has just started.
I hope the series proves to be more exciting and enchanting.
Mutable Time & Geography.......2004-02-05
This was the first Andre Norton book I had read in many years and I was very disappointed in it. I had much higher expectations.
What really annoyed me about it was the highly mutable geography and timeline. The map was nothing like the geography described in text. The Bog was north, west, or south of the kingdom depending on what paragraph was being read. A teenage girl could cautiously walk through the dangerous bog in a few hours but it took a week for sea rovers to sail around the edge. The antagonist could magically scry upon the protagonist, spend several days doing other things then scry again and only a few hours would have passed in the life of the protagonist.
There was no thought, logic, or consistency to matters of time, travel time, and geography; and I found that very aggravating.
Setting the stage.......2003-10-28
The book had a LOT of potential but didn't really fulfill any of it. The reader is left completely unsatisfied that anything productive has been done minus that the stage has been set for (hopefully) a sequel in which there will be some actual ACTION. I found it very frustrating that the authors had three different threads of events going on and didn't weave them together into any kind of conclusion. Instead, the book is basically bringing those three threads together. End of story. Nothing resolved. I wouldn't buy this book until a sequel is published and the sequel has been determined to actually DO something. Only then will this book be worthwhile for background.
Book Description
Learn from 14,000 strong families how to have a fantastic family. With the help of this groundbreaking book, you can take the guesswork out of parenting and be assured that you are building not only a strong family -- but a fantastic family.
Based on the largest study ever done on strong families -- 14,000 families studied over twenty-five years -- this book reveals six simple, yet profound, steps to building a fantastic family that will thrive for generations to come.
Customer Reviews:
Great for building stronger family values.......2005-12-06
It is a wonderful book that has testimonials on how peole have experienced 1st hand these changes to make. It quotes the Bible from time to time. It is just great!!! I can't wait to get the workbook to read it again!!!
Book Description
Create a stunning quilt from innovative fan designs. These fantastic quilts offer a brand-new look for traditional fan blocks, with Celtic strips, picture framing, and redesigned curves. This book features 12 fan quilt, wallhanging, and pillow projects plus variations to simplify more complex blocks. Includes instructions for making templates, fussy-cutting fabric, and no-mark quilting techniques that are suitable for all skill levels.
Customer Reviews:
A great book!.......1999-08-09
I thought this book was extremely good. The characters seemed alive, and the plot was very entertaining. I couldn't put it down! The authors did a good job of building upon the previous book, but I'd have liked to read more about the dragons. Hopefully they weren't left out of the book on purpose! I can't wait for the third book to come out, I hope it's soon! If you've read the first book, you have to read this one!
neck breaking adventure.......1999-06-03
IF you read the first one you have to read this one. And if you didn't read the first one you have to read this one. The breakneck speed this story runs at made it impossible for me to put the book down. And there are absolutely no characters you could care less about in this book. The only thing I could find wrong was that I wondered if the authors had maybe too many characters, because I want to know what happens to Kelyan? He was there, and then after everything he does for the Elvenbane she just ups and forgets he's around? Please tell me that was an oversight! But this will be one that will keep you up until the dawn finishing it.
Average customer rating:
- Interesting read
- A Fantastic story
- Maybe 3 and 1/2 Stars
- Fairy Tales and Mermaids
- Wonderful Story
|
Practical Magic
Alice Hoffman
Manufacturer: Putnam Adult
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books | 18th Century | 19th Century | 20th Century | African American | Asian American | Classics | Collections & Readers | Drama | General | Hispanic | History & Criticism | Humor | Jewish American | Letters & Correspondence | Native American | Poetry | Short Stories | Women Writers
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Hoffman, Alice | ( H ) | Authors, A-Z | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Magic & Wizards | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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Practical Magic: Music From The Motion Picture
ASIN: 0399140557 |
Amazon.com
For most adults, fairy tales are among the childish things we've put away. Alice Hoffman, however, feels differently. Practical Magic starts out as a tale of Gillian and Sally Owens, two orphaned girls whose aunts are witches--of a mild sort. For the past two centuries, Owens women have been blamed for all that has gone wrong in their Massachusetts town, ever since their ancestor arrived, rich, independent, and soon accused of theft: "And then one day, a farmer winged a crow in his cornfield, a creature who'd been stealing from him shamelessly for months. When Maria Owens appeared the very next morning with her arm in a sling and her white hand wound up in a white bandage, people felt certain they knew the reason why." The aunts are daily ostracized by the same upstanding citizens who sneak to their house at night for magical love cures. To the sisters they are for the most part benevolently absent, though their bell, book, and candle routine makes life a torment for Gillian, beautiful and blonde and lazy, and Sally, who's all too responsible. But when one of the aunts' cures works too well, ending as a curse, the dangers of real love become all too clear. In Hoffman's world being bewitched, bothered, and bewildered is no mere metaphor--and neither is desire. The elbows of one enamored man pucker a linoleum counter, another walks around with singed cuffs. It's difficult to catch the author's power in brief quotes. She needs space and increment to build her exquisite variations of vision and reality, her matter-of-fact announcements of the preternatural. Practical Magic again and again makes one recall the thrill of hearing at bedtime, "Now will I a tale unfold..." --Kerry Fried
Book Description
For more than two hundred years, the Owens women had been blamed for everything that went wrong in their Massachusetts town. And Gillian and Sally endured that fate as well: As children, the sisters were forever outsiders, taunted, talked about, pointed at. Their elderly aunts almost seemed to encourage the whispers of witchery, with their musty house and their exotic concoctions and their crowd of black cats. But all Gillian and Sally wanted was to escape. One would do so by marrying, the other by running away. But the bonds they shared, even into adulthood, brought them back--almost as if by magic...
