Jabberwocky and Other Poems (Dover Thrift Editions)

Rating:
Summary: "'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves..."
Review: "Jabberwocky and Other Poems," by Lewis Carroll, is an inspired collection by this remarkable writer. A brief note at the beginning of the book discusses the life and career of Carroll (1832-98), who was a mathematician as well as a poet. The selections in this book are taken from "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," "Through the Looking Glass," and other sources.

This collection shows Carroll's quirky, mischievous playfulness as well as his technical prowess with rhyme, meter, and wordplay. He is consistently inventive and often satirical. The book is very funny, often quite absurd, and has an occasional dark, sinister edge.

Just a few of the highlights are as follows. "The Mouse's Tale": a visual poem shaped like a mouse's tale. "Brother and Sister": a hilarious tribute to sibling rivalry that uses an interesting rhyme scheme. "The Walrus and the Carpenter": a sort of narrative horror-comedy with rich touches of absurdism. "Poeta Fit, non Nascitur": a hilarious satire on the art of writing poetry. And of course, the brilliant title poem, with its memorable opening: "'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves / Did gyre and gimble in the wabe."

Rating:
Summary: "'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves..."
Review: "Jabberwocky and Other Poems," by Lewis Carroll, is an inspired collection by this remarkable writer. A brief note at the beginning of the book discusses the life and career of Carroll (1832-98), who was a mathematician as well as a poet. The selections in this book are taken from "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," "Through the Looking Glass," and other sources.

This collection shows Carroll's quirky, mischievous playfulness as well as his technical prowess with rhyme, meter, and wordplay. He is consistently inventive and often satirical. The book is very funny, often quite absurd, and has an occasional dark, sinister edge.

Just a few of the highlights are as follows. "The Mouse's Tale": a visual poem shaped like a mouse's tale. "Brother and Sister": a hilarious tribute to sibling rivalry that uses an interesting rhyme scheme. "The Walrus and the Carpenter": a sort of narrative horror-comedy with rich touches of absurdism. "Poeta Fit, non Nascitur": a hilarious satire on the art of writing poetry. And of course, the brilliant title poem, with its memorable opening: "'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves / Did gyre and gimble in the wabe."

Rating:
Summary: Quoth the Jabberwock...
Review: Lewis Carroll is best known as the warped mind that brought us "Alice in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking Glass." He was also a poet. Not an introspective, pensive, or anguished poet, but someone who spun up little nonsense rhymes.

Several are selected from Carroll's best-known books, such as "The Mouse's Tale," where the content isn't too interesting... but the poem itself is shaped like a mouse's tail. Another is "Jabberwocky," the famed poem about a young man who slays a monster. At least half the words are made up. ("Beware the Jabberwock, my son!/The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!/ Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun/the frumious Bandersnatch!")

There is also a selection of his early poetry and his non-Alice poetry, such as the "Mad Gardener's Song," where a gardener spends most of his time hallucinating: "He thought he saw an Elephant,/That practised on a fife:/He looked again, and found it was/A letter from his wife.'" Okay, whatever. Poems are included from the little-known "Phantasmagorica," "Sylvie and Bruno," and other collections.

"How shall I be a poet?/How shall I write in rhyme?" Carroll inquires in "Poeta Fit, Non Nascitur," a pleasant little poem about writing poetry. His poetry tends to be comedic, but there are a few that are halfway serious, such as "Sea Dirge," a poem entirely devoted to Carroll's aquaphobia. No, it's not downbeat, but it isn't exactly goofball poetry either.

The whimsical insanity of Carroll's poetry is what makes it so appealing. Technically it's pretty ordinary, with the flaw of making up words to insure rhyme schemes. But somehow his poetry is so colorful and funny that the flaws aren't much of a downside -- especially "Jabberwocky," where the whole appeal of the poem is that it's utter nonsense.

Anyone who has read "Alice in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking Glass" can't help but notice Carroll's whimsical, creative poetry. And "Jabberwocky and Other Poems" is a pretty good introduction to his kooky verse.