Lewis Carroll

Lewis Carroll was an English writer born in 1832. His real name was Charles Dodgson, and he was a math teacher at Oxford University. He is famous for writing Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. These books tell the story of a girl named Alice who falls down a rabbit hole into a strange world. Carroll's stories are full of wordplay, riddles, and nonsense that kids and adults still love today.

Down the Rabbit Hole

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland began as a story Carroll told to three young sisters during a boat ride. One of the girls, named Alice Liddell, asked him to write it down. In the story, Alice follows a white rabbit into a world where nothing makes sense. She meets a grinning Cheshire Cat, a Mad Hatter, and a Queen who shouts off with their heads. The book has been translated into over 170 languages.

Words and Nonsense

Carroll loved playing with words. He invented words like chortle and galumph that people still use today. His poem Jabberwocky is written in made-up words, but you can still understand the story. Carroll was also a mathematician, and he hid math puzzles in his stories. Alice's adventures have inspired hundreds of movies, plays, and artworks. The story is one of the most popular children's books ever written.

Fun Facts

• Lewis Carroll made up the story of Alice during a boat trip to entertain three young girls.
• He invented words like chortle, which is a mix of chuckle and snort, and people still use it today.
• Carroll was also a photographer and a math professor at one of the most famous universities in the world.

Did You Know?

Queen Victoria of England loved Alice in Wonderland so much that she asked for Carroll's next book, but it turned out to be a boring math textbook!