No, no. I just want to review this particular copy. Why? Why have I now decided to buy a new version of Alice in Wonderland and why do I want to share it? Well, the full title of this particular edition is Alice in Wonderland & Alice in Spiegeland.
Wait, what. That's not right.You see, that's the Dutch title for Wonderland and Looking Glass; the latter literally translating to 'Alice in Mirrorland'. Now why would I, a British woman, buy a Dutch language version of of my favourite children's book?
The answer is simple. I am learning Dutch and the Alice books are some of the most widely translated. After I found out, and subsequently bought, that Looking Glass had been translated in to Latin a few months ago (a language I began learning while at secondary school; although, unfortunately, I did not keep up my studies so now my comprehension is poor), I came up with the idea of buying a copy of the Alice books in every language I was learning. This was inspired by the fact that when I was learning Latin, our tutor gave us facsimiles of the first chapter of Harrius Potter et Philosophi Lapis to read and translate. The idea was that it is easier to translate text that you're already familiar with.
And with Alice being both highly translated and well ingrained into my mind, it makes sense to translate non-English editions to improve my language learning.
I've been learning Dutch (self taught) for about six months now; although that has been somewhat sporadic what with my dissertation overwhelming free time over the months of July, August and September. Anyway, my boyfriend and I had booked a holiday away to Amsterdam (his first time to the Netherlands, my third), so I thought it would be nice to continue my multilingual collection with a souvenir. After a little internet searching, I found out that de Spui square is Amsterdam's destination for any and all book related needs; a little more sleuthing told me that the Athenaeum Boekhandel had Dutch language editions of Alice in Wonderland (many of the bookshops sells English language books, which didn't exactly satisfy my needs).The Athenaeum Boekhandel had three different editions of Dutch langauge Alice in Wonderland/Through the Looking Glass. Originally, I was going to go for the smallest copy (a plus, given that we had only taken hand luggage and so I had little space for trinkets), a hardback with the original Tenniel drawings and very much an equal to my other editions... Except, you know, it was in Dutch. It had a pale pink cover with a cute image of a bright eyed white rabbit in a stack of teacups on the dust cover. It was also nearly half the price of the other two editions, both hardback and substantially larger. One edition was shrink wrapped, so I have no idea what it was like inside, but the cover had Tenniel drawings and it proudly announced the 150th anniversary. Which leads us to the copy I did buy.
So what makes this one so special? Well, firstly it deviates away from the traditional Alice images; that is, they're not Tenniel, but distinctly modern. Normally, I'd go for the classic look, given that I already have that in English, it seemed apt to go for something a little different. Visually, it's striking; a black background with orange and green stylised leaves on the cover and a young girl sat at the base. In a font that mimics uncomplicated caps handwriting, it proudly states 'Alice in Wonderland', which is odd, given that the spine clearly declares 'Alice in Wonderland & Alice in Spiegeland'. Unperturbed, I flick through the pages, whereupon I am greeted with modest illustrations in a minimalistic palette. Some images spill background colour across the page, taking up more space than the text, while others are little more than an entry in the corner. The text, too, joins in the fun, with each verse of poetry being printed in bold tones.
As I flick further through the book, something changes. Suddenly, each page is upside down. After a moments pause, I close the book and flip it over; the back cover, where you would normally expect to see a short description of the novel in your hands, instead mirrors the front. More brightly hued leaves with a girl clambering through them and on a black title plate, it reads 'bnɒlɘǫɘiqƧ ni ɘɔilA'. I'm sure you don't need telling but, if you were to hold that up to a mirror it would read 'Alice in Spiegeland'. This book's way of presenting the second Alice story is a little (excuse the pun) novel and fits the quaint, nonsensical prose within. It is here that I noticed all poetry is highlighted in green, while Wonderland paints its text a vivid orange; the stories are colour co-ordinated!I have yet to read this book; partly because I am still reveling in the whirlwind that is The Queen of the Tearling, and partly because, despite knowing the story, I feel that my Dutch is still a little too limited and that, even with an English copy perched on my other knee, I may struggle. As of such, I cannot really comment on the quality of the translation; I did try looking for The Jabberwocky, but it appears that the translation used here is so vastly different that I could not recognise it. I think I have found it, but without a full read through I cannot be certain. For sure, it appears that this translation sadly does not refer to the Jabberwock as the Krakelwok, the Wauwelwok or the Koeterwaal as I have seen it written in Dutch.
Still, I hope it will not be too long before I take on this challenge; it'll feel like a tremendous accomplishment to be able to fluently read something in a language other than my mother tongue (although the notion is also a little embarassing; native English speakers are notoriously terrible for learning more languages, and I can't help but feel that we sometimes look to them a little in awe (particularly those who are multilingual), when many non-native English speakers are bilingual from childhood). Even if I should give up in my attempts to improve my Dutch (I sincerely hope not), I am pleased to have added this copy of Alice in Wonderland to my collection. Visually, it is just such a delight and, I feel, it is a brilliant visualisation of the whimsy within. It's a nice weight and size, too, even if it is non-standard.I'm glad that I decided to pay the €25 (~£18 at time of writing) for this edition, rather than opt for a cheaper one. It's not extortionate for a hardback; my leatherbound complete works of Poe cost more. Truly, this edition was worth every cent (although I think the cashier believed I was buying it as a gift, when I asked for it in English in my English accent). If you like Alice and can read Dutch, this edition is definitely worth adding to your collection.
So a few facts and figures regarding this book;
My rating (based on visuals alone): 10/10
Pages: 280
My Format: Hardback
Published: 2014
Translator: Sofia Engelsman
Illustrator: Floor Rieder
Publisher: Gottmer
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