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The Looking Glass House Paperback – October 1, 2016

by Vanessa Tait (Author)
3.5 3.5 out of 5 stars 58 ratings
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What happened before Alice fell down the rabbit hole?

Oxford, 1862. As Mary Prickett takes up her post as governess to the daughters of the Dean of Christ Church, she is thrust into a strange new world. Mary is poor and plain and desperate for change but the little girls in her care see and understand far more than their naive new teacher. And there is another problem: Mary does not like children, especially the precocious Alice Liddell. When Mary meets Charles Dodgson, the Christ Church mathematics tutor, at a party at the Deanery, she wonders if he may be the person to transform her life. Flattered by his attentions, Mary begins to believe that she could be more than just an overlooked, dowdy governess. One sunny day, as Mary chaperones the Liddells on a punting trip, Mr. Dodgson tells the story of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. But Mary is determined to become Mr Dodgson's muse—and will turn all the lives around her topsy-turvy in pursuit of her obsession.
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Previous page
  1. Print length
    304 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Corvus
  4. Publication date
    October 1, 2016
  5. Dimensions
    5 x 0.8 x 8 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    178239656X
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1782396567
  8. See all details
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The Amazon Book Review
The Amazon Book Review
Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"As Alice Liddell's great-granddaughter, Vanessa Tait's insider information and access to letters and diaries give the familiar back-story a new slant. Her captivating book conjures up the topsy-turvy world of Alice - the factual and the fictional girl. It is a story that is both whimsical and disturbing." —Lyndsy Spence, Lady

"Tait's engaging novel peeps behind Carroll's story . . . Her style is sensuous and lyrical, her story neatly infused with Wonderland imagery and historically accurate dialogue . . . This story isn't about Alice. It runs, White Rabbit-like, away from childhood towards a more grown-up reflection on one of the greatest children's books." —Rachel Hoyes, Sunday Telegraph

About the Author

Vanessa Tait is the great-granddaughter of Alice Liddell, the little girl who inspired Lewis Carroll to write Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. The Looking Glass House is her first novel, inspired by family treasures and stories of the 'original' Alice.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Corvus; Reprint edition (October 1, 2016)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 178239656X
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1782396567
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5 x 0.8 x 8 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.5 3.5 out of 5 stars 58 ratings

Customer reviews

3.5 out of 5 stars
3.5 out of 5
58 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Joanne North
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on May 29, 2016
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Verg good
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Phipedro
3.0 out of 5 stars Carroll and Alice
Reviewed in the United States on July 18, 2015
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Lewis Carroll was a compulsive diarist. His family were rigorous in maintaining his reputation and removed and probably destroyed several portions of the diaries after his death, including the period around the creation of what became Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, a period which also saw a sudden break in relations between Dodgson and Alice's family. This novel, by Alice's great-granddaughter, tries to fill the gap.
There are two principal theories for the source of the break, and Tait rather neatly intertwined them. There are some clever allusions to Carroll's works but on the whole this is more Sylvie and Bruno than Alice or Snark.
6 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

peter hibbin
3.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating view
Reviewed in France on June 8, 2016
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I enjoyed reading the story of the Liddell family and Charles Dodgson especially as it is from the perspective of a descendant of Alice Liddell. I wonder whether Victorian Governesses were so preoccupied with their wish to marry as the one portrayed? There is a link in our family with Charles Dodgson and a question as to whether he photographed my great grandmother as a child; this book led me no further with that enquiry but I did enjoy meeting the Liddells and Mr Dodgson through this presumably authourative account.
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martin r hale
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 7, 2016
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my daughter loves it
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Fisher
2.0 out of 5 stars This book was very slow and also hard to keep ...
Reviewed in Australia on December 15, 2015
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This book was very slow and also hard to keep track of. I don't get much time to read and I gave up this book about half way through as it still hadn't got me excited or wanting to know what would happen.
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Amazon Customer
1.0 out of 5 stars I was disappointed with the book
Reviewed in Australia on June 13, 2017
Verified Purchase
I found this story difficult to get into and the narrator's voice disengaging. For all I the praise I had heard about it, I was disappointed with the book!
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Sarah Durston
3.0 out of 5 stars Ok, just not great
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 4, 2016
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I have read Alice in Wonderland many times and so I’m always interested in associated books and the stories behind the novel. It’s been some time since I’ve read one (I was a bit traumatised after reading Melanie Benjamin’s Alice I Have Been) but I was drawn to this because it was written by a descendent of the Liddell family.

The book is written from the viewpoint of Miss Prickett, the Governess, who I found to be largely unsympathetic. Through her narrative we learn about the Liddell family, the dynamics and the frequent visits made by Charles Dodgson.

This book really didn’t live up to my expectations, and despite the author’s access to family documents didn’t reveal anything that I hadn’t read before. Mary Prickett becomes a little bit tiresome as a protagonist and I saw precious little of the attractions of Alice.

It was OK, it just wasn’t great.
One person found this helpful
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