Treasures of the Rare Books Room – Lewis Carroll’s Alice
A century-and-a-half after it was first written, stories of the adventurous little girl named Alice still delight us. The original words on the page describe the world of Wonderland so evocatively, it easily lends itself to other storytelling formats. Beyond dance and film (live-action and animated), adaptations of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There have been made for theater, comics, radio, music, and even video games. MPL’s Rare Books Room houses different versions of both of these classic novels, dating back to 1869.
The idea of Alice began on a “golden afternoon” in 1862 when a mathematics instructor brought on a boat ride the daughters of his college’s Dean, entertaining them with poetry and nonsense. Naming the central character in his stories after the youngest daughter, Alice, Charles Lutwidge Dodgson imagined a world where animals talked and held tea parties, and playing cards came to life to play croquet. The children enjoyed the story so much, they encouraged Dodgson to write it down.
Before Wonderland, a version of the story was published as Alice's Adventures Under Ground under the pseudonym Lewis Carroll. While significantly shorter than the story we’re familiar with today (and without the memorable scenes involving the Cheshire Cat and Mad Tea-Party), Under Ground is notable for its hand-lettered text with images illustrated by Carroll himself.
The expanded story, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, was first published with wood engravings by artist John Tenniel. His illustrations have become so iconic, that all other Alice illustrations (and there have been many) are inevitably compared to his. Note three illustrations of the same scene, by Peter Newell (upper left), Carroll (upper right), and Tenniel (below).
If you are interested in viewing any of our Alice rarities, please contact the Arts, Music and Recreation Room at (414) 286-3071 to schedule an appointment.