The Land of Oz Redux

Our thanks to MPL librarian Sally Michalski for today's Birthday Biography!

While most people know the Land of Oz from the 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz, there was a time, before radio and television, when the children of the world were caught up in the wonderful Land of Oz in print. Oz was the Harry Potter series of its time.  It was a craze.

Lyman Frank Baum, a man who could not find his place in the real world, loved to tell stories to his children.  Finally, about 1899, he was persuaded to put his stories on paper. He engaged W.W. Denslow as the illustrator of his imaginary Land of Oz that they tried to get published, but no one would take them on. Finally, the Geo. M. Hill Company agreed to publish the book, but Baum and Denslow had to pay for the binding and color illustrations themselves.

The first 1900 edition was a printing of 5,000 books and was quickly sold out.  Two other printings followed, and between April and November of that year, 60,000 copies had been sold.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was such a success that L. Frank Baum, as he preferred to be known, went on to write other children’s books about other children -- but not Dorothy.

He got letters from children begging him to write another story about Dorothy and the Land of Oz, and finally he said that he'd only write another Oz tale when he had received a thousand letters. And he got them.

The second book, The Marvelous Land of Oz, was once again a hit, but Dorothy wasn’t in it. The children clamored for more -- but this time with Dorothy, please.  Ever after, every Oz book Baum wrote had Dorothy taking part.

I read these books as a child who frequented my local library. It was a strong emotional pull that took me directly to the bottom shelf of a stack, kneeling on a corrugated rubber runner hoping against hope that there was yet another Oz book I hadn’t yet read. I loved the characters, and I’m not just talking about the Tin Woodsman and the Cowardly Lion.  I am talking about such high falutin’ characters as H. M. Wogglebug, T. E. (or Highly Magnified Wogglebug, Thoroughly Educated). Another favorite character was the Patchwork Girl, who was the only person of color in Munchkinland.

There were oodles more, each one more interesting than the last. I couldn’t stop reading them.

As a child, I loved the stories as stories themselves.  I grew up to be a collector of Oz books, because I still can’t get them out of my system. As time went on, I began to see the man behind the stories.  Frank Baum kept popping out in his opinions, his politics, and his thoughts about new-fangled inventions.

In Ozma of Oz, published in 1907, a new character is introduced.  Her name is the Princess Langwidere -- whose name is close to languid, which means unwilling to exert oneself.  Baum portrays the Princess Langwidere in this fashion, as she must lean on her maid for support as she travels from one room to the other or from one closet to the next.

Langwidere is a princess of the Kingdom of Ev.  She does not rule, but spends much of the royal treasury. The princess cannot be recognized by her face, because she is very vain and has thirty heads, one for every day of the month.  This princess has a waiting room that is surrounded with mirrors, even on the ceiling, and the floor is silvered so that every object in the room is reflected. A vain and flighty person is the Princess Langwidere.

Baum pokes fun at the suffragettes in The Marvelous Land of Oz, published in 1904.  A girl named General Jinjur raises an army of four hundred pretty girls.  The army is going to attack the Emerald City because “[the City] has been ruled by men for long enough.”

Jinjur’s army is dressed in silk uniforms with green blouses and multicolored skirts. (The skirts have panels of blue, red, yellow, and purple.  Depending on what Oz country the girl is from, she wears the color of that country in front.) Each girl has a pair of knitting needles in her bun that she uses as a weapon. When they arrive at the gates of the Emerald City, the Guardian of the Gate is surprised to be attacked, and says, “Good gracious, what a nonsensical idea! Go home to your mothers, my good girls, and milk the cows and bake the bread.” The army then attacks him with their knitting needles and he runs off in search of help.

Next, Jinjur sits on the throne in the Emerald City and begins eating caramels. The men of Oz are doing housework and minding children, and are worn out from the work.  The Scarecrow, who was the reigning King of Oz, is asked, “Why don’t you send her back to her mother where she belongs?” Another asks, “Why don’t you shut her up in a closet until she behaves herself, and promises to be good?” A third says, “Or give her a good shaking.”

In Ozma of Oz (1907), Jinjur is seen again.  On another trip to the Emerald City, Dorothy and her gang stop to beg some milk from a pretty maid.  Ozma sees that it is Jinjur who explains, “I’ve married a man who owns nine cows, and now I am happy and contented and willing to lead a quiet life and mind my own business.”

In all, L. Frank Baum wrote 14 Oz books and numerous other titles for children.  When he died in 1919, Ruth Plumley Thompson took up the stories with The Royal Book of Oz (a posthumous honor to Baum) and, in total, wrote 19 more books about Oz. John R. Neal, the second illustrator of the original Baum series, wrote four Oz books.  Jack Snow wrote two and Rachel Cosgrove wrote one, as did Eloise Jarvis McGraw and her daughter.  There are other Oz books beyond these, but they are not considered canon.

The land that Frank Baum created is still very much with us today.  Not only is The Wizard of Oz movie with Judy Garland a staple for children, but recently Oz, the Great and Powerful was produced as the latest addition to the story of Oz.  I am happy to report that I think this new movie carried through the personality of the Wizard, although I could have done without the sexy witches.

A first edition of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is very valuable today. There are websites that have first editions of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz from $6,000 to $100,000. For myself, I've found that writing a blog plot can be expensive.  In doing this little exercise, I just had to purchase a copy of John R. Neill’s posthumously published book The Runaway in Oz. One can never have too many Oz books.

Happy Birthday, L. Frank Baum -- 157 years old this May 15. You enriched my childhood with imagination and a sense of wonder.

-- Post by Sally Michalski

For more reading:

- Introducing the Girls of Oz
Sally Michalski's website, with more information about the female characters of Baum's Oz books.

- Rare Oz Books 

All about the rare collectibles of Oz.

References: 

- Baum, L. Frank, The Marvelous Land of Oz: A Sequel to the Wizard of Oz, ill. John R. Neill (New York: William Morrow & Co., c1904).

- Baum, L. Frank, Ozma of Oz, ill. John R. Neill  (Chicago: The Reilly & Lee Co., c1907).

- Betty Lee Johnson, “The World of Oz Remains Wonderful To this Day,” Antique Week, 3 February 1992.

- Daniel P. Mannix, “ The Father of the Wizard of Oz,” American Heritage, December. 1964.


(All illustrations by John R. Neill.)

The Boy Who Grew Up

If you don't know the story of J.M. Barrie, you still know the story of Peter Pan, the Boy Who Never Grew Up. Peter Pan and his crew of Lost Boys, his sidekick Tinker Bell, his arch-nemesis Captain Hook, the mermaids and fairies, the "Indians" and pirates, and the Darling children that he introduces to the world of Neverland -- like Robin Hood and King Arthur, or Odysseus and Hercules, Peter Pan and his story have become a part of our cultural mythology. Even if you've never seen the films, watched the plays, or read the books, you know the name "Peter Pan."

But to look behind the pirates and fairies and see what the classic tale is truly about, you need to know a little bit more about the author behind its creation: J.M. Barrie.

James Matthew Barrie was born on May 9, 1860. His father, a weaver, struggled to support the large family (James was the third son and youngest child). His mother, Margaret, who had a strong interest in literature and art, helped bring about her son's determination to become a writer. Her influence, unfortunately, was far-reaching in other respects: when James's older brother, David, died in a skating accident at age thirteen, James took is upon himself to help his mother over the loss. When Margaret took to bed for the remainder of her life in grief over the loss of her favorite child, six-year-old James played the part of his older brother -- even wearing David's old clothes -- to try and repair his mother's grief.

James Matthew Barrie

Barrie was only seventeen when his first play was performed: Bandolero, the Bandit, presented at the Dumfries Academy of which Barrie was a student. He graduated in 1882 from Edinburgh University, finding employment first as an editor for the Nottingham Journal, then as a journalist in London. He was a well-financed novelist and playwright by the time he married (his wife was Mary Ansell, who appeared in one of Barrie's plays). It was at about this time that Barrie began taking long walks through Kensington Gardens, and it was there that he met the Davies family: father Arthur and mother Sylvia, and their five children: George, Jack, Michael, Nicholas ... and Peter.

The Davies children became an instant family for the childless Barrie, who spent countless hours entertaining the boys with his games and elaborate stories. (They'd also eventually become his wards, when first Arthur, and then Sylvia, both died at young ages.)

Peter Pan first came to life as part of one such story for the Davies children. The character made his first written appearance within Barrie's novel The Little White Bird, which was published in 1902. Two years later came the release of the three-act play Peter Pan.