Customer Reviews:
Interesting read .......2007-09-19
This was my first Alice Hoffman book, and I have been hooked ever since.
If you are looking for the movie in print, you have found the WRONG book! Though the same basic idea is still there, the book is a separate entity from the movie.
I enjoyed every page of the book. I found the writing so well presented that I read as slow as possible, just to relish every word.
The characters are more lovable than in the movie, and I found the story of two sisters magical.
This is a must-read for anyone who enjoys reading mysticism.
A Fantastic story.......2007-08-29
This is my first novel that I have read by Alice Hoffman, and I thought it was fantastic. The story is an easy read, with beautiful scene descriptions and very believable characters that I can relate too. The author drew me into the story of Sally and Gillian and I was sad when I finished the last page. So I read it again. One of my favorite books. Highly recommend.
Maybe 3 and 1/2 Stars.......2007-05-08
I picked this book up expecting to get lost in a magical world (maybe something like Harry Potter!) but this book failed to deliver on that front. The magic was underhanded and unorganized. However, with that said, this was still a good read. Examining the dynamics between two generations of sisters was interesting, and the writing moved along comfortably. Overall, it's worth reading, but don't expect to be mesmerized!
Fairy Tales and Mermaids.......2007-04-05
Some women will do anything to get what they want, and this story of a mermaid who wants to date a man will capture your heart.
Wonderful Story.......2007-03-13
I absolutely loved this book. As many others have said, it is as different as night and day from the movie. Even the basic plot and character development are completely different. I, however, LOVED both versions.
WARNING: There is a short scene, just past the middle of the book, that is highly sexual. It really took me by suprise. This wasn't a problem for me, but I thought it should be mentioned in case anyone is considering buying this book for a child or someone else who could be offended by sexual material.
Customer Reviews:
loved it.......2006-01-26
I loved the previous books, I love this book more... well worth the money.. hate to see a good book go to waste.
Good moving story.......2004-05-20
I think someone else forgot to use the rating function. LOL
However this is a good book, I quite liked the wrap up to a intriguing story. Read it!
A Great Read!!.......2002-10-01
With two such gifted authors, this book couldn't help but be great. It lived up to all my expectations, with unforgettable characters and a well paced story. The dragons were intriguing, not being the usual "bad" kind. I would recommend this to anyone that wants to read something that they will long remember.
Just what to expect from one of the best..........2002-03-10
I have read all of Andre Norton's books, a couple months ago I thought this to be true and was rather saddened that I would never again be allowed to discover one of her spellbinding stories as found in "The Iron Cage", "The Beastmaster", or "Black Trillium". Naturally I was overjoyed when I found my thinking to be in error; as I was browsing through the library I happened upon "Elvenbane" and thus embarked on another adventure that certainly lived up to my expectations in every way. I have since also read "Elvenblood", the sequel to this amazing novel. Mercedes Lackey is also starting to make some waves on the sci-fi scene, and her styles compliment those of Andre Norton so well, yet add a flavor of diversity to the stories, just enough to let you know that without the collaboration of these two great minds this trip into the realms of the imagination would never have been possible. I hope you will enjoy these books as much as I have, and if you have not already read Andre Norton's books just know that you are really missing out!
