Staff Pick
Simon Winchester makes everything within his intense gaze come amazingly alive. Here, he turns his attention to Charles Dodgson (better known as Lewis Carroll of Alice in Wonderland fame). Winchester looks at the critical period in Dodgson's life in which he becomes entranced with photography and ultimately turns his camera to a young girl. This young girl, Alice Lidell, would ultimately "become" the Alice in Wonderland. Speculation of his intentions toward her has existed for years, and this truly fascinating volume uses Dodgson's own diaries and papers to illuminate his case. Recommended By Dianah H., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
In the summer of 1858, in a garden behind Christ Church in Oxford, Charles Dodgson--better known by his pseudonym Lewis Carroll--dressed the six-year-old Alice Liddell in ragamuffin's clothes, and then snapped the camera's shutter.
In The Alice Behind Wonderland, Simon Winchester uses the famous photograph of Alice as the launching pad for an appreciative energetic and penetrating look at the inspiration behind, and the making of, one of the greatest classics of children's literature. Indeed, Winchester shows that Dodgson's love of photography deeply influenced his view of the world, helping to transform this shy and half-deaf mathematician into one of the world's best-loved observers of childhood. Much like the fictional Alice's world, as the photograph is subject to closer examination, 'Alice Liddell as The Beggar Maid' becomes curiouser and curiouser, capturing a moment during a golden afternoon that would endure forever. 'Alice Liddell as The Beggar Maid' was, in short, the muse that would inspire the creation of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.
Deftly engaging with Dogson's published writings, private diaries, and photography, Winchester weaves together the poignant, turbulent, and entirely fascinating story behind Lewis Carroll and the making of his Alice.
Acclaim for Simon Winchester
"An exceptionally engaging guide at home everywhere, ready for anything, full of gusto and seemingly omnivorous curiosity."
--Pico Iyer, The New York Times Book Review
"A master at telling a complex story compellingly and lucidly."
--USA Today
"Extraordinarily graceful."
--Time
"Winchester is an exquisite writer and a deft anecdoteur."
--Christopher Buckley
"A lyrical writer and an indefatigable researcher."
--Newsweek
Review
"As usual with Winchester, well-founded, witty and perceptive." --Kirkus
"Mr. Winchester's elegantly written study provides a balanced, sympathetic portrait of a complex and gifted man." -- Wall Street Journal
"What Winchester offers that is new, largely, is a detailed explanation the nascent field of amateur Victorian photography. He meticulously tracks Dodgson's 1856 purchase of his first mahogany-and-brass folding camera. He carefully works through the history of the development of the camera, and explains the difference between the daguerreotype, the calotype, and the wet-plate collodion that Dodgson relied on." --Marjorie Kehe, The Christian Science Monitor
"In this very slim volume--a nice break, for history lovers, from the trend toward doorstop-sized commitments--Winchester sketches both Dodgson's life and a bit of Alice's, along with illuminating digressions into the history of photography." --Kate Tuttle, The Boston Globe
"Winchester provides a new perspective on the shy bachelor who wrote one of the world's most famous children's stories, while questioning the most recent scholarship that neglects the role of photography in Dodgson's life. An important addition to the burgeoning collection of Dodgson scholarship, this book will appeal to scholars and general readers and is recommended to all." --Library Journal
"With remarkable clarity and eloquence, Winchester uses this photograph as the focal point for an examination of the man behind Alice's Adventures in Wonderland." --Financial Times
Synopsis
On a summer's day in 1858, in a garden behind Christ Church College in Oxford, Charles Dodgson, a lecturer in mathematics, photographed six-year-old Alice Liddell, the daughter of the college dean, with a Thomas Ottewill Registered Double Folding camera, recently purchased in London.
Simon Winchester deftly uses the resulting image--as unsettling as it is famous, and the subject of bottomless speculation--as the vehicle for a brief excursion behind the lens, a focal point on the origins of a classic work of English literature. Dodgson's love of photography framed his view of the world, and was partly responsible for transforming a shy and half-deaf mathematician into one of the world's best-loved observers of childhood. Little wonder that there is more to "Alice Liddell as the Beggar Maid" than meets the eye. Using Dodgson's published writings, private diaries, and of course his photographic portraits, Winchester gently exposes the development of Lewis Carroll and the making of his Alice.
Acclaim for Simon Winchester
"An exceptionally engaging guide at home everywhere, ready for anything, full of gusto and seemingly omnivorous curiosity."
--Pico Iyer, The New York Times Book Review
"A master at telling a complex story compellingly and lucidly."
--USA Today
"Extraordinarily graceful."
--Time
"Winchester is an exquisite writer and a deft anecdoteur."
--Christopher Buckley
"A lyrical writer and an indefatigable researcher."
--Newsweek
About the Author
"As usual with Winchester, well-founded, witty and perceptive." --Kirkus
"Winchester provides a new perspective on the shy bachelor who wrote one of the world's most famous children's stories, while questioning the most recent scholarship that neglects the role of photography in Dodgson's life. An important addition to the burgeoning collection of Dodgson scholarship, this book will appeal to scholars and general readers and is recommended to all." --Library Journal
Table of Contents