Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

By: Lewis Carroll

Narrated by: Scarlett Johansson

Length: 2 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's Summary

Golden Globe nominee Scarlett Johansson (Lost in Translation, Girl with a Pearl Earring) brings a palpable sense of joy and exuberance to her performance of Lewis Carroll's enduring classic Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. From the White Rabbit and Mad Hatter to the Cheshire Cat and Queen of Hearts, she imbues each madcap character with a distinct voice and personality that will leave a lasting impression long after the adventure is over.

One hundred and fifty years after its original publication, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland remains one of the most widely read, deconstructed, referenced, and reinterpreted works of Western fiction. It tells the story of the young and imaginative Alice, who grows weary of her storybook, one "without pictures or conversations", and follows a hasty hare underground - to come face to face with a host of strange and fantastic characters.

Public Domain (P)2015 Audible, Inc.

Oh My Ears and Whiskers, What A Delight!

Wow!! When Audible says "Scarlett Johansson performs" this brilliant classic, they're not kidding!! I expected, when I pre-ordered this title, simply a competent reading of one of the all-time great satires of Victorian England. Instead I received this incredible tour-de-force, a veritable one-woman play in which Ms. Johansson acts out all characters singlehandedly and nearly flawlessly (I say 'nearly' only because a few characters sound not as described, e.g. The hookah-smoking caterpillar, who is described as speaking "in a languid, sleepy voice," barks at Alice like a shrill, stuffy schoolmarm). Overall Johansson is excellent, giving unique voice to each character while using wonderful expression, perfect pacing and vocal inflection for all narrative passages. She could only be better if she were British (it could be argued that having an American narrate 'Alice' is like having an Englishman narrate 'Huckleberry Finn'). This is a must for your listening library, whether you are 8 or 88 years of age. For extra value, curl up with a hard copy of Martin Gardner's The Annotated Alice (or the 150th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) while you listen, so you can discover what Lewis Carroll was skewering during all the apparent chaos and nonsense Alice experiences after her fall down the rabbit hole.

60 of 68 people found this review helpful

Incredible

Any additional comments?

I've loved Alice's Adventures in Wonderland for as long as I can remember. As a child I adored the magic, the adventure, and the kooky characters. As an adult, I grew to love Carroll's imagery, symbolism (perhaps unintentional), and his ability to turn what seems like nonsense into an enduring children's tale. No matter how many times I've read this story and watched the movies, I feel like I can always return to the familiar and colorful place that is Wonderland. Scarlett Johansson brings such incredible depth and wonderment to this timeless tale, that this just may be my new favorite interpretation. Her sister, veteran narrator Vanessa Johansson directed this performance. I guess talent runs in the family

24 of 28 people found this review helpful

I underestimated

Having an American read the character of Alice in the story of Alice in Wonderland seemed like a big mistake to me when I set out to listen to Scarlett Johansson read this classic.

I underestimated her skill as a reader and performer, and what a pleasant surprise that was.

The story of Alice in Wonderland isn't a new one. It's been animated and acted and animated again, and released in a  hundred formats. Filled with whimsical characters and a fulfilling plot of a little girl coming into her own (say what you will about Lewis Carroll's hidden agenda in the story) it's a surefire win for both kids, and imaginative adults alike. If you enjoyed this book as a kid, you'll enjoy the version performed by Scarlett.

Scarlett truly offers a transcendent performance in this. While her British accent might not be perfect her ability to bounce between all of the characters in the story and give them unique life is wonderful. I especially enjoyed her performance with the mock turtle and the griffin.

Alice in Wonderland is a short listen at less than three hours, but one that I think anyone will enjoy. I don't recommend speeding the narration. Her voice is well suited for the style of the story and the pace she reads at, and you'll lose some of her nuance if you accelerate the pace.

Lots of fun from a new voice telling an old story.

Audiobook was purchased for review by ABR.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog

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18 of 23 people found this review helpful

Amazing!

This is one of my favorite books and Scarlett does such a wonderful job, I really hope she comes back to do Through the Looking Glass!

24 of 32 people found this review helpful

Performance is fantastic!

Scarlet Johansson is perfection, she really brought the characters to life. This was a delightful listen.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Wonderouse

This really was a very very splendid story, Scarlet Johansson really eventuates Alice’s voice! It is fulled with character and fun and lots more! I would recommend this to everyone to matter how old or young!

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Oh Johansson, I love this

Finished this amazing story on my flight to Tokyo. this preformance was spectacular and will be in my collection forever.

17 of 25 people found this review helpful

Spectacular Performance by Scarlett Johansson

Easy listening for adults and children alike. Johansson is no short of remarkable bringing these many characters to life! It's hard to believe she does the voices for all. Great audio for a road trip, bedtime story, or lazy day.

