“I’ve been in email correspondence with Andrew Sellon, LCSNA president, but never [...]]]> I was delighted to learn that Jenny Woolf, author of the fascinating new biography The Mystery of Lewis Carroll, greatly enjoyed the two free nonsense poem audio downloads I created for Storypods Audiobooks over in Oxford, England.  On her Facebook page, Jenny wrote:

“I’ve been in email correspondence with Andrew Sellon, LCSNA president, but never heard his voice. I am enchanted by his wonderful readings of these nonsense poems, winners of an Alice contest run by Oxford Storypods.”

Thanks, Jenny!  I had great fun doing the recordings for Liz and Francis of Storypods.  Both poems are very clever, and it’s great to be able to share some free poetry with the online community.  I hope to record a lot more poetry to share.  If you haven’t already listened to or downloaded the two contest winners, click the image on this post to visit the Storypods site.  While you’re there, check out their own recording of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland  and selected letters of Lewis Carroll; it’s delightful.

As current President of the Lewis Carroll Society, I occasionally receive requests for interviews or expert answers to various Carrollian questions.  I recently gave an interview to Glance magazine, and now this month I gave another to the Wall Street Journal in conjunction with the upcoming spate of adult-oriented movies based on children’s [...]]]> Carrollian Interviews!

As current President of the Lewis Carroll Society, I occasionally receive requests for interviews or expert answers to various Carrollian questions.  I recently gave an interview to Glance magazine, and now this month I gave another to the Wall Street Journal in conjunction with the upcoming spate of adult-oriented movies based on children’s books, including Tim Burton’s upcoming riff on Alice in Wonderland, which opens 3/5/2010.  The WSJ journalist and I spoke for 90 minutes, and one sentence made it into the article.  That’s showbiz!  I also answered an expertise question for the staff of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?  They wanted to know whether Lewis Carroll had coined the word “snark.”  Answer: To the best of our knowledge, yes!  I told them he also came up with the term “portmanteau word” to describe a word that in today’s lingo would be called a “mash-up” of two words.  Example: his word “slithy” could be a combination of “lithe” and “slimy”.  Carroll’s works, including the famous poem Jabberwocky, are full of portmanteau words.  Speaking of game shows, there’s a Carrollian question on Jeopardy and a clue/answer in the New York Times crossword puzzle about once a week.  His works are that much a part of our popular culture.

I hosted the fall meeting of the Lewis Carroll Society of North America on 10/17.  The focus was on early film versions of the Alice stories, and the meeting included a screening of the rare “Bud” Pollard version — the first “talkie” Alice in Wonderland — filmed in the early [...]]]> Alice in Fort Lee, NJ!

I hosted the fall meeting of the Lewis Carroll Society of North America on 10/17.  The focus was on early film versions of the Alice stories, and the meeting included a screening of the rare “Bud” Pollard version — the first “talkie” Alice in Wonderland — filmed in the early 1930′s right there in Fort Lee, NJ!  Who knew Fort Lee was an early film capitol?  A fascinating meeting, and a great children’s reading at nearby Elementary School #4.

I’m delighted to report that I was unanimously re-elected as President of the Lewis Carroll Society of North America for another two-year term.  It’s a lot of work, but literacy is such a worthy cause!

This not-for-profit organization’s efforts include educational outreach in the form of readings and performances from the works of Lewis Carroll.  Twice a year I go to schools and give free readings from either Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland or Through the Looking-Glass and [...]]]> I was elected President of the Lewis Carroll Society of North America (LCSNA).

This not-for-profit organization’s efforts include educational outreach in the form of readings and performances from the works of Lewis Carroll.  Twice a year I go to schools and give free readings from either Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland or Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There.  If you know a school that would like a reading, or for more information, please visit www.lewiscarroll.org .