The classic play is so much a part of our storytelling history that it's something of a shock to realize how much of a gamble the production truly was. Success was by no mean a given with this elaborately fantastical story of flying actors, dogs and crocodiles, pirates and fairies and shadows. Barrie grew increasingly nervous about several elements of the play -- including the sequence in which Tinker Bell, Peter Pan's fairy sidekick, drinks from a poisoned goblet and dies. Peter then turns to the audience and asks them to clap if they believe in fairies, the sound bringing Tinker Bell back to life. On opening night, Barrie had instructed the orchestra to begin clapping if the audience did not -- but his concern was unwarrented. The audience burst into wild applause, beginning a tradition that continues in performances of the play to this day.

From Arthur Rackham's illustrations for "Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens"

The pop culture portrayals of films like Finding Neverland, as well as our own understanding of the myth of Peter Pan, make it tempting to see J.M. Barrie himself as the model for the Boy Who Never Grew Up. But it's also been noted that Barrie gave his eternally youthful hero the name of one of his charges. Barrie reserved his own first name to share with a different character: Captain James Hook. Captain Hook's injury -- his missing right hand -- may have been given in reference to the crippling pain Barrie experienced in his own right hand (a condition which was exacerbated by his time spent writing). 

And Captain Hook's greatest enemy may have been a reference to Barrie's own. It's not just any crocodile which remains in eternal pursuit of Hook -- it's a crocodile that has swallowed a clock. Hook is forever chased by Time itself -- a fitting metaphor, perhaps, for Barrie's own view on the tragedies of mortality.

The Peter Pan statue in Kensington Gardens

The story of Peter Pan is thought of as a children's tale, but that is not, perhaps, quite right. The story, while whimsical and fantastic, has a darker element. Peter Pan, the Boy Who Never Grew Up, is an almost tragic figure: so consumed with thoughts of himself, he cares for no one else. Indeed, he not only cares for no one else: the effects of Neverland mean that he cannot remember anyone else. (Wendy and her brothers must continually remind Peter who they are, as it continues to slip his mind.) Peter may live eternally youthful, but Barrie himself seems to understand that never growing up would be more of a curse than a blessing.

Still, the whimsical world he created for Peter and the Lost Boys remains, for most of us, a symbol of the innocence, fun, and magic of childhood. Neverland seems destined to remain such a symbol for centuries to come. "And thus it will go on," wrote Barrie himself, at the end of his novel, "so long as children are gay and innocent and heartless."

Dustin Hoffman as Captain Hook and Robin Williams as Peter Pan

Books:

The Annotated Peter Pan - The original text by J.M. Barrie, with notes and annotations all about the classic story.

Capt. Hook: The Adventures of a Notorious Youth by J. V. Hart - The childhood of James Hook!

Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson - A fun, action-packed prequel series to the original novel.

Peter Pan in Scarlet by Geraldine McCaughrean - The "authorized" sequel to the original story. 

Muppet Peter Pan - The Muppets meet Peter Pan in this fun and kid-friendly graphic novel adaptation.

Films:

Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up - A classic production of the musical version, starring Cathy Rigby.

Hook - This movie answers the question: what if Peter Pan grew up?  Starring Robin Williams as Peter Pan and Dustin Hoffman as Captain Hook.

Neverland - A miniseries that serves as a prequel of sorts to the traditional story.

Peter Pan - This 2003 film release returns to the stage tradition of having the same actor play both Mr. Darling and Captain Hook. A whimsical, dark adaptation that keeps in the spirit of the novel.

Finding Neverland - Stars Johnny Depp as J.M. Barrie, recounting his meeting of the Davies family and how that meeting led to the story of Peter Pan.

-- Post by Ms. B

Something For the Kids

The Association for Library Service to Children (a division of the American Library Association) recently announced its 2013 list of Notable Children’s Books. The list of titles includes fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and picture books, all of special interest, quality, creativity, and value to children 14 years of age and younger.

MPL’s Children’s Librarian would like to add one more title to the list. It's the book she had hoped would win the Caldecott  Award:

Boy + Bot, by Ame Dyckman

MPL's Honorary Pick

Read on for ALSC's top picks for this year!  If you are interested in any of the books from the list, it is easy to request it. Click on the title of the book, then click the REQUEST box along the top and follow the instructions.

Or, call the Library at 412-372-0500 and we will be glad to help you. You will be notified when the book is ready for you to pick up!

The ALA List

Younger Readers


“And Then It’s Spring.” By Julie Fogliano. Illus. by Erin E. Stead.

