Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There

This entry in the crowd of Alice audios comes from Naxos, the British company that that adorns its audiobooks with musical bridges culled from its library of classic music. Sixteen fine actors, led by narrator David Horovitch and Jo Wyatt as Alice, recite the unabridged text rather than dramatize it. There seems to be no rapport among them. The effect is a measured, patrician rendering. Wyatt, an adult, sounds like she's voicing a child heroine in an anime adventure. Of all the characters in the Alice books, she's the last one who should sound cartoon-like. Plus, despite the excellence of the cast, the production seems a trifle plodding. Y.R. (c) AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine

With this work Lewis Carroll delivered a sequel to his best-known work, the classic adventures of ALICE IN WONDERLAND. Similarities abound between the two tales. However, similarities aside, this story gets star treatment with renowned fantasy and science-fiction author Harlan Ellison serving as narrator. Ellison's jaunty reading provides just the right mix of whimsy and awe for the story's rhymes and clever characters. The pleasure is infectious. Children listening to the bizarre adventures will find plenty to enjoy. M.T. (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine