The Hunting of the Snark: An Agony in Eight Fits

Gr 7 Up—Told in "eight fits" of multiple stanzas with perfectly crafted quatrains, the meaning of this hunt for the snark, although a nonsense tale, will continue to intrigue readers. In "Fit the First," the crew has landed: "'Just the place for Snark!' the Bellman cried,/As he landed his crew with care;/Supporting each man on top of the tide/By a finger entwined in his hair." The unabridged text just begs to be read aloud. The characters include a lace-making beaver, "A maker of Bonnets and hoods," a barrister, and "a broker to value their goods." Past editions of this nonsense classic have been illustrated with woodcut prints, pen-and-ink drawings, and in a graphic-novel format, and now with Lipchenko's detailed drawings. His art creates a dream landscape that mirrors the elusive text and sustains one's sense of an impending snark attack. This is a "gift book and a collector's edition," but with the push to read more rigorous texts, teachers might appreciate finding the elusive snark in the library.—Teresa Pfeifer, The Springfield Renaissance School, Springfield, MA