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emma's Reviews > Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
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emma's review
bookshelves: alice, beautifully-written, children-s, classics, fairytale, i-love-these-characters, owned, recommend, that-setting-tho, reread, gorgeous-covers, owned-multiple, 5-stars, reviewed, fantasy, favorites, project-long-classics
Mar 01, 2017
bookshelves: alice, beautifully-written, children-s, classics, fairytale, i-love-these-characters, owned, recommend, that-setting-tho, reread, gorgeous-covers, owned-multiple, 5-stars, reviewed, fantasy, favorites, project-long-classics
Read 11 times. Last read September 6, 2022 to September 14, 2022.
welcome to...ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN SEPTEMBERLAND.
might be my best month/title pun since middlemarch march.
we are BACK (and a week late) for Project Long Classics, in which elle and i tackle a long intimidating classic in small chunks for an entire month.
however, this book is not long, and it's not intimidating, and personally i will be reading this AND the sequel at a chapter-ish a day.
join our book club to join the project!! follow on instagram here or join the discussion here.
DAY 1: DOWN THE RABBIT-HOLE
as we start things off, i'll include the cheesy declaration of love i wrote when announcing this pick in our book club discord:
this is my favorite book of all time. this teeny tiny children's classic is so dear to me - whether you want a light fairytaley read or a thematically rich toughie you can analyze all day long, you can find either experience in this.
filled with whimsy, imagination, and the bittersweet nostalgia of dreams and childhood, i never tire of this - and i get something new from it with every read. at one chapter a day, this and its sequel (THROUGH THE LOOKING-GLASS AND WHAT ALICE FOUND THERE), which i see as a continuation of the first more than a separate book, can be read in 24 days!
bleh. gross. look how sweet and earnest.
DAY 2: THE POOL OF TEARS
it's actually day 8. i'm terribly slumped - the kind where it literally never occurs to you to read and then when it does you're like...am i physically capable of doing this? how did i ever make these words enter my head?
if anything can heal me it's this.
update: not yet, but we did get our first curiouser and curiouser...slay...
DAY 3: A CAUCUS-RACE AND A LONG TALE
the titular mouse's tale / mouse tail pun here...one of the greatest of all time i dare say...
DAY 4: THE RABBIT SENDS IN A LITTLE BILL
i don't know how the little EAT ME cakes manage to sound so good with virtually no description, but they do. maybe because these look so goddamn delicious?
or maybe just because i like cake.
DAY 5: ADVICE FROM A CATERPILLAR
folks...it's day 12.
i've never been slumped like this and at this point i am Frightened. my goodreads challenge is beginning to appear to stare back at me, like the void or one of those scary crusty small white dogs.
but this book is simply...everything.
DAY 6: PIG AND PEPPER
the baby-turning-into-a-pig thing is honestly objectively terrifying. especially when alice is like "this baby is like a star-fish" and looks down and boom.
but! cheshire cat appearance. and "we're all mad here." huge quote for people with watercolor tattoos and hot topic graphic tees.
DAY 7: A MAD TEA-PARTY
ICONS ALERT!!! a real heavy hitter. maybe my favorite chapter.
what can i say? not all my opinions are unpopular.
DAY 8: THE QUEEN'S CROQUET-GROUND
monarchs, am i right.
DAY 9: THE MOCK TURTLE'S STORY
well, it's actually day 14, so i might as well mess around and finish this book already. i wanted to relish it but my dumb suddenly-illiterate brain refuses to allow me to!
also: "Alice did not much like keeping so close to her: first, because the Duchess was very ugly." vibes.
DAY 10: THE LOBSTER QUADRILLE
this one is a ton of fun but impossible to compete in a universe that contains the walrus and the carpenter.
DAY 11: WHO STOLE THE TARTS?
let's go to court!!!!!
sooooo important to remember that even in a nonsense-world, nothing is more illogical and annoying than outdated monarchical structures and the incompetence of the judicial system.
DAY 12: ALICE'S EVIDENCE
and it was all a dream!!!
or was it?
or does it even matter at all?
(no.)
perfect book.
