Tag Archives: Mad Hatters and March Hares

Run, Rabbit by Angela Slatter

Book Review, , ,
Overview
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Title: Run, Rabbit
Author: Angela Slatter
In: Mad Hatters and March Hares (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Easy reading, Fantasy
Dates read: 27th January 2019
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tor
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: He knows what to look for in newcomers

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Synopsis

Rabbit is on the run from the Queen. But it isn’t until he is caught that he realises what a twisted trap he has laid for himself.

Thoughts

Sometimes it is fun to imagine what happens to the characters after you turn the last page of the story. Especially when you are dealing with characters such as Alice from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. It’s not a story that has a clear beginning and ending. And it’s one that leaves a lot of imaginative license – there aren’t a lot of very specific plot lines and it gives a lot of fluidity and manoeuvrability to the storyline.

This short story takes the idea of “what happens after” and creates a whole new narrative. One in which the Rabbit is something a little more evil. A little more twisted, and even Alice is turned into a darker and more sinister version. Which, on rereading the original storylines, I can completely understand the dark and twisty storyline and feeling.

 <- All the King’s Men ReviewIn Memory of a Summer’s Day Review ->
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All the King’s Men by Jeffrey Ford

Book Review, , ,
Overview
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Title: All the King’s Men
Author: Jeffrey Ford
In: Mad Hatters and March Hares (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Fairy tales, Medieval fantasy
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tor
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: In a flash, Dumpty’s eyes imploded, his lips crumbled, his arms snapped, and when they did, I had to wonder for a second when and from where he’d acquired arms… and legs?

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Synopsis

Humpty Dumpty has fallen and broken into many pieces. The king wants his sister-in-law to repair the damage he’s done, but what will the final cost truly be?

Thoughts

I loved this take on the tale of Humpty Dumpty. He is gross, creepy and annoying. And yet there is a weird connection between him and the king. The fact that this weird, grotesque relationship is told through the eyes of an inventor and the queen’s sister kind of makes it all the more fun. Alongside the word spinning and twirling that seems to be an aspect of anything influenced by Lewis Carroll.

I thought this story would just be about the assassination of Humpty Dumpty and the consequent way in which ‘all the king’s men’ tried to put him back together again. So I was kind of surprised when the story continued after this point. And it just kept getting better and better. And better.

The ending of this short story is one that sticks in my head. That beautiful imagery that lingers long after you have turned the final page.

 <- Alis ReviewRun, Rabbit Review ->
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Alis by Stephen Graham Jones

Book Review, ,
Overview
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Title: Alis
Author: Stephen Graham Jones
In: Mad Hatters and March Hares (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Horror
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tor
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: “Prime number,” Tabby called for herself.

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Synopsis

A horror retelling of the world beyond the mirror becomes something that is far more than just a story… it becomes a tale that will leave you with goosebumps and a sick feeling in the pit of your stomach.

Thoughts

This sent shivers up my spine. It gave me goosebumps. And I had to actually walk away from my computer, clean the house and make sure there were no ghoulies in it before I could even consider writing this review. It was that damn creepy. But also amazing. And something I will read again. In the middle of a very well-lit day.

This is a brilliantly written, horrifying retelling of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. In a way. It takes ideas of mirrors, finding oneself and alternate realities into account. There is an obsession with maths and wordplay. And there is a sense of the characters entering an entirely different dimension. Unlike the Lewis Carroll original, this will keep me up all night and every time I close my eyes… I see the “other” at the other end of a dark tunnel…

 <- Some Kind of Wonderland ReviewAll the King’s Men Review ->
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Some Kind of Wonderland by Richard Bowes

Book Review, , ,
Overview
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Title: Some Kind of Wonderland
Author: Richard Bowes
In: Mad Hatters and March Hares (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary, LGBTQI, Romance
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tor
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: Things I learned working on Wonderland led to my nice gig as a location scout and fixer for movies and TV shows shooting in New York.

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Synopsis

Some Kind of Wonderland is being reshown after fifty years of being forgotten. But as an old film resurfaces, so do old memories and a love that lasts the measure of time.

Thoughts

I enjoyed this short story far more than I was expecting. I thought that it would be a slightly lame recap on the filming of a rework of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. And it was that. But it really wasn’t lame. The description of the film, the characters and their issues (both within and without the film), even the setting were such a beautiful contemporary and modern approach to an old classic.

I really enjoyed the mystery and layout of the romance throughout this story. Especially since the retelling and unravelling come about fifty years after the beginning of the tale. The slightly surreal story and way in which it is told mirrors the incredibly tripped out feeling of Wonderland. The finding of oneself and being true to who you are are so very clearly reflected in both of the tracks of the story.

 <- Mercury ReviewAlis Review ->
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Mercury by Priya Sharma

Book Review, , ,
Overview
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Title: Mercury
Author: Priya Sharma
In: Mad Hatters and March Hares (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Family, Fantasy
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tor
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: Beyond it were the cells.

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Synopsis

Alice is taking care of her sick father in a prison cell and trying to sell his beautiful hats at the same time. But, sadly as his disease gets worse, so do their circumstances until there may be nothing left for either of them to salvage…

Thoughts

The idea for the Mad Hatter in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland comes from the idea of mercury poisoning in hatters. So I loved the idea of a short story based around this idea. Especially one that still encompasses the innocence of Alice and the land of Wonderland.

