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I've been reading Sylvie and Bruno, curious to see what their charm could have been for Tolkien. I must say, though I am not finished with the second book yet, I have yet to discover it. ... [Carroll's works] seem much more conventional and their realm has little to do with Faery as shown to us in Smith of Wootton Major.- Estelyn Telcontar
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I agree with you,
Esty. I hope I didn't suggest that they were as good as Tolkien! Sorry if I led you to expect that! Consider Tolkien's position as a reader, rarely finding anything that was up to his standard. Carroll probably did as well as he could considering what he had to work with.
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Are you saying that Tolkien didn't think of Alice as fantasy nor faerie-story, and simply that? Or that Tolkien really didn't like the book? - Morquesse
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Good to see you around again,
Morquesse!
My comment was based on my reading of
On Fairy Stories. I also noticed the mention in Carpenter's biography, and that was my basis for my own comment, which it turns out, was incorrect:
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He was amused by Alice in Wonderland, though he had no desire to have adventures like Alice.
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On the face of it, this comment is not as helpful as I had originally thought, since he also said that he greatly desired dragons, but certainly didn't want to meet one! Still, I think his lack of desire in each case is different. With Alice, it's distaste, whereas with dragons, it's self-preservation!