OVERALL
i have this wholeeeee five star review below, but i'll quickly say that nothing makes me happy and fulfilled and whimsical like this book does. and that's my ideal way to be.
my favorite forever!
rating: 5
------------------------
original review
THIS IS MY FAVORITE BOOK.
No qualifier. No excuse. No “one of my favorites.” This one is it, y’all.
https://emmareadstoomuch.wordpress.co...
Well, also Through the Looking Glass. But THAT’S PRACTICALLY THE SECOND HALF OF THE SAME BOOK. (And other examples of my inability to make decisions or commit in any way to anything.)
I currently have 18 copies of this book. I’ve attempted to read it at least annually for the past three years. And by “annually,” I mean I last revisited this book about nine months ago.
But hey, it was a different year then, technically speaking.
How do I even review this? I don’t know where to begin. (Just a heads up that my obsessive personality is going to become verrrrry clear as this review progresses. I’m not proud. This is who I am, you guys. I was a member of the fandoms of some teen pop sensation or other for nearly ten consecutive years. I’m no longer thirteen but I still need an outlet. Honestly I’m quite afraid that if I don’t have an obsession, I’ll become a drug addict. Lots of pent up energy.)
Well, I’ll say that I always, always, always feel enveloped by this book. I have never picked this up without feeling instantly submersed in Wonderland. And it’s really my favorite place to be. It’s hard to feel unhappy when you’re in the greatest setting ever created.
And oh yeah, there’s that. I firmly believe this is the most amazing and beautiful and confusing and curious setting of all time. It’s immersive, and it’s strange, and it’s so unique and fantastic and creative and I love it so much. I can come up with even more loosely positive adjectives if that overwhelming number didn’t suffice.
Wonderland is my Hogwarts. While many readers pray their letters just got lost in the mail, I’m constantly hoping I’ll see a white rabbit in a waistcoat and fall down, down, down into what must be the center of the earth.
I love Alice and her curiosity. She may also be my favorite character ever. She’s funny and sweet and childish and such a blast to read about. Her reactions to everything are so, so funny. Her curiosity always outweighs confusion and fear. I’d like to wake up one day and be Alice. I’ll likely become one of those creeps who pays millions for plastic surgery in order to “resemble” some celebrity or other.
On an unrelated note, anyone have millions of dollars they’re trying to get rid of?
I’m also fiercely protective of this book. I constantly pick up retellings only to be utterly disappointed. (Like Heartless. Get out of here with your shoddy Carroll-stealing.) DO NOT, DO NOT! GET ME STARTED ON THE TIM BURTON FILM ADAPTATION. Horrific. Alice, an adult? Alice, engaged? Alice FIGHTING THE GODDAMN JABBERWOCK?
But I do love the original animated Disney adaptation. There’s a certain quality to the book that’s captured within that film, which I haven’t found recreated in any other retelling or use of the setting or adaptation.
Oh, and one more thing, while I’m here.
THIS BOOK ISN’T ABOUT DRUGS, YOU SURFACE-LEVEL INTERPRETERS OF SYMBOLISM. It’s not that easy, boo.
In the words of BBC News, “[the drug] references may say more about the people making them than the author.”
Lewis Carroll isn’t thought to have been a user of drugs, the Caterpillar was smoking tobacco, and the mushroom is no more magic than the various cakes Alice eats.
Honestly, the drug reading is simple and boring. It’s such a stretch to attempt to read each character as a different substance. And scrolling through countless quasi-psychedelic GIFs to find the actual ones was irritating, too. Ah, yes, real art: taking images from a 1951 children’s film but messing with the colors and movement until it looks like nothing more than a trigger for epilepsy. Enough, Tumblr.
Alice in Wonderland carries as much or as little significance as you want it to. It’s everything from a mindless romp in an imaginative land to a depiction of the effects of a ruthlessly authoritarian system of justice.
Just have fun with it.
And please, for the love of God, stop applying your weird psychedelic edits to a Disney movie.
Note on the audiobook: This time around, I listened to the audiobook, to switch things up. Scarlett Johansson read it. I loved her funny accents and hated her overly-acted narration. A mixed bag.
