Jabberwocky [Hardcover]

Lewis Carroll (Author), Walt Disney Company (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up

This presentation of the classic nonsense poem from "Through the Looking Glass" features Disney illustrations.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This slick version of the classic nonsense poem from Through the Looking Glass seems more a Disney souvenir than a book to snuggle up with. Angular textural sketches, apparently rough drafts for an animated feature (many possess a Fantasia -like sensibility), are set against an overpowering black background that negates the tale's playfulness. Multiple frames on several pages make the (rather feeble) scenario difficult to follow, while the fabled, fearsome beast is here only silly--with its beaky, birdish head atop a caterpillary cover, it resembles a Chinese New Year parade's dragon or a Mardi Gras costume. When the victorious hero goes "galumphing back" with only the Jabberwock's head, youngsters may not realize that the weird animal is actually slain. Overall, this repackaging appears devoid of personality, and doesn't do justice to the comical original. These mome raths and mimsy borogroves deserve better. All ages.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 2-- This edition of Lewis Carroll's classic poem joins several other single-volume versions and editions of Through the Looking Glass currently in print. The jazzy full-color cartoons from the Disney archives are clearly stills from animated sequences and, as a result, seem wooden when placed in a linear, picture-book format. However, the language--brilligs, vorpal swords, and all--is so evocative that illustrations always seem superfluous. It remains a poem to hear and ponder--nonsense words defy the definitions that illustration (and animation) attempt to provide. --Kathleen Whalin, Belfast Public Library, ME
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 1 pages
• Publisher: Disney Pr (Juv Trd); 1st edition (September 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1562822454
• ISBN-13: 978-1562822453
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,636,143 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars In muted, sepia tones sparked with lime green, April 7, 2003

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Jabberwocky (Hardcover)

O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay! From offbeat illustrator Joel Stewart comes this utterly charming picture book adaptation of the celebrated nonsense rhyme "Jabberwocky" from Lewis Carroll's classic children's novel "Through the Looking Glass." In muted, sepia tones sparked with lime green, lemon yellow and apple red, Stewart paints the mysterious Jabberwocky as a creature part English dandy, part Beetlejuice and part hedge. "And, as in uffish thought he stood, the Jabberwock, with eyes of flame" and -- according to Stewart's whimsical drawings -- teeth of checker boards, guts of a robot, and elongated claws of regular manicure appointments. A supporting cast of characters appear and disappear without explanation (though, of course, none is needed) as do the odd cameo appearances of different postage stamps on every spread. None of this lovely nonsense should be surprising, as we've seen Stewart's quirky style before, in the picture book "The Adventures of a Nose," the strange story of a nose's quest for belonging. What is surprising, however, is that there is currently only one competing "Jabberwocky" book on the market: the intricate 1989 interpretation by Graeme Base, the author/illustrator of the bestselling "Animalia." 'Tis a brillig effort, to say the least. The most vorpal picture book effort in mome raths.