The Wizard of Oz and Alice in Wonderland Boxed Set

Rating:
Summary: artistic license or mere sloppiness?
Review: I really wanted to like this boxed edition of Alice In Wonderland and Wizard of Oz, as I happen to admire Lisbeth Zwerger's art. Unfortunately, there were glaring inconsistencies between the illustrations and the text which marred any appreciation I could have had. I'll just give one--the first I noticed when I opened _Alice In Wonderland_.

In the scene where Alice encounters the rather severe and pedantic caterpillar, Zwerger adopts what I consider an inappropriate top-down perspective, reducing the caterpillar to a small, weak creature and completely ignoring the fact that Alice is the same size as the caterpillar and viewing him from a lower position (he sits on a mushroom, thereby gaining height over Alice). The text specifies that Alice has to stand on tiptoe to see what is on top of the mushroom. I have always thought that young readers (as well as old) are meant to identify with Alice and see things from her perspective. Instead, we tower over the caterpillar, taking away the unusual perspective that Dodgson would have wished us to have. Tenniel's illustration is faithful to the the text and the child's perpsective--which Zwerger's is not.

What is more, with Zwerger's perspective, it is difficult to imagine the caterpillar as a stern, brusque, off-putting character-- much like some adults who have little tolerance for children("Who are _you_?";or "What do you mean by that?" said the caterpillar sternly "Explain yourself.") The text mentions, among other things, that Alice is rather shy of him. From Alice's (and thus the reader's) perpective, the caterpillar is an intimidating figure. Not so in Zwerger's interpretation, where the caterpillar is not only diminutive, but nervous, self-conscious-looking thing, puffing on a cigarette.

Which brings me to the most glaring and incomprehensible departure from the text: the cigarette. The story clearly indicates that the caterpillar is smoking a hookah. Zwerger perversely ignores the details of the story and substitutes hookah for ciggy. Is this artistic license, or sloppiness? Either way, a child reading "hookah" for the first time will be betrayed by Zwerger's illustration; older readers who like to think the artist should be faithful to the text will find the changes annoying.

Together, these inconsistencies dampen the pleasure I might have gained from Zwerger's lovely pictures and Carroll's story.

And this was just one picture, from the Alice book only; there are a few other mismatches and inconsistencies running through the book. I haven't yet looked at those of Oz, but I am too disappointed with the first to try.

For the meanwhile, the books remain in their slipcase, in a remote part of the bookshelf, while I enjoy the original and delightful illustrations by Tenniel.