ALICE IN WONDERLAND Antique FIRST EDITION Alice's RARE Adventures LEWIS CARROLL

  

Of " ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND " by Lewis Carroll, as illustrated by HARRY ROUNTREE. YOU'LL LOVE THIS BOOK!!

From 1903 to 1942, Rountree's pens and brushes gave life to every species from dormice to dinosaurs. His 1908 Alice in Wonderland, with 90+ color illustrations, is considered to be both his masterpiece and one of the definitive versions of the Carroll classic. Is a work of children's literature by the English mathematician and author, Reverend Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, written under the pseudonym Lewis Carroll. It tells the story of a girl named Alice who falls down a rabbit-hole into a fantasy realm populated by talking playing cards and anthropomorphic creatures. The tale is fraught with satirical allusions to Dodgson's friends and to the lessons that British schoolchildren were expected to memorize. The Wonderland described in the tale plays with logic in ways that have made the story of lasting popularity with adults as well as children.

A girl named Alice is bored while on a picnic with her older sister. She finds interest in a passing white rabbit, dressed in a waistcoat and muttering Oh dear! I shall be too late!

She follows it down a rabbit-hole where she finds herself floating down into a dream underworld. As she attempts to follow the rabbit, she has several adventures. She grows to gigantic size and shrinks to a fraction of her original height; meets a group of small animals stranded in a sea of her own previously shed tears; gets trapped in the rabbit's house when she enlarges herself again; meets a baby which changes into a pig, and a cat which disappears leaving only his smile behind; goes to a never-ending tea party; goes to the shore and meets a Gryphon and a Mock Turtle; and attends the trial of the Knave of Hearts, who has been accused of stealing tarts. Eventually, Alice wakes up back with her sister.

Published in 1908, this rare classic book is in GOOD CONDITION! For its age and especially to be around 109 YEARS OLD!!! And tightly bound with NO TEARS!!! Or stray in text markings. It measures approximately 7 3/4" X 9 1/2" and is complete with 348 pages.

Its most notable imperfections are: the exterior cloth on the back hinges is partially split and has been repaired and page 35/36 and page 37 where stuck together at one time. This appears to me to be a publisher's defect. The good news is it does NOT affect any of the stunning illustrations! This one was actually my personal copy for many years before I was able to upgrade. Early "Alice" books are very scarce and highly sought after.

T his is an EXTREMELY RARE!!! GET IT WHILE YOU CAN!! Illustrators of the Alice books number more than 70. The focus here is on British editions, but some other English-language editions are included.

As a result, several US publishing houses issued copies of the Alice books with Tenniel illustrations. McManus was the first to attempt the task of providing new illustrations for the books in 1899. The illustrations within this "Alice" are credited to New Zealand native and noted animal illustrator, Harry Rountree.

With a penchant for animals, he began illustrating books that would become childrens classics, including Uncle Remus (1906) and Alices Adventures in Wonderland (1908); the latter, including over ninety colour plates, is considered his pièce de résistance and the defining version of the famous book. It was Rountrees work on the Lewis Carroll classic that arguably solidified his reputation as an accomplished author of childrens books.

Writing for magazine throughout almost all of his professional life, he produced almost innumerable illustrations that would become famous for their arguably unparalleled quality. Some magazines and periodicals that featured his work include: Punch, Cassells, Pearsons, The Sketch, The Strand, The Illustrated London News, Playtime, Little Folks, and more. He was one of the best-known illustrators in London in the early 1900s. He was a prolific illustrator and illustrated many works by authors such as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Enid Blyton, Edith Nesbit and H. Those of you familiar with our auctions may wonder what we're doing including "ALICE IN WONDERLAND" in our auctions?

Well, the original manuscript for this classic bedtime story was written right in the middle of the Civil War, in 1862. This is what ordinary Americans were reading as entertainment at the time. It provided temporary escape and relief from the ravages of the War. Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, was a mathematician and a logician who lectured at Oxford for some 26 years.

He was also an accomplished photographer and a Church Deacon. Dodgson's pen name was Lewis Carroll. Dodgson first told the story during a 2½ hour rowing trip with friends on July 4th, 1862. He created the story on the spur of the moment to entertain the three young daughters of the Dean of Christ Church at Oxford, (Alice, Lorina, and Edith Liddell).

10 year old Alice later pleaded with Carroll to commit the story to paper. He completed it the following February. This first manuscript, called "Alice's Adventures Underground" is thought to have probably been destroyed in 1864 when, on November 26th 1864, Dodgson presented Alice Liddell with a more elaborate hand-printed second version which included 37 of his own illustrations as a Christmas present. Reverend Dodgson later showed the tale to his friend George Macdonald, who urged him to publish it. He then revised and expanded the tale to almost twice its length.

This third version was published by Macmillan and Co. In London, on July 4th, 1865. Sir John Tenniel was the artist who agreed to illustrate the revised and expanded text which was now called Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Tenniel's black and white illustrations were made for the reproductive process known as wood-engraving. For more history about this book, check out this site.

Please see our other books too! The item "ALICE IN WONDERLAND Antique FIRST EDITION Alice's RARE Adventures LEWIS CARROLL" is in sale since Saturday, October 14, 2017. This item is in the category "Books\Antiquarian & Collectible". The seller is "rebel_soldier" and is located in Cameron, North Carolina. This item can be shipped worldwide.

• Binding: Hardcover
• Subject: Literature & Fiction
• Special Attributes: Fairy Tales & Fantasy
• Author: Lewis Carroll
• Publisher: THOMAS NELSON AND SONS
• Original/Reproduction: Original
• Country/Region of Manufacture: United Kingdom
• Year Printed: 1908
• Original/Facsimile: Original
• Character Family: Alice in Wonderland
• Language: English
• Place of Publication: LONDON
• Topic: Classics
• Region: Europe
• Illustrator: HARRY ROUNTREE
• Origin: English