The Hunting of the Snark: An Agony in Eight Fits

by Lewis Carroll, Henry Holiday (Illustrator), Michael Everson (Foreword by)

Overview

"The Hunting of the Snark" was first published in 1876, eleven years after "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" and four years after "Through the Looking-Glass". It is a master-piece of nonsense and is connected to "Through the Looking-Glass" by its use of vocabulary from the poem "Jabberwocky". "The Hunting of the Snark" is a strangely dark poem, and some critics believe that its themes-insanity and death-are rather too adult in nature for children's literature. We know, nonetheless, that Lewis Carroll intended the poem to be enjoyed by children: he dedicated the book in acrostic verse to his young friend Gertrude Chataway, and signed some 80 presentation copies to other young readers. Many of those inscriptions were in the form of an acrostic based upon the name of the child to whom the book was presented. Part of the pleasure of reading this book is in the inevitable musing about what it means. Its author, often asked to explain his work, invariably replies that he does not know. It is therefore open to readers of the poem to decide the question for themselves...

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781904808367
Publisher:	Evertype
Publication date:	02/01/2010
Pages:	100
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.24(d)

About the Author

Lewis Carroll (1832-1898) was an English children’s writer. Born in Cheshire to a family of prominent Anglican clergymen, Carroll—the pen name of Charles Dodgson—suffered from a stammer and pulmonary issues from a young age. Confined to his home frequently as a boy, he wrote poems and stories to pass the time, finding publication in local and national magazines by the time he was in his early twenties. After graduating from the University of Oxford in 1854, he took a position as a mathematics lecturer at Christ Church, which he would hold for the next three decades. In 1865, he published Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, masterpiece of children’s literature that earned him a reputation as a leading fantasist of the Victorian era. Followed by Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There (1871), Carroll’s creation has influenced generations of readers, both children and adults alike, and has been adapted countless times for theater, film, and television. Carroll is also known for his nonsense poetry, including The Hunting of the Snark (1876) and “Jabberwocky.”

Date of Birth:

January 27, 1832

Date of Death:

January 14, 1898

Place of Birth:

Daresbury, Cheshire, England

Place of Death:

Guildford, Surrey, England

Education:

Richmond School, Christ Church College, Oxford University, B.A., 1854; M.A., 1857

Website:

http://www.lewis-carroll-birthplace.org.uk/

Table of Contents

Preface

Fit I. The Landing

Fit II. The Bellman’s Speech

Fit III. The Baker’s Tale

Fit IV. The Hunting

Fit V. The Beaver’s Lesson

Fit VI. The Barrister’s Dream

Fit VII. The Banker’s Fate

Fit VIII. The Vanishing

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

 “…Oleg Lipchenko’s style seems perfectly suited to Carroll’s thoroughly Victoria brand of literary psychedelia … kids will get sucked in by the visuals alone. Best of all, his images provide enough fodder to inspire a hundred alternate stories.”
—Quill & Quire

“…Past editions of this nonsense classic have been illustrated with woodcut prints, pen-and-ink drawings, and in a graphic-novel format, and now with Lipchenko’s detailed drawings. His art creates a dream landscape that mirrors the elusive text and sustains one’s sense of an impending snark attack. This is a “gift book and a collector’s edition,” but with the push to read more rigorous texts, teachers might appreciate finding the elusive snark in the library.”
—School Library Journal

“Lewis Carroll's epic nonsense poem is presented in all of its unabridged, bewildering glory…. Oleg Lipchenko's outstanding charcoal illustrations interpret the verse for a new generation. The pages are luxuriously detailed, and there's lots to pore over…. The sepia tones in the illustrations evoke a dark, brooding atmosphere … children and the adults in their lives will all enjoy the marvelously odd characters and every curious word.”
—Highly Recommended, CM Magazine

Editorial Reviews

…Oleg Lipchenko’s style seems perfectly suited to Carroll’s thoroughly Victoria brand of literary psychedelia … kids will get sucked in by the visuals alone. Best of all, his images provide enough fodder to inspire a hundred alternate stories.”
—Quill & Quire

“…Past editions of this nonsense classic have been illustrated with woodcut prints, pen-and-ink drawings, and in a graphic-novel format, and now with Lipchenko’s detailed drawings. His art creates a dream landscape that mirrors the elusive text and sustains one’s sense of an impending snark attack. This is a “gift book and a collector’s edition,” but with the push to read more rigorous texts, teachers might appreciate finding the elusive snark in the library.”
—School Library Journal

“Lewis Carroll's epic nonsense poem is presented in all of its unabridged, bewildering glory…. Oleg Lipchenko's outstanding charcoal illustrations interpret the verse for a new generation. The pages are luxuriously detailed, and there's lots to pore over…. The sepia tones in the illustrations evoke a dark, brooding atmosphere … children and the adults in their lives will all enjoy the marvelously odd characters and every curious word.”
—Highly Recommended, CM Magazine

From the Publisher

“A fabulous poem—hilarity and wit,
a balance of pleasure and peril,
was writ by none other, in piqué or in fit,
than the beloved Lewis Carroll.
 
A reproduction more lovingly made has doubtful ever been seen.
Imprinted with gold of the highest grade,
Most households will need seventeen.

New City

“With the release of this gorgeous facsimile edition, readers today can experience the poem just as Victorian readers did. This story of a chaotic quest is a delight in any format, but here, bound in a vivid red-and-gold cover, the poem isn’t the only work of art, the book is too.

Los Angeles Times

Gr 7 Up—Told in "eight fits" of multiple stanzas with perfectly crafted quatrains, the meaning of this hunt for the snark, although a nonsense tale, will continue to intrigue readers. In "Fit the First," the crew has landed: "'Just the place for Snark!' the Bellman cried,/As he landed his crew with care;/Supporting each man on top of the tide/By a finger entwined in his hair." The unabridged text just begs to be read aloud. The characters include a lace-making beaver, "A maker of Bonnets and hoods," a barrister, and "a broker to value their goods." Past editions of this nonsense classic have been illustrated with woodcut prints, pen-and-ink drawings, and in a graphic-novel format, and now with Lipchenko's detailed drawings. His art creates a dream landscape that mirrors the elusive text and sustains one's sense of an impending snark attack. This is a "gift book and a collector's edition," but with the push to read more rigorous texts, teachers might appreciate finding the elusive snark in the library.—Teresa Pfeifer, The Springfield Renaissance School, Springfield, MA

School Library Journal