Book title and author: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (by Lewis Carroll) Reviewed 5/17/23

Why I picked this book up: it was the next book in The Banned Books Compendium: 32 Classic Forbidden Books by Gringory Lukin (Editor) I win in April 23

Thoughts: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (commonly Alice in Wonderland) is an 1865 English novel by Lewis Carroll. It details the story of a young girl named Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world of anthropomorphic creatures. It is seen as an example of the literary nonsense genre. The artist John Tenniel provided 42 wood-engraved illustrations for the book.
It received positive reviews upon release and is now one of the best-known works of Victorian literature; its narrative, structure, characters and imagery have had widespread influence on popular culture and literature, especially in the fantasy genre. It is credited as helping end an era of didacticism in children's literature, inaugurating an era in which writing for children aimed to "delight or entertain". The tale plays with logic, giving the story lasting popularity with adults as well as with children. The titular character Alice shares her given name with Alice Liddell, a girl Carroll knew.
The book has never been out of print and has been translated into 174 languages. Its legacy covers “for screen, radio, art, ballet, opera, musicals, theme parks, board games and video games. Carroll published a sequel in 1871 entitled Through the Looking-Glass and a shortened version for young children, The Nursery "Alice" in 1890.
It’s hard to believe a charming, nonsense book like that would have any opposition, and yet… In 1900, the book was suspended from classroom use, pending review, at the Woodsville High School in Haverhill, New Hampshire, because of "expletives, references to masturbation and sexual fantasies, and derogatory characterizations of teachers and of religious ceremonies." More recently, the book became controversial because of what some people thought were drug references. In Chapter 5 Alice meets a Caterpillar sitting on top of a mushroom: in recent times, this been cited for drug references.
In 1931, the book was banned in China by the Governor of Huan Province on the grounds that “Animals should not use human language, and…it [is] disastrous to put animals and human beings on the same level.”

I saw this book as an uncle sharing a story. Sometimes illogical, silly, fantastical and sometimes funny. I didn’t like some parts, there were different characters and it was a fun little read.

Why I finished this read: I finished because I wanted to see why it was bannned for thing like drug use like the caterpillar smoking from a hookah. I did not see where they claimed it was talking about masterbation I did not see,

Stars rating: when I got past the silly, unrealistic story and took it as a story told from an uncle, I really enjoyed the chapters. 5 of 5 stars. ( )

I highly recommend the multi-cast recording on Librovox as a companion to reading "Through the Looking Glass".
I'm still getting through the annotations as bedside reading. I'm surprised at how much of this story I remember from my younger days! And I love it just as much as an adult! ( )

This is a great version of the classic story in that it has notes, definitions, historical facts, and other tidbits that tie into the story and help the reader better understand the plot. It's also great for people just interested in the general history of Carroll and his writings. I recommend this to anyone who hasn't read it, because it's unabridged (the first copy of Alice... I owned had many parts missing I didn't even know about till I read this version) and because it's well thought out and put together. ( )

For the Celebrity Death Match vs The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.

'I mean, wot the fuck is it wiv this Salander bitch?' Alice scowls.

'I'm telling you, I'm sick of it. Bugger the 'Annotated Alice', we're putting out the 'Unexpurgated Alice' right now. They need to be told that I did all that stuff bigger and better than she did. AND I had to give mate's rates to fucking Charles Dickens. Geez. Give me a break.'

'What? NOW?' asks Humpty nervously glancing at the wall next to them.

She ignores him.

'Like we didn't have dildoes and girl on girl stuff in the Victorian period. That's what was really in my hand when they did those pictures.'



'Cleaned it up once they decided to make it a children's book after all. Though you notice Lewis just couldn't let go of the "down" word.' She sniggers. Page one: 'In another moment down went Alice...'

'And my tits are real.'

Humpty didn't want to tell her she was obsessing, but.

'Computer whizz? Ipad? Big fucking deal. I had the first iQuill. Let her stuff that up her pipe and smoke it. Well. Stuff it whereever that perverted author thinks will give the readers a kick.'

Humpty goes to answer the phone and comes back.

'Good news Alice -'

But she can't stop now, she's on a roll.

'As for cutting the dude who raped her with a razor. That was just a copycat. Go on. Tell me. Why does Lewis always dress covered up to his neck?'



'Why does he always avoid swimming at the seaside?'

'Because of your clever idea for modifying the iQuill, Alice.'

'Exactly. Filling it with that acid which burned 'I like little girls too much' into his chest.'

'Um, about the fight tonight -'

Alice knows she is on a winner. 'So Salander eats junk food. Like, big deal. I ate cake. DRUGGED cake.'

Finally Humpty gets a word in. 'Alice. You don't have to go to the ring tonight. Salander's new right breast has broken. She's in hospital having the silicon pumped out of her blood stream. You are the winner by default.'

'Ha,' says Alice, bitterly. 'Serves the little cow right.'

'Who's next? And don't tell me it's fucking Leo goody-good Tolstoy.'
( )

For the Celebrity Death Match vs The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.

'I mean, wot the fuck is it wiv this Salander bitch?' Alice scowls.

'I'm telling you, I'm sick of it. Bugger the 'Annotated Alice', we're putting out the 'Unexpurgated Alice' right now. They need to be told that I did all that stuff bigger and better than she did. AND I had to give mate's rates to fucking Charles Dickens. Geez. Give me a break.'

'What? NOW?' asks Humpty nervously glancing at the wall next to them.

She ignores him.

'Like we didn't have dildoes and girl on girl stuff in the Victorian period. That's what was really in my hand when they did those pictures.'



'Cleaned it up once they decided to make it a children's book after all. Though you notice Lewis just couldn't let go of the "down" word.' She sniggers. Page one: 'In another moment down went Alice...'

'And my tits are real.'

Humpty didn't want to tell her she was obsessing, but.

'Computer whizz? Ipad? Big fucking deal. I had the first iQuill. Let her stuff that up her pipe and smoke it. Well. Stuff it whereever that perverted author thinks will give the readers a kick.'

Humpty goes to answer the phone and comes back.

'Good news Alice -'

But she can't stop now, she's on a roll.

'As for cutting the dude who raped her with a razor. That was just a copycat. Go on. Tell me. Why does Lewis always dress covered up to his neck?'



'Why does he always avoid swimming at the seaside?'

'Because of your clever idea for modifying the iQuill, Alice.'

'Exactly. Filling it with that acid which burned 'I like little girls too much' into his chest.'

'Um, about the fight tonight -'

Alice knows she is on a winner. 'So Salander eats junk food. Like, big deal. I ate cake. DRUGGED cake.'

Finally Humpty gets a word in. 'Alice. You don't have to go to the ring tonight. Salander's new right breast has broken. She's in hospital having the silicon pumped out of her blood stream. You are the winner by default.'

'Ha,' says Alice, bitterly. 'Serves the little cow right.'

'Who's next? And don't tell me it's fucking Leo goody-good Tolstoy.'
( )