The Elvenbane.......2002-01-05
Excellent, gripping, couldn't put it down. M
Amazon.com
Source of legend and lyric, reference and conjecture, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is for most children pure pleasure in prose. While adults try to decipher Lewis Carroll's putative use of complex mathematical codes in the text, or debate his alleged use of opium, young readers simply dive with Alice through the rabbit hole, pursuing "The dream-child moving through a land / Of wonders wild and new." There they encounter the White Rabbit, the Queen of Hearts, the Mock Turtle, and the Mad Hatter, among a multitude of other characters--extinct, fantastical, and commonplace creatures. Alice journeys through this Wonderland, trying to fathom the meaning of her strange experiences. But they turn out to be "curiouser and curiouser," seemingly without moral or sense.
For more than 130 years, children have reveled in the delightfully non-moralistic, non-educational virtues of this classic. In fact, at every turn, Alice's new companions scoff at her traditional education. The Mock Turtle, for example, remarks that he took the "regular course" in school: Reeling, Writhing, and branches of Arithmetic-Ambition, Distraction, Uglification, and Derision. Carroll believed John Tenniel's illustrations were as important as his text. Naturally, Carroll's instincts were good; the masterful drawings are inextricably tied to the well-loved story. (All ages) --Emilie Coulter
Book Description
Journey to Wonderland and through the Looking Glass with Alice. Meet the unforgettable characters of these two magical books, collected in one volume: the White Rabbit, the Mad Hatter, the Cheshire Cat, Tweedledee and Tweedledum, and many others. Nothing is ordinary in the surprising worlds Alice finds herself in! Lewis Carroll's (1832-1898) popular books about Alice marked a turning point in children's literature--for the first time, children's stories were primarily for fun, rather than for instruction or moralizing.
Customer Reviews:
Timeless classic.......2007-09-20
Without a doubt, one of the most endearing and fascinating books in all of literature. While it is often labeled a children's novel, it takes the understanding of an adult to grasp the richness of symbolism contained in each page. We get a front row seat as Alice journeys through a myriad of characters that range from the bizarre to the down right funny. Alice is the wiser for each encounter, but what makes the book so charming is that she manages to retain her child-like wonder.
I must admit that this novel would not be complete without the illustrations from Punch cartoonist John Tenniel. Tenniel gives the characters a richness and exaggerated life that is unmatched. The book is incomplete without those drawings.
Lastly, there is little bit of Alice in all of us. Who among us has not wanted to walk in the forest, open a closed door, or peek behind a curtain. The thought of escaping and exploring the unknown without the fear of harm is almost intoxicating. If that is you, get the book and start down the rabbit hole.
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland........2007-01-11
This book is the Norton Critical Edition (Second Edition) of _Alice in Wonderland_ by Lewis Carroll, edited by Donald J. Gray, with the picture of the "Jabberwock" on the front. The Norton Critical Edition contains the following parts: a brief preface, the text of _Alice's Adventures in Wonderland_, the text of _Through the Looking-Glass_, the excised "The Wasp in a Wig", the poem "The Hunting of the Snark: An Agony, in Eight Fits", background material from Carroll's early life, the Alice books, and later life (including letters of his), and several interesting essays in criticism. The Alice stories are some of the greatest classics of children's literature, but their bizarre nature and intriguing mathematical, philosophical, and theological speculations make them interesting for adults and thinkers as well. Many have tried to psycho-analyze the stories (using absurd antiquated Freudian methods), but I agree with G. K. Chesterton that to do such is to destroy the stories. These stories exist in the fine tradition of the Victorian fairy tale (which emphasizes what has been called the "Victorian cult of the child"), and despite modern difficulties, they remain an important contribution to children's literature. Among other things it has been suggested that the stories include elements that resemble drug use and that Carroll was a precursor to Einstein in his understanding of the relativity of size and shape, but despite these understandings the stories remain unique for their captivating power and intriguing as stories themselves. Lewis Carroll was the pen name of Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (1832-1898) who was perhaps best known in his time as a logician and tutor in logic and mathematics. Dodgson did quite well in mathematics as a youth (as he did in nearly all his subjects, but particularly in mathematics) and continued his studies at Oxford. Originally Dodgson had promised to become an Anglican clergyman upon completion of his studies, but he never fully completed his ordination. Instead he served as a lecturer in mathematics and logic, writing several interesting books in logic for popular audiences at the time (though he could not have foreseen more recent developments in logic, such as the work of Russell and Whitehead in the _Principia Mathematica_). Dodgson also served as a tutor to children (and he developed a particular fondness for children, particularly young girls, that many would come to criticize later). As a tutor Dodgson met the girl Alice Liddell, who served as the inspiration for the Alice stories. It is rumored that Dodgson may have fallen in love with her, which led to some difficulty. Dodgson's philosophical, religious, and social views were notoriously conservative and conventional, though it seems that he incorporated many unconventional ideas into his stories. In his old age, Dodgson remained a bachelor, though he increasingly involved himself in amateur photography (some of which proved particularly risqué and has led to subsequent rumors about Dodgson). Today, what Dodgson remains most famous for are his stories for children. Within his stories interesting mathematical, philosophical, and theological issues are raised; among them, the issue of the meaning of words and language (Dodgson's writings and poems have been called "nonsense" and he frequently makes use of "nonsense words" of his own invention) calling to mind the later philosophy of Wittgenstein, various theological issues, the philosophical issue of the dream-like nature of reality, the issue of birth, adolescence, sexual development, and life and death, the issue of Darwinian evolutionism, and various mathematical and logical issues, as well as interesting puzzles. The essays included with this volume bring up some of these issues and provide interesting points about the stories.