Bottom line: This is my favoritest and I doubt it will be dethroned anytime soon. Come at me, every other book.
------------
reread updates
when I find myself in times of trouble
Lewis Carroll comes to me
speaking words of wisdom
"just reread"
might be my best month/title pun since middlemarch march.
we are BACK (and a week late) for Project Long Classics, in which elle and i tackle a long intimidating classic in small chunks for an entire month.
however, this book is not long, and it's not intimidating, and personally i will be reading this AND the sequel at a chapter-ish a day.
join our book club to join the project!! follow on instagram here or join the discussion here.
DAY 1: DOWN THE RABBIT-HOLE
as we start things off, i'll include the cheesy declaration of love i wrote when announcing this pick in our book club discord:
this is my favorite book of all time. this teeny tiny children's classic is so dear to me - whether you want a light fairytaley read or a thematically rich toughie you can analyze all day long, you can find either experience in this.
filled with whimsy, imagination, and the bittersweet nostalgia of dreams and childhood, i never tire of this - and i get something new from it with every read. at one chapter a day, this and its sequel (THROUGH THE LOOKING-GLASS AND WHAT ALICE FOUND THERE), which i see as a continuation of the first more than a separate book, can be read in 24 days!
bleh. gross. look how sweet and earnest.
DAY 2: THE POOL OF TEARS
it's actually day 8. i'm terribly slumped - the kind where it literally never occurs to you to read and then when it does you're like...am i physically capable of doing this? how did i ever make these words enter my head?
if anything can heal me it's this.
update: not yet, but we did get our first curiouser and curiouser...slay...
DAY 3: A CAUCUS-RACE AND A LONG TALE
the titular mouse's tale / mouse tail pun here...one of the greatest of all time i dare say...
DAY 4: THE RABBIT SENDS IN A LITTLE BILL
i don't know how the little EAT ME cakes manage to sound so good with virtually no description, but they do. maybe because these look so goddamn delicious?
or maybe just because i like cake.
DAY 5: ADVICE FROM A CATERPILLAR
folks...it's day 12.
i've never been slumped like this and at this point i am Frightened. my goodreads challenge is beginning to appear to stare back at me, like the void or one of those scary crusty small white dogs.
but this book is simply...everything.
DAY 6: PIG AND PEPPER
the baby-turning-into-a-pig thing is honestly objectively terrifying. especially when alice is like "this baby is like a star-fish" and looks down and boom.
but! cheshire cat appearance. and "we're all mad here." huge quote for people with watercolor tattoos and hot topic graphic tees.
DAY 7: A MAD TEA-PARTY
ICONS ALERT!!! a real heavy hitter. maybe my favorite chapter.
what can i say? not all my opinions are unpopular.
DAY 8: THE QUEEN'S CROQUET-GROUND
monarchs, am i right.
DAY 9: THE MOCK TURTLE'S STORY
well, it's actually day 14, so i might as well mess around and finish this book already. i wanted to relish it but my dumb suddenly-illiterate brain refuses to allow me to!
also: "Alice did not much like keeping so close to her: first, because the Duchess was very ugly." vibes.
DAY 10: THE LOBSTER QUADRILLE
this one is a ton of fun but impossible to compete in a universe that contains the walrus and the carpenter.
DAY 11: WHO STOLE THE TARTS?
let's go to court!!!!!
sooooo important to remember that even in a nonsense-world, nothing is more illogical and annoying than outdated monarchical structures and the incompetence of the judicial system.
DAY 12: ALICE'S EVIDENCE
and it was all a dream!!!
or was it?
or does it even matter at all?
(no.)
perfect book.
OVERALL
i have this wholeeeee five star review below, but i'll quickly say that nothing makes me happy and fulfilled and whimsical like this book does. and that's my ideal way to be.
my favorite forever!
rating: 5
------------------------
original review
THIS IS MY FAVORITE BOOK.
No qualifier. No excuse. No “one of my favorites.” This one is it, y’all.
https://emmareadstoomuch.wordpress.co...
Well, also Through the Looking Glass. But THAT’S PRACTICALLY THE SECOND HALF OF THE SAME BOOK. (And other examples of my inability to make decisions or commit in any way to anything.)