From "And Then It's Spring"

“Bear Has a Story to Tell.” By Philip C. Stead. Illus. by Erin E. Stead.


“Black Dog.” By Levi Pinfold. Illus. by the author.


“Charley's First Night.” By Amy Hest. Illus. by Helen Oxenbury.

From "Charley's First Night"

“Creepy Carrots!” By Aaron Reynolds. Illus. by Peter Brown. (2013 Caldecott Honor Book)


“Demolition.” By Sally Sutton. Illus. by Brian  Lovelock.


“Dogs on Duty.” By Dorothy Hinshaw Patent.

The Other Awards Season

-- Thanks to our Children's Librarian for today's great guest post about the big winners in this year's children's book awards!


January 28 was a big day in the world of children’s literature. Just as Broadway has the Tonys, and  movies are honored with the Oscars, two books were given the highest awards in American children’s literature. Awarded annually by the American Library Association, the Newbery Medal goes to the author of the most distinguished story, and the Caldecott Medal to the illustrator of a picture book where the pictures (rather than the text) are the heart of the book.

The Newbery Medal

This year’s Newbery Medal went to The One and Only Ivan, by Katherine Applegate. Ivan is a silverback gorilla living in a small glass room at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade. He spends his days watching TV, “drawing” with the crayons and paper he is given, and looking at the people who are looking at him. He rarely thinks about his former life in the jungle -- until a baby elephant, taken away from her family, arrives at the mall. Written in the first-person from a gorilla point-of-view, Ivan shares his thoughts on friendship, hope, and humanity.

Click here to watch Amazon's Book Trailer video for The One and Only Ivan!

Applegate, who is also the author of the Animorphs series, got the idea for this book after reading about a real gorilla named Ivan, who lived for 27 years in a tiny cage at a shopping mall before a public outcry got him moved to a zoo in Atlanta. There he became famous for his paintings, which he “signed” with a thumb-print.


Newbery Honor Books (runner-up titles):

- Splendors and Glooms by Laura Amy Schlitz

- Bomb: the Race to Build, and Steal the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon by Steve Sheinkin

- Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage

The Caldecott Medal

The Caldecott went to Jon Klassen, who is both the author and illustrator of This Is Not My Hat. In the book, the tiny fish steals a hat from the big fish. The tiny fish knows this is wrong, but the hat just fits him so perfectly, and the big fish is sleeping -- and, anyway, the big fish will never know who took it. Or will he?

Click here to watch an animated Amazon video about This Is Not My Hat!

With just slight changes to the pictures, the illustrations tell the reader (or observer) things that the tiny fish does not know.

Jon Klassen is a name heard often in the world of children’s literature these days. He is also the illustrator of Extra Yarn, one of this year’s Caldecott honor books -- and another book he illustrated, House Held Up By Trees, had been mentioned as a contender for the prize.


Caldecott Honor Books (runner-up titles):

- Creepy Carrots written by Aaron Reynolds, illustrated by Peter Brown

- Extra Yarn written by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Jon Klassen

- One Cool Friend written by Toni Buzzeo, illustrated by David Small

- Sleep Like a Tiger written by Mary Logue, illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski

- Green written and illustrated by Laura Vaccaro Seeger

Click here to read Green online

The Children’s Room has display copies of all of this year's winners, all Newbery-winning titles since 1922, and all Caldecott titles since 1938 (as well as circulating copies!).

The Festival of Lights

A laser-beam menorah at the Ariel Sharon Park near Tel Aviv, Israel (2011)

The eight-day celebration of Hanukkah (or Chanukah) is a holiday of historical importance to Jewish believers. The holiday commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem, which occurred during the second century B.C.E. during the Maccabean Revolt. The Maccabees were led by Mattathias and his son Judah Maccabee, and they were fighting not for their lives, but rather for freedom from religious persecution.

In 164 B.C.E., the Jewish people rebelled against their Greek-Syrian oppressors, who had attempted to place statues of Greek gods in the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. According to the Talmud, the pure oil that remained for the rededication ceremony was only enough to give light for a single night -- but, miraculously, the oil lasted for eight days. Jewish celebrators of the holiday use the menorah (with its eight primary candles) to celebrate the eight days of the oil staying lit in the Jewish Temple.

This year, Hanukkah starts at sunset on Saturday, December 8, and continues until sunset on Sunday, December 16. Read on to see our suggestions for the best books -- for all ages! -- to help you celebrate (or simply learn more) about the Festival of Lights.

