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storyphoria's review
2.0
FULL REVIEW AT:
https://aicpod.com/review/fantastic-alice-by-margaret-weis/
Fantastic Alice is packed with sixteen short stories that, while not poorly written, were just not stories written for me. The pace of most was slow and meandering, if not outright nonsensical(which I know SOME of the Wonderland tales could be also). There were just so few moments I remember even after finishing this book just last night.
Can a book be well written, while also just being kind of boring and forgettable?
In the end, the only readers that I’d recommend this book to without reservations would be those of you that are true, die-hard, fans of Alice in Wonderland and the worlds of Lewis Carroll. If you really know those characters and those worlds I think these stories will hold more interest for you. But for those of you that, like me, are just casual fans that might recognize names and places but never went DEEP into the worlds of Wonderland… you’ll likely find this to be a boring and forgettable slog to get through.
They can’t all be winners and not every book is written for every audience. I just wasn’t the audience for this book.
https://aicpod.com/review/fantastic-alice-by-margaret-weis/
Fantastic Alice is packed with sixteen short stories that, while not poorly written, were just not stories written for me. The pace of most was slow and meandering, if not outright nonsensical(which I know SOME of the Wonderland tales could be also). There were just so few moments I remember even after finishing this book just last night.
Can a book be well written, while also just being kind of boring and forgettable?
In the end, the only readers that I’d recommend this book to without reservations would be those of you that are true, die-hard, fans of Alice in Wonderland and the worlds of Lewis Carroll. If you really know those characters and those worlds I think these stories will hold more interest for you. But for those of you that, like me, are just casual fans that might recognize names and places but never went DEEP into the worlds of Wonderland… you’ll likely find this to be a boring and forgettable slog to get through.
They can’t all be winners and not every book is written for every audience. I just wasn’t the audience for this book.
tarq1's review
2.0
I am a big fan of the Alice in Wonderland universe, as are countless others, no doubt, for many different reasons. These differences are probably why I found few of the stories in this collection very enjoyable. They weren't badly written, just not written for me. Some people focused on the queen, some on Alice, some on death, and even some still on the poems of Wonderland, but none of them actually focused on Wonderland which is what I find the most interesting about the Alice stories.
In one of his books on writing Orson Scott Card discusses something he calls the M.I.C.E. Quotient. M.I.C.E. stands for milieu (the setting, world, or universe), idea, character, and event and all are things which a story can be built up around. Stories can have all or some or one of these elements, but there is usually one that drives the story. In Alice in Wonderland that is the milieu, or Wonderland itself, not Alice. Alice is merely the viewpoint character through whose eyes we experience Wonderland. You can tell because the story starts when Alice enters Wonderland and ends when she leaves.
The stories in this collection are mostly idea, character, and event stories. Ideas like: how do different people deal with death. Character stories with personal growth and discovery. Event stories such as: kill the Jabberwock. None of these stories focus on Wonderland, even though a few of them take place there.
Again, I don't think these are bad stories, and there are people out there who will probably enjoy them, but spending so much time reading stories that skirt all around Wonderland without ever actually "going there" left me a bit exhausted in the end.
In one of his books on writing Orson Scott Card discusses something he calls the M.I.C.E. Quotient. M.I.C.E. stands for milieu (the setting, world, or universe), idea, character, and event and all are things which a story can be built up around. Stories can have all or some or one of these elements, but there is usually one that drives the story. In Alice in Wonderland that is the milieu, or Wonderland itself, not Alice. Alice is merely the viewpoint character through whose eyes we experience Wonderland. You can tell because the story starts when Alice enters Wonderland and ends when she leaves.
The stories in this collection are mostly idea, character, and event stories. Ideas like: how do different people deal with death. Character stories with personal growth and discovery. Event stories such as: kill the Jabberwock. None of these stories focus on Wonderland, even though a few of them take place there.
Again, I don't think these are bad stories, and there are people out there who will probably enjoy them, but spending so much time reading stories that skirt all around Wonderland without ever actually "going there" left me a bit exhausted in the end.
corvus_corone's review against another edition
2.0
A horribly disappointing book made even more frustrating because it is an anthology of stories about Wonderland. I recommend putting it down slowly and backing away.
chronographia's review against another edition
2.0
Quite honestly, no. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland et al do not need to be revisited. By anyone. Ever again. Not by video game makers, not by Tim Burton, not by writers and editors of anthologies.
Bookshelf Cull 2013: know what you have and why you have it.
Bookshelf Cull 2013: know what you have and why you have it.
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