I currently have 18 copies of this book. I’ve attempted to read it at least annually for the past three years. And by “annually,” I mean I last revisited this book about nine months ago.
But hey, it was a different year then, technically speaking.
How do I even review this? I don’t know where to begin. (Just a heads up that my obsessive personality is going to become verrrrry clear as this review progresses. I’m not proud. This is who I am, you guys. I was a member of the fandoms of some teen pop sensation or other for nearly ten consecutive years. I’m no longer thirteen but I still need an outlet. Honestly I’m quite afraid that if I don’t have an obsession, I’ll become a drug addict. Lots of pent up energy.)
Well, I’ll say that I always, always, always feel enveloped by this book. I have never picked this up without feeling instantly submersed in Wonderland. And it’s really my favorite place to be. It’s hard to feel unhappy when you’re in the greatest setting ever created.
And oh yeah, there’s that. I firmly believe this is the most amazing and beautiful and confusing and curious setting of all time. It’s immersive, and it’s strange, and it’s so unique and fantastic and creative and I love it so much. I can come up with even more loosely positive adjectives if that overwhelming number didn’t suffice.
Wonderland is my Hogwarts. While many readers pray their letters just got lost in the mail, I’m constantly hoping I’ll see a white rabbit in a waistcoat and fall down, down, down into what must be the center of the earth.
I love Alice and her curiosity. She may also be my favorite character ever. She’s funny and sweet and childish and such a blast to read about. Her reactions to everything are so, so funny. Her curiosity always outweighs confusion and fear. I’d like to wake up one day and be Alice. I’ll likely become one of those creeps who pays millions for plastic surgery in order to “resemble” some celebrity or other.
On an unrelated note, anyone have millions of dollars they’re trying to get rid of?
I’m also fiercely protective of this book. I constantly pick up retellings only to be utterly disappointed. (Like Heartless. Get out of here with your shoddy Carroll-stealing.) DO NOT, DO NOT! GET ME STARTED ON THE TIM BURTON FILM ADAPTATION. Horrific. Alice, an adult? Alice, engaged? Alice FIGHTING THE GODDAMN JABBERWOCK?
But I do love the original animated Disney adaptation. There’s a certain quality to the book that’s captured within that film, which I haven’t found recreated in any other retelling or use of the setting or adaptation.
Oh, and one more thing, while I’m here.
THIS BOOK ISN’T ABOUT DRUGS, YOU SURFACE-LEVEL INTERPRETERS OF SYMBOLISM. It’s not that easy, boo.
In the words of BBC News, “[the drug] references may say more about the people making them than the author.”
Lewis Carroll isn’t thought to have been a user of drugs, the Caterpillar was smoking tobacco, and the mushroom is no more magic than the various cakes Alice eats.
Honestly, the drug reading is simple and boring. It’s such a stretch to attempt to read each character as a different substance. And scrolling through countless quasi-psychedelic GIFs to find the actual ones was irritating, too. Ah, yes, real art: taking images from a 1951 children’s film but messing with the colors and movement until it looks like nothing more than a trigger for epilepsy. Enough, Tumblr.
Alice in Wonderland carries as much or as little significance as you want it to. It’s everything from a mindless romp in an imaginative land to a depiction of the effects of a ruthlessly authoritarian system of justice.
Just have fun with it.
And please, for the love of God, stop applying your weird psychedelic edits to a Disney movie.
Note on the audiobook: This time around, I listened to the audiobook, to switch things up. Scarlett Johansson read it. I loved her funny accents and hated her overly-acted narration. A mixed bag.
Bottom line: This is my favoritest and I doubt it will be dethroned anytime soon. Come at me, every other book.
