Annotated Alice [Paperback]

Lewis Carroll (Author)

Book Description

'A landmark, bringing together a lifetime's work on Lewis Carroll by writer and mathematician Martin Gardner. He dazzles on Carroll's puzzles and games of logic and entertains on everything from Alice's influence on the Beat poet Jack Kerouac to how mercury in hat linings turned hatters mad...it is unsurpassed' - Jackie Wullschlager, "Financial Times". 'The indispensable guide to a classic of English literature...no one who has ever wondered about the meaning of 'Jabberwocky' should fail to include on their Christmas list' - Robert McCrum, "Observer".

Editorial Reviews

Review

'A landmark, bringing together a lifetime's work on Lewis Carroll by writer and mathematician Martin Gardner. He dazzles on Carroll's puzzles and games of logic and entertains on everything from Alice's influence on the Beat poet Jack Kerouac to how mercury in hat linings turned hatters mad...it is unsurpassed' - Jackie Wullschlager, Financial Times 'The indispensable guide to a classic of English literature...no one who has ever wondered about the meaning of 'Jabberwocky' should fail to include on their Christmas list' - Robert McCrum, Observer

About the Author

Martin Gardner is the undisputed king of Carroll scholarship. He is also the author of many books on mathematical puzzles in Penguin. Now 87-years old, he lives in Hendersonville, North Carolina.

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Books (October 25, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140289291
• ISBN-13: 978-0140289299
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 4.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #346,436 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Flagship Edition of the Modern Tradition of Annotated Editions, April 11, 2006

By 

B. Marold "Bruce W. Marold" (Bethlehem, PA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Annotated Alice (Paperback)

'The Annotated Alice' with annotations done by Math and Games writer, Martin Gardiner may be the first, and is certainly the best known annotated edition of a popular classic, followed by annotations of other major popular classics such as the complete Sherlock Holmes and 'The Hobbit'.

It is especially interesting to compare the Alice stories with Tolkien's novels, as both series of works are enhanced by their authors' love and professional involvement with language studies. The difference is that while Tolkien was a philologist, Lewis Carroll (Charles Dodgson) was a logician, so their slant on words and wordplay are a lot different. Tolkien is the poet of names and Carroll is the weaver of paradoxes and nonsense. Both, however, benefit from exegesis for those of us who are neither philologists nor logicians.

Carroll's works also need heavy annotation for his references to people and events of his day as they are masked by metaphorical references in the Alice books.

Reading these stories with Gardiner's annotations is virtually the only way to fully appreciate these works. Buy it!

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars MAGNIFYING GLASS REQUIRED!, June 21, 2010

By 

D. Scott Lee (Bryan, TX USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Annotated Alice (Paperback)

This is about the font size, NOT the content. Gardner's comments are about a 5 pt. (i.e., smaller than used by newspapers for legal notices). Had I known, I would have gotten the hard back edition.

5.0 out of 5 stars Alice's Adventures, May 11, 2010

By 

Pensee - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Annotated Alice (Paperback)

The book I received was in great condition and arrived in a timely fashion. I was impressed.