-- The Jewish Holiday Home Companion: A Parent’s Guide to Family Celebration by Nicolas D. Mandelkern and Vicki L. Weber

This small book is aimed at Jewish families and covers many Jewish holidays, but the brief information it contains would be good for anyone -- of any age -- who wants to learn more about this holiday.


-- Celebrating the Jewish Year: The Winter Holidays by Paul Steinberg

For a more in-depth look at Hanukkah, this book is ideal. Along with the history of the holiday, there are many essays regarding the significance of Hanukkah and interpretations of sacred texts. This book also takes a look at Tu B'shevat and Purim.

The National Menorah on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. (2011)

-- Hanukkah: The Family Guide to Spiritual Celebration by Dr. Ron Wolfson

Primarily designed for Jewish families, this book is still chock-full of information for anyone wishing to learn more about Hanukkah. Along with the history of the holiday, there is information about celebrating (i.e. songs, prayers, and recipes). It also has a section called “The December Dilemmas,” which offers advice from real Jewish families on how to deal with celebrating Hanukkah during the (much-hyped) Christmas season.


-- The Hanukkah Book by Marilyn Burns

Discusses why and how Hanukkah is celebrated, and incudes recipes, songs, and instructions for playing with a dreidel.


-- We Celebrate Hanukkah by Bobbie Kalman

Explains the origins of Hannukkah, describes the customs and traditions associated with the holiday, and shares recipes, stories, poems, and games.

Trafalgar Square in London, England (2011)

-- Four Sides, Eight Nights: A New Spin on Hanukkah by Rebecca Tova Ben-Zvi

Provides young readers with an informative guide to the Jewish holiday through a review of its food, games, and many traditions.


-- Hanukkah Crafts by Karen E. Bledsoe

Perfect for families!  Includes guides to make such holiday crafts as Hanukkah symbol stamps, magnets, holiday cards, collage bookmarks, a Dreidel braided key chain, candle candy holders, a Star of David ornament, and more.

In front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany (2011)

-- Candlelight for Rebecca by Jacqueline Dembar Greene

This American Girl book (perfect for young middle school readers) takes a look at the life of a young Jewish girl living in 1914 New York. Rebecca is pleased to help her building's ailing superintendent take care of his homing pigeons -- but is unsure of what to do with the Christmas decoration her teacher insisted she make and take back to own Jewish home.


-- Hanukkah Counts Too by Howard Shapiro

This fun picture book reminds readers that there's more than one holiday this holiday season!


-- Hanukkah at Valley Forge by Stephen Krensky 

Based on real events, author Stephen Krensky recounts a story of a Jewish soldier from Poland, who lights the menorah on the first night of Hanukkah -- during the Revolutionary War. The soldier goes on to share the story of Hanukkah, of the Maccabees and the miracle, with General George Washington himself.

In front of the Gateway of India monument in Mumbai (2011)

* Happy Hanukkah from Tracy and Ms. B!

We're All Mad Here

 "Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?"

"That depends a good deal on where you want to get to," said the Cat.

"I don’t much care where --" said Alice.

"Then it doesn’t matter which way you go," said the Cat.

"-- so long as I get somewhere," Alice added as an explanation.

"Oh, you’re sure to do that," said the Cat, "if you only walk long enough."

The Alice in Wonderland books are those rare things -- stories you enjoy as a kid that you can go back to as an adult, only to find them just as charming as you remembered.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland was first published on November 26, 1865, by Lewis Carroll, whose real name was Charles Dodgson. (Dodgson used a pen name for Alice in order to differentiate the books from his more serious publications on mathematics.) It was followed up in 1871 by a sequel, Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There. In these books, seven-year-old Alice finds herself in strange worlds filled with size-altering snacks, illogical rules, and endlessly confusing conversations with endlessly curious characters.

The books actually differ in location; it is only in the first story that Alice actually ventures to Wonderland. (The land through the looking-glass is a strange one, and similar in many ways to Alice's previous adventure -- but the world through the mirror is never called "Wonderland.") The worlds' themes differ slightly: Wonderland ultimately turns out to be inhabited by "a pack of cards;" whereas the world through the looking-glass is set up like a giant chessboard, with Alice determined to make it to the end of the board and earn a queen's crown.