The works of Lewis Carroll included in this volume are as follows:
_Alice's Adventures in Wonderland_ (1897 edition) - a rewrite of the original _Alice's Adventures Under Ground_ and beautifully illustrated. This is the story of Alice (based on Dodgson's student Alice Liddell) as she encounters a talking White Rabbit, travels down a rabbit-hole, and there encounters many bizarre happenings and various talking creatures. The story has an eerie drug-induced feel to it (which causes one to question the very basis of reality) and many have speculated that this story may include instances of drug use. In particular, while in "Wonderland", Alice eats various foods and drinks various potions which cause her to grow taller or shorter. In "Wonderland", Alice encounters the rabbit, a talking mouse (who she reminds of her cat Dinah and provokes him thus), various birds and animals (in which they have a "caucus race", perhaps calling to mind the "Caucasian race" and various racialist theories of the time which Dodgson disapproved of), a lizard named Bill, and a puppy. After this, however, Alice encounters a caterpillar sitting on a mushroom. The caterpillar is smoking from a "hookah" (perhaps a reference to drug paraphernalia) and invites Alice to take a bite from the mushroom. Upon taking the bite from the mushroom, Alice undergoes radical changes in height. Some have regarded these alterations to be reminiscent of the hallucinations that occur upon ingestion of certain mushrooms, such as the Amanita muscaria. Alice also encounters the Duchess and her baby (a pig), the Cheshire cat (who fades away leaving only his grin), the Madhatter (mad no doubt from mercury poisoning), the March Hare, and the Dormouse having tea, and then she encounters the Queen of Hearts playing croquet as well as the "mock turtle". Finally, a trial occurs in which the Knave of Hearts is accused of stealing the tarts from the Queen of Hearts. At this trial, Alice must testify and present her evidence. At the end, Alice awakes from her dream after realizing that the Queen and the King are nothing but a pack of cards.
_Through the Looking-Glass_ (1897 edition) - This story begins with Alice reflecting on her cats and a game of chess. Indeed, the entire story involves a set-up on the chess board in which Alice herself is to eventually become queen. Alice enters a mysterious world ("Wonderland" again no doubt) through the looking-glass and there encounters various creatures. This is of course the story where the infamous nonsense poem "Jabberwocky" appears. Alice encounters various talking flowers, various insects, two brothers Tweedledum and Tweedledee, Humpty Dumpty (an egg), and the lion and the unicorn. Alice also encounters the red and white queens and eventually is to become queen herself. During the course of the story the secret meaning of certain words in "Jabberwocky" are revealed to Alice. At the end, Alice is at a feast when she suddenly shakes the red queen who becomes a kitten. Alice awakes to conclude that it was "all a dream", though the issue of reality is raised again.
"The Wasp in a Wig" is a short scene left out of the original _Through the Looking-Glass_.
Also included is the poem, "The Hunting of the Snark" (1876), which is a nonsense poem about a group of men on a ship who are hunting a "snark".
This Norton Critical Edition is an excellent edition of Lewis Carroll's children stories and poems. Carroll's stories are to live on due to their uniqueness and their bizarre nature. But, as pointed out they also raise several interesting philosophical questions and thus are interesting for adults as well as children. They are also greatly enjoyable and certainly recommended.
