Lewis Carroll

A major figure in Victorian literature, Lewis Carroll is renowned for his fantastical poetry and fiction, particularly his perennially popular tales of the young heroine Alice and her exploits in the magical realm of Wonderland. He was initially on track to become an Anglican clergyman, but his inquisitive nature led to his employment as a mathematics tutor at Oxford. Also an amateur artist, photographer and inventor, he initially garnered attention for his poetry, but found wider fame and recognition for Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865), which introduced both his ever-curious protagonist and her strange home away from home. The book quickly became a success, and Carroll was suddenly and quite unexpectedly famous. He returning to his scholarship but later published a poetry collection and subsequently unveiled the long awaited Wonderland sequel, Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There (1871). A few years later, Carroll published his last highly regarded work, the poem The Hunting of the Snark (1876). He died in 1898, and has been consistently cherished by generations the world over for his exceedingly clever way with words and uniquely warped imagination.