Since writing that first paragraph, I have probably spent about thirty minutes trying to think of what to write next. What to say to emphasise the awesomeness of this story. But, everything that I can think of gives away part of the storyline. This story takes you on such an unbelievable adventure that at once feels both modern and old. There is a great number of twists and turns that will leave you on the edge of your seat.

 <- Conjoined ReviewSome Kind of Wonderland Review ->
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Conjoined by Jane Yolen

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
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Title: Conjoined
Author: Jane Yolen
In: Mad Hatters and March Hares (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Animagus, Easy reading, Fantasy
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tor
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: “The value,” he used to say, “is not what a thing is worth intrinsically but what someone is willing to pay for it.”

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Synopsis

Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum are constantly fighting, but that isn’t what makes their ape friend travel to Wonderland. Rather, a cheshire cat, a battle with the Jabber Wocky and a series of rather interesting events send him forth.

Thoughts

I thought that this story was going to be about Tweedledee and Tweedledum. Until I slowly realised that it is about an orangutan in the circus… which Tweedledee and Tweedledum are part of. Talk about a rapid change of direction!

Tweedledee and Tweedledum are both such humorous characters, but it wasn’t until I read this story that I really wondered how such human-like creatures could be in Wonderland. And then it really wasn’t until the very end that I felt like this was a great beginnings story. How the Tweedles made it to Wonderland, where the idea of “off with your head” came from… and so many other things.

The connectivity between modern-day circus performers and acts, the Cheshire Cat and the world of Wonderland was incredibly fun. And I was mostly just disappointed that the story was over so quickly… after all, I wanted to know more about the man-ape that took centre stage.

 <- Lily-White & the Thief of Lesser Night ReviewMercury Review ->
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Lily-White & the Thief of Lesser Night by C. S. E. Cooney

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
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Title: Lily-White & the Thief of Lesser Night
Author: C. S. E. Cooney
In: Mad Hatters and March Hares (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Adventure, Family, Wordplay
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tor
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: I’ll make sure of it – if I have to conjure one up myself!

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Synopsis

Lily-White and her sister Ruby-Red have some unusual gifts and a talent for mayhem. When someone starts attacking the Cheshires, they find out how they can embrace this and find a bit of adventure of their own…

Thoughts

I felt like this short story was a kind of prequel to the rivalry that seems to feature throughout many of the Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland retellings. At a young age, sisters Lily-White and Ruby-Red already have an intense rivalry. And although they get along famously within this story, there are the seeds of discord in all of their interactions… and on completing this story, there was kind of an uncomfortable feeling that lingered, making you think of the future of the two queens…

As an origins story, this not only covers the beginning of tensions between the sisters – but why there is just one Cheshire cat, and how the vorpal sword came about. I love how Cooney is able to build upon the ideas that are laid out in Carroll’s work, but still make it entirely his own. The complex wordplay is still there, as is the tripped out and intense worldbuilding and this great sense of wonder. I look forward to reading this story again and again and again, just like the stories that inspired this short story.

 <- My Own Invention ReviewConjoined Review ->
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My Own Invention by Delia Sherman

Book Review, , ,
Overview
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Title: My Own Invention
Author: Delia Sherman
In: Mad Hatters and March Hares (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Fantasy, Wordplay
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tor
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: There is always an Alice in the seventh square.

Synopsis

The knight from the chessboard has another Alice to watch, and there is a lot of wordplay while he does so.

Thoughts

One of the things that I love about Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is the incredibly insane wordplay. The fact that nothing quite makes sense and you feel like you’re on an intense trip. Well, Sherman captures that feeling perfectly in her short story, My Own Invention. It probably didn’t help that I had had a few glasses of wine when I read this story…

This tale almost takes a tiny snippet of Through the Looking-Glass and embellishes it with the experiences of the knight. The words are still twisted upon one another, and there are a few comments about there is always an Alice (implying that there are many). Like the original Carroll tale, I’m not really 100% sure what even happened in this… but I loved every minute of it!

<- Gentle AliceLily-White & the Thief of Lesser Night ->

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Gentle Alice by Kris Dikeman

Book Review, ,
Overview
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Title: Gentle Alice
Author: Kris Dikeman
In: Mad Hatters and March Hares (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Poetry
Pace: Fast
Format: Poem
Publisher: Tor
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: plates and

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Synopsis

A poem which tells the story of Gentle Alice.

Thoughts

One of the things that I love most about this poem is the way in which it is laid out on the page. The entire thing takes the shape of a teacup with a wisp of steam coming from the top. The perfect poem and imagery to start off a collection of stories based around Alice in Wonderland.

Although this is a short, sweet and concise poem, it bares the wordplay and interplay that I loved throughout Carroll’s works. It is one of those multilayered stories that I will read again and again and again whenever I need to quickly be transported away to another world. And it will continuously reveal new, fun and intriguing meanings. Actually… I think I’ll go and read it again right now…

 <- Mad Hatters and March Hares ReviewMy Own Invention Review ->
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