Alice .......2006-10-18
One of the classic Disney movies I remembered was the Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. Reading this novel gave me the same feelings I had in my childhood years watching the movie. I could be wrong but it seems to me that everything in the book was exactly like the movie. Alice was reading her sister's book and fell asleep under a tree. Then she woke up, saw a rabbit in clothes with a clock talking. She then followed the rabbit into this hole. After that she was in a never ending tunnel, which lead her to a strange world. Alice encounters many obstacles in the story and showed how she dealt with them.
I thought the book was just like the movie. I guess was I was reading the novel made me have a better understanding. I was mainly looking for any symbolism of some sort, but failed to do so. I was also shocked at what the things characters were doing in the book and made it into a Disney movie. For example the Caterpillar smoking a hookah. I didn't know what hookah was until last year. I was really confused in some parts of the novel. This book I thought was great for someone that hasn't even heard of Alice in Wonderland. It is a very thin book but it was like reading a children's book. I thought the novel would have a different story than the movie. From a scale of 1 - 10 I would give it a 7. Just because it was interesting and reminded me of the past.
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.......2006-10-17
In the book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll a young girl with the name of Alice travels to a distant land that seems altogether and quite possibly unreal to her. The book starts off with Alice in the park with her sister. She has nothing to do as her sister is reading so when Alice sees a talking white rabbit scampering by, she doesn't hesitate to follow it. Following the rabbit leads her to a world she could have never dreamed of. This book can take you to magical places you would have never dreamed of. Through the use of Carroll's thorough descriptions and dramatic elements this book is sure to take you on one wild ride. I thought that the book was very well written and very interesting. I could really imagine what the characters look like and feel how Alice would have felt. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes a good adventure and lots of twists along the way. This book is for children and adults alike. As long as you have an imagination and a great sense of adventure you are sure to love this great tale of a girl and how she found herself in an imaginary world.
My Childhood Favorite!.......2006-05-06
When I was eight years old, this version of Alice in Wonderland was aired on T.V. I thought I had watched the best movie ever at that time, and still, to this day, I have more fond memories of watching that movie than any other time in my life! The songs were beautiful! I can still sing the song Alice sang to the deer - "Why do people act as if they're crazy? Why to they behave the way they do? I have to say, this is one my favorite songs of all time!
If you get a chance to purchase and watch this movie, you will witness the beautiful music!
Average customer rating:
- Tells instead of Shows
- Masterful Book
- fun, full of insight and mystery
- Mixed feelings
- Not What I Expected
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The Temple of My Familiar
Alice Walker
Manufacturer: Harcourt
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General | African American | United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Walker, Alice | African American | United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Walker, Alice | ( W ) | Authors, A-Z | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0151885338 |
Customer Reviews:
Tells instead of Shows.......2007-02-08
I adored Walker's The Color Purple, so when I pulled her book The Temple of My Familiar off a friend's shelf, I looked forward to an entertaining and elucidating time. Unfortunately, the book was disappointing.
Most readers - and certainly all writers - are familiar with the maxim, "Show, don't tell." Walker breaks this fundamental rule and has characters telling for the entire book. For the most part, the characters sound like each other. For the most part, the listeners sit by, accepting, unquestioning, drinking in the words and stories as if they are the most profound wisdom, their mouths as wide open as if they were baby birds, never disagreeing with or challenging what is told them. Perhaps this is how Walker intends these views to be taken, however, remaining in a state of awe for more than 400 pages is difficult for a reader.
Besides - although I find her viewpoint interesting, which emphasizes the importance of the Goddess and the idea that all would be much better if black women ruled the world - I can't agree with it. I think that the majority of whites - admittedly, not all - don't spend their time these days thinking about how to keep black people down. Many of us cheer when blacks do well - a successful black person is much better for society than a black who is poor and unhappy - just as we cheer when other the people of other races do well. Perhaps I would have appreciated the story more if I could have sighed and said, "how true" - but I could not.
However, the real problem in The Temple of My Familiar is not what Walker is saying, but how she is saying it. Furthermore, the book itself is complicated and convoluted, with tangled relationships between the characters. And I don't mean that the relationships are emotionally complex, just that there are lots of aunts and uncles and difficult-to-diagram genealogical charts, as well as some confusion as to who is sleeping with whom. Furthermore, the characters never seem to touch each other, again, because Walker tells instead of shows. We are told that they are happy or that they are sad or that they are moved - but we don't feel it, because we are told instead of shown.
There are glimmers of brilliance. The opening is wonderful - possibly because Walker was showing instead of telling at this point, and because at this point the cast of characters is small and manageable.
