Bookish pleasures

A complete bookworm at heart, I have a penchant for old books. So naturally when I found this Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll in my grandmother's house that is more than a hundred years old I became ecstatic. The worn edges and easy-to-flip pages conjure up images of children a hundred years ago sneaking away to their parents' study to read Alice. Also, with the movie coming out in March this find could not have more appropriate timing. I can only hope that the next person to possess this book can appreciate its sophisticated fun.

The sticker on the back of the front cover says it's from the private library of A. Florence Grant which was founded in 1889. It also says "Read slowly; pause frequently; think seriously; return duly' with the corners of the leaves not turned down." The nineteenth century elegance of the whole book just makes swoon.

I love this illustration with all the cards flying up at Alice; the newer edition I have of the book doesn't have this one. The details are hard to see from this distance, but the animals as well as Alice are running away from the cards.