Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carrol
Author: Lewis Carroll. Website
Published: 1871 (Originally published)Format: Hardback Illustrated Edition (Macmillan)
Pages: 192
Project Gutenberg: E-book
Amazon: Paperback|Kindle
Waterstone's: Paperback|e-book
Book Depository: Paperback
Challenge: 2013 Children's Classics Challenge
Source: Own
Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
Nothing is quite what it seems once Alice journeys through the looking-glass, and Dodgson's wit is infectious as he explores concepts of mirror imagery, time running backward, and strategies of chess-all wrapped up in the exploits of a spirited young girl who parries with the Red Queen, Tweedledee and Tweedledum, and other unlikely characters.
My Review:
I really enjoyed Alice in Wonderland when I finally got round to reading it as part of my challenge, so I was excited to read Through the Looking-Glass! Once again we join Alice, only this time she takes a trip through a mirror over her fireplace and finds herself in a topsy-turvey world and meets more wonderful characters.
I liked that this book started out with Alice in her cats, as she spend so much time talking about Dinah in Alice in Wonderland. This book took a little longer to get into the actual story but once it did I absolutely fell in love with the idea. Wondering what would happen if you could get inside your mirror is such a wonderfully imaginative idea that I'm sure we've all guessed and wondered at as a child. It certainly gave me that nostalgic feeling reading it! I love how Carroll played with the idea of things being backwards like time going the wrong way and people doing things in the wrong order.
I was happy to be reunited with Alice as I just think she's a fantastic character. I love how her imagination is so key to everything and it's almost encouraged to be that imaginative.Her attitude and ways of speaking really helped add that humour to the story.
My favourite part of this book was all the little poems and songs throughout the book, from the Jabberwocky to the Knight's song. Just reading them I could hear little tunes or hear the characters voices in my mind and it really helped bring it all to life. As with Alice in Wonderland I loved the play on words. My favourite bits were the mentions of the rocking-horse-fly and the bread-and-butter-fly which just had me grinning from ear to ear.
The story itself was a little lacking in something - it didn't seem to go anywhere or feel like much of a journey - but I don't think it spoilt the enjoyment too much. It's one of those books that's just a pleasure to read even if it doesn't fulfill much. The ending was quite abrupt and took me a little surprise but I think I liked it! There's no reason to read Alice in Wonderland and not read Through the Looking-Glass and it only took me an afternoon to read, so I'd highly recommend them both for a fun bit of escapism.
Rating: 4*
What to read next: The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor
Books like this: Splintered by A. G. Howard
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