------------
reread updates
when I find myself in times of trouble
Lewis Carroll comes to me
speaking words of wisdom
"just reread"
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Reading Progress
2007
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Started Reading
2007
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2010
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2010
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January 19, 2014
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January 19, 2014
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October 30, 2014
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Started Reading
October 30, 2014
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December 14, 2015
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December 16, 2015
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Finished Reading
November 3, 2016
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Started Reading
November 3, 2016
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Finished Reading
March 1, 2017
– Shelved
July 4, 2017
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Started Reading
July 4, 2017
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Finished Reading
February 26, 2019
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Started Reading
February 27, 2019
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Finished Reading
May 20, 2020
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May 20, 2020
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April 21, 2022
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Started Reading
April 21, 2022
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Finished Reading
September 6, 2022
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Started Reading
September 14, 2022
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Finished Reading
Comments Showing 1-50 of 80 (80 new)
E wrote: "emma wrote: "E wrote: "I read this earlier in the year. I liked it. What did you think of Heartless?"was not into heartless, i didn't think it did this book justice"
Oh, I'm sorry you didn't lik..."
yes, this is my favorite-est book and i've never encountered a retelling that could do the setting justice!
E wrote: "LOL. I actually really loved Heartless, but, you know... personal opinion. 🙂 Have you heard of Meyer's other book, Renegades, coming out soon?"to each their own!! & yeah i have, i actually did really like the lunar chronicles so i'll probs pick it up :-)
E wrote: "emma wrote: "E wrote: "LOL. I actually really loved Heartless, but, you know... personal opinion. 🙂 Have you heard of Meyer's other book, Renegades, coming out soon?"to each their own!! & yeah i ..."
ah cute! not sure if i'll buy it straightaway when it comes out but luv the concept, will keep ya updated
I have to reread the original! Have you read the Looking Glass Wars series?
Sarah wrote: "I have to reread the original! Have you read the Looking Glass Wars series?"i read them forever ago but i just bought the first book to reread it! & ohmygod yes reread this (& through the looking glass)
I got to read this book soon :D
Bre wrote: "I got to read this book soon :D"it's SO GOOD. you totally do. and very short it'll take you like a second
Dude don't unfriend me 😂 but seriously though I need to get to this book
This is how I feel about The Hobbit. Also, the Rifle Paper Co. illustrated copy is pure magic. <3
Allie wrote: "Best book of all time!!"YES YES YES.
Taasia wrote: "Dude don't unfriend me 😂 but seriously though I need to get to this book"i won't unfriend you but only b/c you've admitted that reading it is a necessity
Amber wrote: "This is how I feel about The Hobbit. Also, the Rifle Paper Co. illustrated copy is pure magic. <3"love a good all-time favorite.
& it so is!!! it just got the hero's welcome in my new pro pic lol
You don't have it on your favorites shelf, though!
Amara wrote: "You don't have it on your favorites shelf, though!"i do!
I do have to admit that Alice is a pretty good book. It’s strangeness has never lost its appeal and I don’t think it ever will.
emma wrote: "Amara wrote: "You don't have it on your favorites shelf, though!"i do!"heh, I just realized you have 2017 favorites pinned, and a separate favorites shelf.
I‘ve always loved Alice and I own various copies as well, but lately I can’t help thinking that the rumors about Lewis Carroll liking little girls a bit too much do not sound that far-fetched...and once it’s stuck in one‘s head it’s kinda ruining one’s happy place :(
I am so happy to hear when a reader can get totally immersed in a book and want to be that character. I love how you defend the original book and the Disney movie. Nicely done.
i still havent read this... its sitting on my shelf.. watching... waiting
Yass queen. I, too, hate that people think this is just a psychedelic book written whilst high on something or other. Like, no. Lewis Carroll was a freaking math genius, not a strung out addict. It’s like people are too non-imaginative to even comprehend someone could come up with something so wonderful and nonsensical unless drugs are involved. Alice is life!
YES. I've never related to a book review more in my life :D
Roman wrote: "I do have to admit that Alice is a pretty good book. It’s strangeness has never lost its appeal and I don’t think it ever will."#1 reason why i love it is that i'm just as enamored with the nonsense and the world and all the loveliness every time
Amara wrote: "emma wrote: "Amara wrote: "You don't have it on your favorites shelf, though!"i do!"heh, I just realized you have 2017 favorites pinned, and a separate favorites shelf."
oh yes, v extra
AlyciaJayne wrote: "I‘ve always loved Alice and I own various copies as well, but lately I can’t help thinking that the rumors about Lewis Carroll liking little girls a bit too much do not sound that far-fetched...and..."i recommend reading The Annotated Alice for some insight into this -- by our standards, yes, Carroll seems creepy, but in a nineteenth-century context it makes more sense
Ron wrote: "I am so happy to hear when a reader can get totally immersed in a book and want to be that character. I love how you defend the original book and the Disney movie. Nicely done."thanks thanks!
