Thoughts: Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There by Lewis Carroll

Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There is Lewis Carroll's sequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, which I wrote about here.  Going into Through the Looking-Glass, I was hoping to find more of the story presented in the movie adaptations of Alice.  Some more of the characters were introduced, but I didn't find much more of the movie storyline.  Though, this book does feature Carroll's famous poem "Jabberwocky." 

I especially liked this description of snow that Alice gives near the beginning of the book before she falls asleep:

"'Do you hear the snow against the window-panes, Kitty?  How nice and soft it sounds!  Just as if some one was kissing the window all over outside.  I wonder if the snow loves the trees and fields, that it kisses them so gently?  And then it covers them up snug, you know, with a white quilt; and perhaps it says, 'Go to sleep, darlings, till the summer comes again.'" (page 156)

Like the original book, this adventure takes place in a dream.  However, Alice questions whether it was her own dream or not.  Also present in this book are Alice's cat Dinah's kittens, Kitty and Snowdrop.  Kitty, a black kitten, and Snowdrop, a white kitten, become the Red Queen and the White Queen in the dream, which is based on a game of chess.  Much like the first book, Alice meets an array of bizarre characters who challenge and puzzle her with words.  Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There is a delightful continuation of the adventures Alice begins in Wonderland.

Thoughts: Three of Anna Quindlen's Short, Nonfiction Books

Ever since my high school English and Creative Writing teacher told me that my writing reminded her of Anna Quindlen, I have been meaning to read some of her work.  So, last week I finally got around to reading three of her short, nonfiction books: A Short Guide to a Happy Life, Being Perfect, and How Reading Changed My Life.  I can't say much about my writing, but I enjoyed Anna Quindlen's books immensely and can at least appreciate the compliment now.

In all three of these books, Anna Quindlen's writing is fresh and insightful.  Her advice, though nothing I haven't heard before, was a welcome reminder to enjoy life.  I especially liked all of the literary references present in How Reading Changed My Life as Quindlen demonstrated the evolution of her reading.  I identified with many of her thoughts about reading and books in general.  For example, on page 20 she writes, "We read in bed because reading is halfway between life and dreaming, our own consciousness in someone else's mind."  More often than not, I read in bed and had never thought of it this way before, but I like it.

I also liked these lines from Being Perfect: "This is the hard work of life in the world, to acknowledge within yourself the introvert, the clown, the artist, the homebody, the goofball, the thinker.  Look inside.  That way lies dancing to the melodies spun out by your own heart." (page 19)  I'm sure these words appeal to me because of the musical reference at the end.

I have another nonfiction book by Quindlen checked out of the library and waiting to be read.  She also has a few novels that I intend to check out, too.  To end, some truth from How Reading Changed My Life: "Books are the plane, and the train, and the road.  They are the destination, and the journey.  They are home." (page 70)

Thoughts: The Wilderness by Samantha Harvey

I recently finished The Wilderness by Samantha Harvey.  This was a beautiful debut novel about a man suffering from Alzheimer's Disease.  As someone who is about to begin a career working with older adults, I can say that Alzheimer's Disease is and will continue to be a major problem.  Approximately 5.3 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's Disease, according to the Alzheimer's Association.  Alzheimer's Disease has no cure and is the most common cause of dementia. 

The Wilderness is told from the perspective of Jake Jameson, a 65 year old architect who suffers from Alzheimer's Disease.  While it is impossible to truly understand what it feels like to have Alzheimer's Disease, I think Harvey gives a moving portrait of a Jake's mind as it unravels due to the progression of the disease.  I got the sense that Harvey did her research before writing the book as well.  I was familiar with the tests given in the book to measure Jake's mental status, such as the one described in this passage:

"One cannot be expected to remember everything, and in fact remembering everything is a hindrance to living; if an event comes as a thousand details the brain needs to forget nine hundred of them in order to derive any meaning from that event.  So a woman with dyed red hair, coarse skin, and a pen in her hand has explained.  But, she has also explained, too much forgetting is bad.  He had wanted to take her to task over this: Define too much, define bad, who do you think you are, do you think I am a child?  I'm going to say three words and I'd like you to repeat them after me: house, shoelace, picture.  He does not remember what answer he gave, only that he wished for the woman to look away as he strove to meet her ludicrous demands; and he knows that he must, despite an effort, have failed to please her." (page 47)

Given that his memory is deteriorating, the details and stories of Jake's life are not always presented logically, if they are ever explained at all.  Each chapter is in Jake's present, which is why it is sometimes difficult to understand his thoughts or references.  However, the chapters are interwoven with stories from his past, which explain some of the thoughts and memories he tries to remember in the present.

