Book Description
Carroll's classic stories reunited with Peake's celebrated illustrations, restored for the first time to their original glory.

In the 1940s, Gormenghast trilogy author Mervyn Peake was commissioned to produce a series of seventy pen-and-ink drawings to accompany Lewis Carroll's two classics, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. Previously admired for his illustrations of Treasure Island and The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Peake set to work, producing such luminous, eccentric images that Graham Greene would later refer to him as 'the first artist since Tenniel to recast Alice in a contemporary mould.'

In these editions, Peake's marvelous illustrations, many of them originally drawn on poor quality wartime paper, have been meticulously reproduced as they were meant to be seen. Thanks to a combination of old-fashioned craft and cutting-edge computer technology, the delightful images shine for the first time in over two decades alongside Carroll's fantastically eccentric text. With introductions by modern literary masters Will Self and Zadie Smith, these beautifully designed and printed books are the perfect gift for adults and children alike.



Download Description
Alice was beginning to get very tired of sitting by her sister on the bank, and of having nothing to do: once or twice she had peeped into the book her sister was reading, but it had no pictures or conversations in it, ` and what is the use of a book,' thought Alice `without pictures or conversation?' So she was considering in her own mind (as well as she could, for the hot day made her feel very sleepy and stupid), whether the pleasure of making a daisy-chain would be worth the trouble of getting up and picking the daisies, when suddenly a White Rabbit with pink eyes ran close by her.


About the Author
Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (1832-98), a.k.a. Lewis Carroll, was a lecturer in Mathematics at Oxford University when he wrote Alice in Wonderland (1865) and Through the Looking-Glass (1871).

Mervyn Peake (1911-68) was an artist and writer. His illustration credits include Treasure Island, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, and the Brothers Grimm's Household Tales. As a novelist, he is best known for his Gormenghast trilogy.

ANNOTATION

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is one of the most celebrated children's books of all time. Since its publication in 1865 most editions of the beloved tale have featured the work of a single artist. Chronicle Books is proud to present this Classic Illustrated Edition with a unique vision: Lewis Carroll's original story of little Alice's tumble down a rabbit hole is brought to life by a wondrous collection of vintage illustrations gathered from the late 19th & early 20th century editions of the book. This oversize edition of the complete text of Carroll's classic contains examples of illustrations from 29 artists.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

When Alice tumbles down, down, down a rabbit-hole one hot summer's afternoon in pursuit of a White Rabbit she finds herself in Wonderland. And there begin the fantastical adventures that will see her experiencing extraordinary changes in size, swimming in a pool of her own tears and attending the very maddest of tea parties. For Wonderland is no ordinary place and the characters that populate it are quite unlike anybody young Alice has ever met before. In this imaginary land she encounters the savagely violent Queen, the Lachrymose Mock Turtle, the laconic Cheshire Cat and the hookah-smoking Caterpillar, each as surprising and outlandish as the next. Alice's adventures have made her the stuff of legend, the child heroine par excellence, and ensured that Carroll's book is the best loved and most widely read in children's literature.

Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, celebrated under his pseudonym Lewis Carroll, was born in 1832, the third in a large and talented family of eleven children. His fascination with word games, puzzles and writing was evident from an early age. He was educated at Rugby School and then Christ Church, Oxford, where he was later appointed lecturer in mathematics and subsequently spent the rest of his life. Alongside his academic life he pursued a career both as a writer and an accomplished amateur photographer. His most famous works are Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865), its sequel Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There (1871) and The Hunting of the Snark (1876). He died, unmarried, in 1898.

The handsome volumes in The Collectors Library present great works of world literature in a handy hardback format. Printed on high-quality paper and bound in real cloth, each complete and unabridged volume has a specially commissioned afterword, brief biography of the author and a further-reading list. This easily accessible series offers readers the perfect opportunity to discover, or rediscover, some of the world's most endearing literary works.

The volumes in The Collector's Library are sumptuously produced, enduring editions to own, to collect and to treasure.

SYNOPSIS

Carroll's classic stories reunited with Peake's celebrated illustrations, restored to their original glory and for the first time in one paperback edition.

FROM THE CRITICS

Children's Literature - Marilyn Courtot

Charles Dodgson wrote this story at the request of Alice Liddell, and for close to 150 years, it has been a favorite of young readers. Lisbeth Zwerger brings her award-winning artistic skill to the story and offers a very different look for a new generation. Her palette is brighter, the art has more of a layered look than in her previous works, and she offers more frontal views. The whimsy is there and the White Rabbit, Queen, Cheshire Cat and others will be quickly recognized. The illustrations range from full pages to spot art liberally sprinkled throughout the twelve chapters. The story can be read on one level as a magical adventure in which Alice faces a host of very strange things and variety of bizarre characters. It fills a child's need for fantasy and escape. The actual social commentary and satire will elude most contemporary readers, but it in no way diminishes the joy of reading this classic story.

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