Longlisted for the HWA Goldsboro Debut Crown Award Longlist 2016.
‘The Looking Glass House’ is a bright, bold work of fiction, simply told yet holding a complicated ring of truth. Alice Liddell, the young inspiration for Lewis Caroll, is the great-grandmother of the author of this novel. Alice’s keepsakes have travelled down the years and encouraged a fascinating read, touching on the relationship between Charles Dodgson and his muse, as seen through the eyes of the governess. While there is now uncertainty surrounding Dodgson’s love of children, the author does not judge or moralise, there is a candid honesty to the writing; Alice is precocious, Mr Dodgson socially awkward and the Oxford of 1862 somewhat sanctimonious. With a captivating blend of history, diaries, letters and fiction, Vanessa Tait has created a treat for all lovers of ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’. ~ Liz Robinson
What happened before Alice fell down the rabbit hole?
Oxford, 1862. As Mary Prickett takes up her post as governess to the daughters of the Dean of Christ Church, she is thrust into a strange new world. Mary is poor and plain and desperate for change but the little girls in her care see and understand far more than their naive new teacher. And there is another problem: Mary does not like children, especially the precocious Alice Liddell. When Mary meets Charles Dodgson, the Christ Church mathematics tutor, at a party at the Deanery, she wonders if he may be the person to transform her life. Flattered by his attentions, Mary begins to believe that she could be more than just an overlooked, dowdy governess. One sunny day, as Mary chaperones the Liddells on a punting trip, Mr Dodgson tells the story of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. But Mary is determined to become Mr Dodgson's muse - and will turn all the lives around her topsy-turvey in pursuit of her obsession.
Vanessa Tait grew up in Gloucestershire. She went to the University of Manchester and completed a Master's degree in Creative and Life Writing at Goldsmiths College. She is the great-granddaughter of Alice Liddell, the little girl who inspired Lewis Carroll to write Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. The Looking Glass House is her first novel, inspired by family treasures and stories of the 'original' Alice.
Click here to read an 'Ask the Author' interview with Vanessa Tait.
