The Hunting of the Snark: An Agony in Eight Fits

by Henry Holman (Illustrator)

Overview

The peculiar wit and imagination of Lewis Carroll are once again in evidence in The Hunting of the Snark, his epic nonsense poem which first appeared in 1876. Unlike the earlier Alice books, this is a much darker work, in which 10 characters whose names begin with B, disappear, go mad, and generally find themselves struggling to navigate an impossible path through a nonsensical world. Throughout the poem there is a prevailing atmosphere of disorder and chaos, heightened by Carroll's characteristic use of "portmanteau" words (such as "uffish", "beamish" and "fumious") and descriptions of grotesque creatures such as the Bandersnatch and the Jubjub bird. The meaning of the poem, and of the Snark itself, has been the subject of much debate. In his preface Carroll said "In answer to your question, 'What did you mean the Snark was?' will you tell your friend that I meant that the Snark was a Boojum. I trust that she and you will now feel quite satisfied and happy." Whatever its meaning, The Hunting of the Snark remains a fascinating read. This new edition is a facsimile of the 1876 original, with reproductions of the original illustrations by Henry Holiday and is bound in red cloth with luxury gold embossing.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780712358132
Publisher:	British Library, The
Publication date:	04/15/2011
Edition description:	Facsimile
Pages:	100
Product dimensions:	5.10(w) x 7.60(h) x 0.60(d)
Age Range:	8 Years

About the Author

LEWIS CARROLL, creator of the landmark children's book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, was a pseudonym for Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, an Oxford don who was educated at Christ Church College in Oxford,England, where he lectured in mathematics. In addition to his keen interest in photography and inventing games and puzzles, he wrote fantastical tales and humorous verse, including Phantasmagoria and Other Poems, Through the Looking-Glass, the sequel to the adventures of Alice, and The Hunting of the Snark. Born in 1832, Dodgson died in 1898 of influenza.
 
OLEG LIPCHENKO is Canadian artist of Ukrainian origin. He is a member of the Ukrainian Union of Artists and CANSCAIP; his superb technique and strong sense of design reflect his background in architecture. He has exhibited his paintings extensively in Canada and across Europe. Oleg Lipchenko's previous books for Tundra include the gorgeously illustrated Humpty Dumpty and Friends and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, which won IBBY Canada's Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Award.

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

“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

“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

 “…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

After being awarded IBBY Canada's Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Award in 2009 for his illustrations of Alice's Adventures In Wonderland (Tundra, 2009), Lipchencko turns his attention to Lewis Carroll's nonsense poem about a group of unlikely companions searching for a creature known as a snark. Lipchenko's meticulous drawings portray both the whimsical and grotesque aspects of Carroll's poem. He makes effective use of color in his monochrome drawings. The volume starts with drawings in yellows and browns, as if the reader is looking back fondly on a past adventure. The color of the illustrations becomes darker as the story darkens and the material being illustrated turns from tales of an odd collection of sailors and unexpected friendship among enemies to insanity and unexplained disappearance. Throughout the poem, black and white, as opposed to sepia, are used to indicate references to the snark, highlighting the fear of the unknown creature. This finely illustrated volume can be used to support curriculum in both English language arts and visual arts classes. It would make a good read-aloud choice and can be recommend to fans of both Lewis Carroll and humorous and nonsense poetry by such authors as Shel Silverstein and Jack Pretlusky who are looking for darker material. Reviewer: Bethany Martin

VOYA - Bethany Martin

Carroll's poem of preposterous adventure is filled with ridiculous characters and word play set in rhyme. The Bellman lands his crew of a Boots, a Barrister, a Broker, a Billiard-marker, a Banker, a completely unskilled Baker and Butcher, and a lace-weaving Beaver. Their goal is to hunt a Snark, a strange creature described by the Bellman. When he notes that some are Boojums, the Baker faints. Waking, he tells that he has been warned that if he meets a Boojum he will vanish away. The absurd actions of the characters continue as they prepare for the hunt. The sound of the Jubjub leads to mathematical calculations and nonsensical descriptions. One "Fit" is the Barrister's dream of a court case including the Snark. In another, the Banker is grabbed by a Bandersnatch. The final discovery of the Snark, who was a Boojum, brings the hunt to an end. The language and appearance of the naturalistic characters are very much 19th century; each is a definite individual. Produced with grainy brown monochrome accented with elaborate black details, the setting add active mystery. The jacket depicts a formal picture of the cast as if posing for a photograph. The cover includes close-ups of a half dozen of them, including a spectacular anthropomorphic Beaver weaving lace. Lipchenko's comic imagination is an appropriate accompaniment to Carroll's verbal sport. Reviewer: Ken Marantz and Sylvia Marantz

Children's Literature - Ken Marantz and Sylvia Marantz

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