And as the man began to speak, a strange thing happened. Shock waves were felt in libraries across the world. Strong winds blew books off the shelves. And the moralizing, degrading, pompous tomes were cast into a literary black hole. The Mary Martha Sherwoods, Sandford and Mertons, Anna Laetitia Barbaulds, faded into oblivion. New books of beauty took their places. The garden of childhood was opened to reveal an abundance of green carefree space, filled with toys, games, and a treasure trove of waiting memories. The man took the oars, and continued his tale, inspired by the gazing eyes of three young girls. He was truly in his element. And through a series of gestures, the twinkle in his eye, the wry smile that crossed his lips, he drew his listeners ever closer into his tale. As he spun his story, the adult world, which had tyrannized children for centuries, was mocked, and turned on its head. The hypocrisy, the insipid moralizing of adults, was transformed into utter nonsense, much to his young audience’s delight, who clapped their small hands, and laughed for joy. He even included the girls in his story, and gave them parts like a dramatist. He also borrowed from the outings they had shared: tea parties, new rules for croquet, a pack of cards, magic tricks, picnics on the lawn. The sound of the river strokes blent with the speaker’s soft voice… The rain that delayed their journey the previous day, had disappeared completely, although it reappeared in the continuing tale. The narrator was also included in the story, but yielded to the presence of one Victorian girl. It was she with dark cropped hair that had captivated Charles the most. The far reaching eyes, the pensive mind, the girlish laughter. He courted her in the only way he knew; through whimsy, playfulness, and ineffable charm. Like a conjurer, he opened the garden of childhood to Alice. She was just the right age to enjoy the assault on the adult world and her own place in it. Charles was brimming with ideas that spilled into the wonderland of his story. The ideas came from mathematics, philosophy, politics, discussions he had with colleagues at Christ Church. He had told stories before, but entranced by his eager audience, and enamored of Alice, he wove such a compelling tale that it ignited a revolution in literature, and changed the concept of childhood forever. Its iridescent glow peaked through the catacombs, and lit up the literary canvases of George MacDonald, Kenneth Grahame, L. Frank Baum, and countless others extending the realm of the child still further… Charles was unsuccessful in his courtship of Alice, and he was ultimately banished from her home. But he gave her a special gift; that of literary immortality…
Charles with his two Alices