This book is filled with beautiful descriptions and language.  I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in Alzheimer's Disease, but also to others who may not be as interested in that aspect.  Simply put, this is a moving novel that everyone should be able to find a way to relate to their own life.  There are so many passages from The Wilderness that I would like to share, but I'll leave you with this one:

"Since he dragged the police into his disease things have changed; suddenly he is a liability, suddenly nothing he says or does can be trusted, as if it used to be quite an informal kind of illness and now it becomes official.  The timeline is a mass of crossings out and corrections.  He feels to be the supremely unconfident author of his life.  Question marks appear against words, then he deletes the question marks, thinking that if he doesn't question the truth there is no question about it.  It is only him, as the woman says, only him who is confusing things." (page 227)

Wordless Weekend

A Favorite Poem

Since it is National Poetry Month, I thought I would share one of my favorite poems: "If I can stop one heart from breaking" by Emily Dickinson.  This has become more than just a poem to me over the years.  It's kind of a life motto. 


If I can stop one heart from breaking,
I shall not live in vain;
If I can ease one life the aching,
Or cool one pain,

Or help one fainting robin
Unto his nest again,
I shall not live in vain.

   - Emily Dickinson

Thoughts: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

With all the hype surrounding Alice these days, I thought it was time to actually read the book.  I grew up with the animated Disney movie and I recently saw the new one in 3D.  (Johnny Depp was pretty creepy as the Mad Hatter.)  Reading this also counts towards The Classics Challenge. 

Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is a fast and fun read.  I found it incredibly charming.  I enjoyed the wit and humor that Carroll injected into the characters and their conversations.  As a child, I think I was scared of the Cheshire Cat in the movie, so I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked him in the book.

Since all of my knowledge of the storyline came from watching the movies, I felt like the story was moving quite slowly at first.  I kept thinking that the plot I knew about had to happen.  After all, it is a very short book.   Having finished reading it, I can now say that a considerable portion of the book is left out of the movies and some of the story in the movies is not in the book.  That being said, I'm wondering if the movies cover the story presented in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its sequel, Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There.  My copy of the book has both so I plan on reading the sequel as well. 

If you like a story that is slightly out of the ordinary and sometimes just plain ridiculous, yet filled with logic and plays on words, then Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is a must read for you.  There are many funny passages I could quote, but I think I will end with the last paragraph of the book.  Alice's older sister is thinking about the adventure Alice has just told her about.  There is something about these words that make me happy and leave me feeling hopeful:

"Lastly, she pictured to herself how this same little sister of hers would, in the after-time, be herself a grown woman; and how she would keep, through all her riper years, the simple and loving heart of her childhood; and how she would gather about her other little children, and make their eyes bright and eager with many a strange tale, perhaps even with the dream of Wonderland of long ago; and how she would feel with all their simple sorrows, and find a pleasure in all their simple joys, remembering her own child-life, and the happy summer days." - Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, page 144

Drop Everything and Read Day

Did you know that today is National Drop Everything and Read Day?  I didn't until a few moments ago.  National D.E.A.R. Day is celebrated every year on April 12, which is Beverly Cleary's birthday.  According to the official website, "National D.E.A.R. Day is a special reading celebration to remind and encourage families to make reading together on a daily basis a family priority."

While I don't have children to read to, this day seems like a good reason for anyone to stop and read for a little bit.   The D.E.A.R. website has some good resources for celebrating the day.  I found the "Favorite D.E.A.R. Books" interesting.  It is a list of children's books compiled by age.  There is also an additional list of multicultural titles. 

I enjoy looking through children's books every now and then.  I wish I had a record of what I read as a child because I read a lot!  My mom took me to the library all the time.  I hope to pass that on if I ever have a family of my own one day. 

Teaser Tuesday: The Wilderness (April 6, 2010)

Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

My teasers this week are from The Wilderness by Samantha Harvey.

"Dogged by these uncertainties, willing her ghost to come, he rid the house of milk, knowing Helen's near phobia of it.  For months he settled for black coffee and found himself remembering those days, so far back - before Alice's birth - when she did drink it, when she loved it, when her freckled skin itself was like cream dusted with cinnamon, when she would tell him his eyes were washed with milk, and when she loved the cherry blossom that curdled on the branches."  (page 35)

100 Mile Fitness Challenge

Today I signed up for the 100 Mile Fitness Challenge.  This is the third round of this challenge and it runs April 1 to June 31, 2010.  I have opted to try for 100 miles.  You can find out more about the challenge here, but basically I will try to walk 100 miles before the end of the challenge.  Progress is updated every Friday on the challenge blog and I will post about my progress here as well from time to time.  I hope this gets me moving!