Tucker wrote: "i still havent read this... its sitting on my shelf.. watching... waiting"read it read it read it
Trina wrote: "Yass queen. I, too, hate that people think this is just a psychedelic book written whilst high on something or other. Like, no. Lewis Carroll was a freaking math genius, not a strung out addict. It..."YESSSSS. so depressing that people look at works of art and have to assume that someone was on drugs -- like, no, some people just have magical minds.
julianna ➹ wrote: "damn. iconic"my album of alice song parodies dropping this fall
Erin wrote: "YES. I've never related to a book review more in my life :D"best 👏🏻 book 👏🏻 ever
Rosie wrote: "Awesome review! I’ve never actually even considered reading this book, but now I definitely have to :) I’m really glad you love it so much! It’s always nice to hear (or read about) someone’s enthus..."ahhh you're fantastic!!! thank you!! i hope you read it and it brings you at least a fraction as much joy as it brings me
emma wrote: "julianna ➹ wrote: "damn. iconic"my album of alice song parodies dropping this fall"
where's your soundcloud
DROP THE SOUNDCLOUD EMMA
The Disney cartoon was a favorite of mine when I was little. I've never read the book but keep meaning to. I enjoyed reading your review! :)
julianna ➹ wrote: "DROP THE SOUNDCLOUD EMMA"MY RAP NAME IS MC NONSENSE
Kelly Rose wrote: "The Disney cartoon was a favorite of mine when I was little. I've never read the book but keep meaning to. I enjoyed reading your review! :)"it is so so so lovely!!! i recommend: reading it immediately.
I just got a copy from HarperCollins. It is so pretty. Who knows how long it will take for me to read it cause I'm just that b*tch who gets an ARC/review copy and takes a year to read it
Gods I too spent countless (no exaggeration) hours looking for the hole to Wonderland and a rabbit in a waistcoat or looking for a Tornado to Oz. So I understand. It's been decades since I read it, perhaps I should pick it up. As for the Burton adaptation, I was...okay with parts of it, I enjoyed it enough when it first came out then on a re-watch all it's flaws became far too apparent and don't get me started on the damn sequel. Your love shines through on this (and bless for liking the Disney adaptation, as far as adaptations go it's not so bad.)
I didn't like it so much but I always love to see someone talk (or write) so passionately about the things they love. It kinda feeds my soul ♡
the cover on this version is so pretty! I read it as a little kid and I might reread it this summer if the libraries reopen, as I haven’t read it since I was probably nine.
this is actually my tippy top favorite book
Ok, maybe I can recruit people for my cause: can we start a petition that rifle & co. drop a through the looking glass edition as well? It kills me that this beautiful edition only contains Alice in Wonderland :( I just want the talking flowers in a Rifle manner drawn... Still a great review for a great book though!
this is my all-time favorite book too, i need to reread it, it's been years!
😂🤣😂 great Beatles reference!!! Loved this review!
Possibly my favorite part of the Disney adaptation is the Jabberwock song which I sometimes sing to my 2 year old when I am getting him to sleep. Also, I loved The Annotated Alice.
Currently editing my shelves. So sorry for all the updates wrote: "I just got a copy from HarperCollins. It is so pretty. Who knows how long it will take for me to read it cause I'm just that b*tch who gets an ARC/review copy and takes a year to read it"i am also that b*tch
Dida wrote: "Gods I too spent countless (no exaggeration) hours looking for the hole to Wonderland and a rabbit in a waistcoat or looking for a Tornado to Oz. So I understand. It's been decades since I read it,..."this is the loveliestestestest. i know the feeling
was not into heartless, i didn't think it did this book justice