6 of 9 people found this review helpful

OH I Would like to hear more very much!

Any additional comments?

Being a Disney lover, I obviously knew the story of Alice in Wonderland, but had never actually read the book. When I saw that Scarlett Johansson was the narrator I bought it to check it out. She was amazing! She really brought the characters alive and I enjoyed the whole book from start to finish. Her story telling had me love the adventure so much more than even before that I picked up the book and we are reading it at home to my boys. I always try to be animated when reading out loud to them, but this has really given me even more encouragement! Such a great find, I hope she comes back to do more!

10 of 16 people found this review helpful

A calssic no doubt

Would you listen to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland again? Why?

I would indeed.

What other book might you compare Alice's Adventures in Wonderland to and why?

None to think of.

What about Scarlett Johansson’s performance did you like?

All of it, she's quite good with voices, even if I hadn't seen any film she's been in.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The Mad Tea Party was hilarious.

Any additional comments?

A must-have for certain.

5 of 8 people found this review helpful

So amazing

Usually I would prefer to read a book rather than listen to it, but in this case listening to it was extremely convenient its perfect for traveling in crowded spaces when you don't want to drag around a huge book all day. Alice in wonderland is one of my favorite books and Scarlett Johansson narrated it beautifully, not only is she an amazing actress in movies but she has an amazing voice perfectly suited for this role. Highly recommended!

16 of 19 people found this review helpful

No no no.

Any additional comments?

Everyone knows the story of Alice, the little girl who fell down a rabbit hole and found herself having the most outlandish high of all time.

I wondered what an audiobook of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland would be like because you know, crazy land and all. After watching Her, I fell in love with Scarlett Johansson’s voice. So naturally, I thought I’d enjoy an audiobook narrated by her and luckily, she narrated Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland!

The first chapter was great, Johansson’s voice was initially very soothing (yup that’s the word), and I thought I was going to enjoy listening to the rest of the audiobook. I got through the first 15 minutes like “Urgh yes this.is.perfect!”

However, as the story progressed, I found myself getting agitated by Johansson’s voice. When she spoke as Alice, it sounded like she was complaining all the time or on the verge of breaking into tears, for the other characters, her voice got pretty screechy, and I winced in pain when she spoke as the Queen of Hearts. (I’m not exaggerating). She was terrible at all of the other voices; I just about found the Mad Hatter bearable. It sounded like she was straining her voice to produce sounds, so I started wondering whether she was in pain instead of listening to the story.

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland quickly became an audiobook I just wanted to hurry up and finish listening to so I could stop listening to it. The audiobook has hundreds of glowing reviews on Audible, and I just don’t understand why! My ears hurt after listening to this.

I didn’t feel like Johansson did justice to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, it’s a story featuring talking animals, a homicidal queen, and a kid most likely on acid and I actually had difficulty getting into it let alone liking it. My focus remained on the story up until chapter nine and after that, it was all background noise with me occasionally reacting to sudden sharp sounds from Johansson.

I wouldn’t recommend this narration to anyone, especially not an Alice in Wonderland fan out of fear of having something hard thrown at my face

26 of 34 people found this review helpful

Not the best reading

Not the best reading sounds like it’s her first time reading the book at some points. Still enjoyable tho.

3 of 4 people found this review helpful

Great

The book was amazing and so was Scarlett Johansson. Hands down one of the best narrators.

8 of 12 people found this review helpful

A great version of this classic

Alice in Wonderland is one of my favourite books. I enjoyed listening to this version of the book read by Scarlett Johansson. I loved listening about Alice as she fell down the rabbit hole and began her journey through wonderland. I found the story became alive alot more with this audiobòok. Definitely a audiobook that I will listen to again xxx

4 of 6 people found this review helpful

brilliant narrator

loved it, scarlet johansson was brilliant! I am ill in hospital and too poorly to read so was lovely to be read to :)

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Alice is perfect!

This is one of my favorite book! I love this title and who is not going to be in love of the narrator! Excellent.

I'm an eight year-old and ...

... I like it because Alice's adventures are actually dreams 😁. I LOVE IT! 😄

Must read

Very, very good. I'm going through all the classic kids books at the moment, and this was perfect. Scarlett Johansson was perfect for reading this book, and i would definitely listen to it again. 😊

Excellent narration

Alice in Wonderland is such a well known classic that I feel not much needs to be said about this. The narration however, is sparkling and brings the book and all the quirky characters to life. Having read the unabridged book just a month before, I feel the audio version adds to the richness of the experience. Of course, that does mean missing out on the beautiful illustrations in a physical book- I have the copy illustrated by Salvador Dali. Which version would I choose? Both are gems in their own right-I would have them both!