The White Queen, a newly-crowned Alice, and the Red Queen

Charles Dodgson first came up with the story of Wonderland at the request of ten-year-old Alice Liddell. Dodgson had become friends with the Liddell family and served as something of an uncle to Alice, along with her sisters Lorina and Edith, and her brother Harry. Dodgson often took the children for picnic lunches on boat trips along the Thames, with adult friends or family along to share in rowing duties. It was on one such trip in 1862 that the children asked for a story, and Dodgson promptly began telling them about a bored little girl named Alice who got caught up in the most curious adventures. Little Alice Liddell was so delighted with the story that she asked Dodgson to write it down, and two years later, Dodgson presented her with a bound manuscript entitled Alice's Adventures Underground. An expanded version of that story would go on to be published as Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

The Alice books are part of that genre known as literary nonsense -- a genre where nonsense itself is used as the basis for the story, either as a joke or with some deeper meaning intended. Since Dodgson's death in 1898, literary scholars and historians alike have worked to unlock the meaning of Wonderland -- to figure out what Dodgson was really saying with his nonsense children's stories -- and their theories are decidedly all over the map.

Alice with her "croquet mallet" -- a flamingo

The current, most popular theory -- one which I've heard referenced many times -- is that Dodgson, a mathematician, put in many references to mathematics in the supposed "nonsense" of the Alice books. The argument is that Dodgson, a traditional mathematician, was contemptuous of the new lines of thought being put forth in his profession. Non-Euclidean geometries and the development of abstract algebra were not to Dodgson's more traditional tastes, and some historians argue that Alice's Adventures in Wonderland contain much criticism about the faulty (to Dodgson) logic of the new abstract mathematics. (You can read more about this particular theory here). 

Not everyone sees the symbolism of Dodgson's stories as mathematical, however. The argument's been made that the stories are actually philosophical, with Dodgson using his writings to argue for the belief in "Non-Being." ("Lewis Carroll and the Search for Non-Being.") Others have made the case for Alice in Wonderland being a political satire of England's War of the Roses. ("The Truth About 'Alice'.") And many people will insist that, given the crazy and wild nature of the stories, the books must have been written as symbolic stories as to the nature of drug use. The lists of theories go on.

Alice at the Mad Hatter's tea party

The problem to me is that, even with the best of these theories (that one about mathematics is awfully convincing), a single flaw remains: Dodgson himself never said anything of the kind. He never claimed that his Alice stories were about mathematics, philosophy, or even drug use. When asked about the meaning behind his Wonderland-esque poem The Hunting of the Snark, he responded:

"I'm very much afraid I didn't mean anything but nonsense. Still, you know, words mean more than we mean to express when we use them; so a whole book ought to mean a great deal more than the writer means. So, whatever good meanings are in the book, I'm glad to accept as the meaning of the book."

Stories can, of course, have meanings within them that arise without the author being aware of them. But it's harder to say that Dodgson meant the Alice books to be scathing commentary on the history of an English Civil War when Dodgson himself never said or wrote that he meant them as such. Perhaps some parallels between Wonderland and non-Euclid geometry can be made, but proof positive that Dodgson meant the books as anything but "literary nonsense" remains to be discovered.

For my part, I don't remember how old I was when I first discovered the Alice books, mostly because I can't remember a time when I didn't know and love them. I was absolutely captivated by the crazy characters Alice encountered, by the illogically logical inner workings of Wonderland and the world through the looking-glass -- and by Alice herself, who made her way through these worlds with no small amount of confusion, but with a delightful sense of wonder, humor, and good-natured exasperation. To me, there's a sense to be found within the nonsensical of Alice's adventures -- and that, for me, is enough to make these books of "literary nonsense" quite meaningful indeed.

The world through the looking-glass

Books

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass - both books in a single volume

The Annotated Alice: The Definitive Edition - Notes by Martin Gardner.

Audio versions of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Audio versions of Through the Looking-Glass




Films

Walt Disney's 1951 animated film (starring the voices of Kathryn Beaumont, Sterling Holloway, Bill Thompson, & Verna Felton)

The CBS 1985 miniseries (starring Natalie Gregory, Red Buttons, Carol Channing, Sammy Davis, Jr., & Sid Caesar)

Hallmark's 1999 production (starring Tina Majorino, Gene Wilder, Christopher Lloyd, & Whoopi Goldberg)

Tim Burton's 2010 film (starring Mia Wasikowska, Helena Bonham Carter, & Johnny Depp)

Why is a raven like a writing-desk?

