The Annotated Alice: 150th Anniversary Deluxe Edition (The Annotated Books) Hardcover – October 5, 2015

First, I will review the Alice books themselves. Then I will have a few words to say about the annotations in this edition.For some reason I put off reading the Alice books for many years. I do not know how, but I got it into my head that I would not really like them. I knew they were not traditional novels in the sense of having a "plot" or dramatic tension. I thought they might be kind of boring. I also thought that I had a basic idea of the story already from the animated Disney movie. I was essentially wrong on all counts. I was literally only a few pages into the first book when I realized that these are definitely works of genius. Not only are they highly entertaining (despite not having any traditional plot), but they are also extremely funny (which is extremely rare, even among 'humor' books). If that is all the books were they would definitely be worth reading, but there is much more to the Alice books.Anyone who has read the Alice books knows that there is a hidden depth to them, and that one can explore the books endlessly following different paths (logic, linguistics, psychology, literary criticism, Victorian culture, etc.) and never even come close to exhausting what these books have to offer. There is an essay in Lewis Carroll: A Celebration called "Toward a Definition of Alice's Genre" that was written by Nina Demurova. At the very end of the essay she quotes Louis Untermeyer, who apparently claimed in his introductions to the Alice books that they were "the most inexhaustible tale in the world" (86). Normally I do not like statements like that in literary criticism. I think literary criticism should be concerned with analyzing and clarifying the meaning of works, not with "ranking" works, which I think is mostly a useless exercise. In this case, however, I think the statement may actually be correct. I read the annotated version of Alice, I read all of Martin Gardner's annotations as I was reading, I read a number of essays on the books after finishing them, and I read a book called Language and Lewis Carroll by Robert Sutherland, and I genuinely feel like I have not even scratched the surface of these amazing novels. These books will provide the reader not only with entertainment, but enough food for thought, and material for research, to last a lifetime. I am sure I will be reading, and re-reading these works over and over for the rest of my life. I recommend that anyone who is thinking about reading these books get as early a start as possible, and not put it off like I did.I wanted to say just a few words about the annotations. For the most part I thought the annotations were excellent. The annotations in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland seemed to me to lean towards the biographical. I was ultimately less interested in the biographical details behind the creation of the Alice books (relating to both Dodgson himself, as well as Alice Liddell). I was more interested in some of the philosophical, logical, and linguistic aspects of the book, so I was slightly disappointed there was not more of a focus on those aspects of the work in the annotations to Alice in Wonderland. They were not entirely absent, for sure, and I felt the notes became more interesting in Through the Looking Glass. Despite my slight disappointment, however, I would definitely recommend that anyone thinking of reading this pick up the annotated versions. There is a lot in the books I would have missed without the annotations, and, of course, if you are someone who is interested in the biographical details behind the creation of the works, there is a fair amount of information in the notes.I would also recommend taking a look at the collection of essays on Lewis Carroll I referenced above, as well as the essays in the Norton Critical Edition of Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. There are some very good essays in both collections that should be a good start for anyone wanting to go a bit deeper into these "inexhaustible tales". The book on language and Lewis Carroll by Robert Sutherland that I referenced above is also very good, and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in the linguistic insights contained within Carroll's Alice books, as well as some of his other works. And finally, the truly ambitious reader might be interested in taking a look at The Logic of Sense by the philosopher Gilles Deleuze. The book is a VERY technical work of philosophy, not for the faint of heart, and it is not directly about the Alice books, but Lewis Carroll is definitely one of the main "characters" in the book (to the degree that philosophy books have characters) and Gilles Deleuze offers some interesting interpretations of some passages from the Alice books.

Came earlier than expected and was in great condition .

I lost my 2 leather-bound volumes of Alice's Adventures In Wonderland (AAW) and Through The Looking Glass (TLG) in one of my many moves over the years. I figured it was time for a replacement, and, for some strange reason, I wanted an annotated version -- to gain a better understanding of these magnificent works. This is -- according to all of the reviews that I read -- the best of the best. I have to admit that I agree with the other commentators on that point.I received the book a couple of weeks ago and just started reading it last week. I like the layout -- with the text and images and the annotations along side on the same page. The annotations are fascinating, and add a beautiful dimension to the works included.The book's physical qualities are exceptional -- the cover has an expensive and classic look about it, the illustrations and type are clear and crisp. All in all, a beautiful printing, fit for the beautiful works contained therein. The book is both a true labor of love and a work of art.I have, however, found a curiosity in the editing of the text of AAW -- misspellings of the contractions: to wit, won't is spelled w'on't (starting on page 20 of the Text and continuing for as far as I've read); Boo (on page 22, Note 2) is spelled Bo; can't is spelled ca'n't (starting on page 23 of the Text and continuing for as far as I've read). I find this to be a curious error -- and I am planning on contacting the publisher directly to see if they have corrected it; and, if so, I plan to ask for a corrected copy of the book.Aside from that -- I just love these stories. As always, the Disney versions left a lot to be desired (although I really liked the Tim Burton version with Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, et al.). This is a beautiful version of some great works, and it has a high place on my list of favorite books.--Update 2013 March 31 -- I recently finished reading this book -- it made me realize just how much I loved these 2 stories. The added background annotations bring the entire experience to life -- giving me a sense of the evolution of the stories and the manner in which they were a part of the life of Lewis Carroll. I got a sense of the evolution and development of the stories, as well as the part they were in Carroll's own life. There is a magic here -- as in Peter Pan -- and it takes me back to a special time when I first read these stories as a younger man. They allow me to appreciate my own inner child, and cherish that part of my own life and that part of others as well. I've always been particularly drawn to childlike innocence -- whether in comedy such as Laurel and Hardy, or in these stories and Peter Pan (which has its dark elements, to be sure -- but there is still an innocence there, too).The original John Tenniel illustrations were also a special treat -- they were in the volumes I lost many years ago -- although I also have special appreciation for the Arthur Rackham illustrations for this story and Peter Pan (I also bought the Annotated Peter Pan and Huckleberry Finn of this Norton Series -- see my review there, too).You will be in for a special treat with this book and with others of this Annotated series by Norton. Give yourself a special treat and purchase this book -- and share it with someone you care about, too.P.S.: I originally gave a 4-star rating due to the editing errors (at least that's what I think they are -- the publisher never returned my inquiry about them) ---- but I am now upgrading it a 5-star rating after having read the book. It is utterly magnificent.