July 4, 1862 is marked as the date Lewis Carroll (Charles Dodgson) first told the story of Alice’s Adventures. Verbally told to three girls on a long boat voyage, Carroll eventually created the written manuscript and it was first published in 1865 as Alice’s Adventures Under Ground. His sequel, Through the Looking Glass was published in 1871.
BrainPickings.com has some great pictures of the “original” Alice taken by Lewis Carroll. The original manuscript was illustrated by Carroll, and later editions featured the illustrations of artist John Tenniel — who changed the look of Alice forever.
The book released to terrible reviews and it wasn’t until several years after the second book was published that it began to get critical and reader notice. Carroll’s own copy of the manuscript sold at auction in 1998 for $1.5 million (US).
Their are several Hollywood movies that have been created about Alice, beginning with a silent film in 1903. There are also video and role-playing games, several Broadway stage productions, and numerous graphic novels and comic books centering around Carroll’s novels.