Spin-Offs

The Looking Glass Wars series - by Frank Beddor

Automated Alice - by Jeff Noon

The Wonderland Gambit trilogy - by Jack L. Chalker

The Looking Glass, or Voyage of the Space Bubble, series - by John Ringo



Articles

"Lewis Carroll's Shifting Reputation" - from the Smithonian

"'Lewis Carroll:' A Myth in the Making" - from the opening chapter of In the Shadow of the Dreamchild by Karoline Leach



-- Post by Ms. B

Drop Everything And Read

Mrs. Whaley printed four big letters on the blackboard, and as she pointed she read out, "D. E. A. R. Can anyone guess what these letters stand for?"

The class thought and thought.

"Do Everything All Right," suggested someone. A good thought, but not the right answer.

"Don't Eat A Reader," suggested Danny. Mrs. Whaley laughed and told him to try again.

As Ramona thought, she stared out of the window at the blue sky, the treetops, and, in the distance, the snow-capped peak of Mount Hood looking like a giant licked ice-cream cone. R could stand for Run and A for And. "Drop Everything And Run," Ramona burst out. Mrs. Whaley, who was not the sort of teacher who expected everyone to raise a hand before speaking, laughed and said, "Almost right, Ramona, but have you forgotten we are talking about reading?"

"Drop Everything And Read!" chorused the rest of the class. Ramona felt silly. She should have thought of that herself.

-- From Ramona Quimby, Age 8 by Beverly Cleary

April 12 is National Drop Everything And Read Day. A program designed by such organizations as the National Education Association, the American Library Association, and HarperCollins Children’s Books, the day was designed to "remind and encourage families to make reading together on a daily basis a family priority." Celebrating the holiday is simple: take 30 minutes today to read a book!


And why April 12? Simple: it's Beverly Cleary's birthday.

Turning 96 today (she was born in 1916), Cleary is a children's book author who says she got her ideas for her characters and stories merely by a desire to write the sort of books she wanted to read as a child -- but could never find. She wanted to read books about children who were just like herself. And since her books made their first appearance over fifty years ago, they've been loved the world over for their extraordinary "ordinary" characters: Henry Huggins, Ralph S. Mouse, Leigh Botts, Ellen Tebbits, Otis Spofford, and, of course, Ramona Quimby.

Born and raised in Oregon, Clearly was initially a slow reader -- struggling to learn, in part, because she found the books she was assigned to read to be uninspiring. But in third grade, she had a life-changing experience when she tried The Dutch Twins, by Lucy Fitch Perkins. For the first time, a story had hooked her. "In this story, something happened. With rising elation, I read on. I read all afternoon and evening, and by bedtime I had read not only The Dutch Twins but The Swiss Twins as well. It was one of the most exciting days of my life."

Cleary would go on to become a librarian, only to find that she was in agreement with the children of her library that many of the books geared to kids weren't that engaging. So she wrote a book of her own: Henry Huggins. The book was accepted by the first publisher she sent it to, embarking Cleary on a career that has spanned more than half a century. Her books have been adapted into a television series and films, and statues of her most famous trio of characters (Henry, Ribsy, and Ramona) are displayed in a park in Portland, Oregon (Ramona's "hometown").

So what makes Cleary's books so popular?

In some ways, they are among the first of their kind. Cleary did not want to write books with morals and messages, about children who "learn their lesson" by the end of the story and become better-behaved. She wanted to write about realistic children, with problems and situations that real kids could relate to. Her characters don't learn an Important Moral by the last page -- they simply change and grow from their experiences, getting closer to becoming adults. (As Ramona herself notes at the end of one novel, she's "winning at growing up.")

I understand Cleary's connection to The Swiss Twins as the first book that made her love reading. Cleary's Ramona books were the first books I ever read on my own, and were the first "chapter books" I ever loved. I read and reread my Ramona books until the covers fell off, and Ramona herself became both a character I related to and a role model I looked up to. Ramona was stubborn, determined, enthusiastic, curious, confused, wise, and imaginative -- all while tackling the sort of problems any "ordinary" kid could relate to. Ironically, Cleary's determination to write books without "a moral" allowed her to tell stories that inspired.

Such is Cleary's talent that she didn't just make me fall in love with Ramona. She made me fall in love with reading. She's done the same for millions of children -- now adults -- worldwide. So celebrate this former librarian's birthday by taking a few moments today to Drop Everything And Read!

-- Post by Ms. B