06 Mar Book Review: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

There are some books that feel like they’ve always existed, woven into the fabric of our cultural consciousness. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is one of those books. It’s more than just a children’s story—it’s a surreal journey into the absurd, a satire of Victorian society, and an exploration of the fluid nature of reality. Even after more than 150 years, it remains as curious and captivating as ever.

What’s it about?

The story begins on a lazy afternoon, with young Alice growing bored as her sister reads a book with no pictures or conversations. Suddenly, she notices a white rabbit with pink eyes, wearing a waistcoat and carrying a pocket watch, muttering about being late. Intrigued, Alice follows the rabbit down a rabbit hole and falls into a world that makes no sense and yet feels strangely familiar.

Alice finds herself in Wonderland, a place where the rules of logic and reason don’t apply. She drinks potions and eats cakes that make her grow taller or shrink to the size of a mouse. She swims in a pool of her own tears, meets a talking Mouse, and attends a bizarre caucus race where everyone runs in circles and no one actually wins.

As she ventures deeper into this strange world, Alice encounters a series of fantastical and eccentric characters:

• The Cheshire Cat, who grins from ear to ear and fades in and out of existence, giving cryptic advice and leaving more questions than answers.
• The Mad Hatter and the March Hare, who are stuck in an endless tea party, frozen in time because they annoyed Time itself. Their conversation is nonsensical, full of riddles that seem to have no solutions.
• The Caterpillar, smoking a hookah on a mushroom and speaking in riddles, challenging Alice’s sense of identity with the question, “Who are you?”
• The Queen of Hearts, a tyrannical ruler who screams, “Off with their heads!” at the slightest provocation, ruling over a kingdom of playing cards.

Alice tries to navigate this chaotic world, constantly questioning the logic of everything around her, but Wonderland follows no logic that she can understand. She becomes frustrated by the nonsense, the circular conversations, and the arbitrary rules. Yet, she keeps pushing forward, determined to make sense of the madness.

Her adventure culminates in a surreal trial where the Queen accuses the Knave of Hearts of stealing tarts. The proceedings are absurd, the evidence is meaningless, and the verdict is pre-decided. Just as the Queen shouts her iconic order, “Off with her head!”, Alice finally realizes that none of this is real. She stands up to the Queen, declaring, “You’re nothing but a pack of cards!”

With that realization, Wonderland collapses around her, and Alice wakes up to find herself back on the riverbank, her sister still reading under the tree. It was all just a dream—or was it?

What This Chick Thinks

It’s pure, unfiltered imagination

There’s a reason Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland has endured for over a century. It isn’t bound by the usual rules of storytelling. There’s no clear plot, no character development, and no moral lesson. It’s a journey into the absurd, and that’s exactly what makes it brilliant.

Lewis Carroll lets his imagination run wild, creating a world that feels both whimsical and unsettling. Wonderland is unpredictable, a place where logic has no power, and the only rule is that there are no rules. As a reader, you have to let go of trying to make sense of it and just enjoy the ride.

Alice is the perfect guide to the madness

Alice is curious, stubborn, and wonderfully outspoken. She questions everything, refuses to accept nonsense at face value, and challenges authority—even when that authority is a deranged Queen who keeps shouting for beheadings.

Her frustration at the illogical nature of Wonderland is incredibly relatable. Who wouldn’t be annoyed by characters who contradict themselves in every sentence? Yet, her persistence and curiosity keep the story moving, making her the perfect anchor in a world that refuses to stay still.

The wordplay is genius

One of the most enjoyable aspects of this book is Carroll’s love of language. The puns, riddles, and wordplay are delightful, even when they make no logical sense. The Mad Hatter’s riddle, “Why is a raven like a writing desk?” is a prime example—it’s a question that has no answer, a joke at the expense of riddles themselves.

There’s also the brilliant use of parody, with poems like “You Are Old, Father William” and “The Mock Turtle’s Song” cleverly poking fun at the moralistic verses of Carroll’s time.

It’s more than just a children’s story

Underneath the whimsy and nonsense, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is full of social satire. Carroll was poking fun at the rigid logic of Victorian society, the absurdity of bureaucracy, and the way adults impose order on a world that is inherently chaotic. The characters Alice meets are exaggerated versions of authority figures—teachers, judges, royalty—making this a playful but pointed critique of societal norms.

Final Thoughts

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is a classic for a reason. It’s chaotic, confusing, and absolutely brilliant. It’s a book that breaks every rule of storytelling and gets away with it because it’s so utterly imaginative. It invites you to embrace the absurd, to question the logic of the world around you, and to hold onto that childlike sense of wonder.

If you’ve only ever seen the movie adaptations, the book is absolutely worth reading. It’s stranger, funnier, and more thought-provoking than you might expect. Whether you read it as a child or as an adult, it’s a journey worth taking.

Rating: 9/10

Try it if you like

• The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster – Another whimsical, clever story that plays with logic and language in unexpected ways.
• The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry – A philosophical adventure that explores the absurdities of adulthood through the eyes of a child.
• The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern – A more modern take on magical realism, with a dreamlike atmosphere and intricate storytelling.