Masterful Book.......2005-12-09
I was taken aback on some of the customer reviews and I felt the need to defend this extraordinary book."Temple of My Familiar" is more than an African-American feminist polemic or a deconstruction of Judeo-Christian values or a debunking of Western myth-making (that we call history). However, this appears to be where most critics get hung up on. They seem to point to certain "imperfections" such as the unruly narrative structure populated by countless characters and may subplots or the lack of restraint in the novel's exploration of numerous ideas and philosophical threads. The reality is that Temple of My Familiar challenges our preconceptions and offers up alternative worldviews as a direct confrontation to our socialized paradigms. But more importantly, it challenges us to explore what we have somehow lost along the way--our spiritual consciousness and sense of belonging. Ms. Walker possesses the courage of her convictions, and as such, this novel defies any attempt to put it into some nice neat little package. The novel challenges the reader to think, listen and dream. And the process is not orderly or self-evident. Temple doesn't offer up any real epiphanies or earth shattering revelations. It only offers suggestions and possibilities and most importantly, hopes. We have lost "Eden" a long way back; Temple of My Familiar is a beautiful attempt to get back to the garden.
Heck, nobody said, "It was going to be easy!"
She masterfully moves her characters beyond worldly conventions towards not only a greater understanding of themselves but of humanity at large. I honestly recommend this book to anyone who as ever wished to further themselves, because it is a literary experiment into the healing side of human nature (a side too often compromised for violence). Furthermore, it is a book of real people rising out of varying levels of suppression-a book which in gauges everyone to break limits and asks questions of at least themselves. Yes indeed this is a book which tells us why we struggle to stay alive...why we press forth into the next day.
fun, full of insight and mystery.......2005-09-24
While I do not subscribe to New Age beliefs, reincarnation, or any of the other spiritual stuff that this book advocates, that did not stop me from thoroughly enjoying the characters and the world they exist in. Indeed, this book tapped into my sense of wonder as few have in recent years, the mystery of life and how our beliefs shape our world as we struggle to make sense of it all and move ahead. As such, this book for me was a complete success, just a delight to experience - I could suspend my disbelief and simply savor it, hooked into the characters, their issues, their compromises and little triumphs. That makes for a superior novel. It tickled my imagination and gave me images that I will never forget, no matter how weird or unbelievable some of them might be.
Warmly recommended.
Mixed feelings.......2004-09-20
I would be the first to praise Alice Walker's skill as a story teller, and her prose always entertains me and makes me think. That's why I gave this book the stars I gave it. I don't mind the 'out there' spirituality. I don't buy it, but I have no deep gripe against it either. What I find depressing and surprisingly childish about this book is the implied contention that if women of color ran the world, everything would be good and just. The simple truth of humanity is that it is power that corrupts, not whiteness or gender. If women of color ruled the world instead of white men, they would simply become the newest oppressors, in my opinion. I keep trying to enjoy Alice Walker's books for more than their style and skillful prose, but the message of reverse racism is still there. I am white, but I am not evil/privileged/pathetic/racist/oppressive/smug/whatever. If I were, I would not keep trying to read Alice Walker. I wish she would open her mind to that possibility.
Not What I Expected.......2004-07-07
I love many of Walker's books, but this was not what I expected. The idea's are deep and fascinating, but it lacked plot. She should have just written essays and published them in a nonfiction book, instead of passing off her "prose" as a book.
Books:
- The Black Jewels: Trilogy: Daughter of the Blood / Heir to the Shadows / Queen of the Darkness
- The Bloody Crown of Conan (Conan of Cimmeria, Book 2)
- The Confident Coach's Guide to Teaching Lacrosse: From Basic Fundamentals to Advanced Player Skills and Team Strategies (Confident Coach)
- The Lorax (Classic Seuss)
- The Mad Scientists' Club (Mad Scientist Club)
- The Magic of Thinking Big
- The Malloreon, Vol. 1 (Books 1-3): Guardians of the West, King of the Murgos, Demon Lord of Karanda
- The Master Puppeteer
- The Peter Paul and Mary Song Book
- The Witch's Familiar: Spiritual Partnership for Successful Magic
Books Index
Books Home
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- Chief Executives: National Political Leadership in the United States, Mexico, Great Britain, Germany
The Annotated Alice: The Definitive Edition
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass (Signet Classics)
The Annotated Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions
Warped Passages: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Universe's Hidden Dimensions
![Alice in Wonderland [TV 1985]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B000FSME7O.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
