Holiday Gift Guide: For the Precocious Child

An entry in our ongoing book-giving guide.

[#image: /photos/590953aac14b3c606c104230]Why is nonsense so thrilling to read? How is it that words, arranged in patterns that obscure all easily discernible meaning, can still sound so right together? It's this essential tension—between sound and sense—that has long drawn the young and the old to works by Lewis Carroll, master of nonsense and creator of rich imaginary worlds. For children, especially, Carroll's stories are appealing because they seem to operate according to a special logic that adults (quite boorishly) refuse to accept. Fans of "The Jabberwocky" and "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" will appreciate this new edition of Carroll's nonsense poem "The Hunting of the Snark: An Agony in Eight Acts," which is illustrated with delightfully surreal (and somewhat macabre) drawings by Mahendra Singh. The language isn't easy, of course, so save this book for the brightest and most adventurous young word-worms on your holiday shopping list. (Carroll's original introduction to the poem helpfully includes a very grave description of the proper pronunciation of "slithy toves," that nettlesome phrase from "The Jabberwocky.") Phrases like "fondness for bathing-machines" and "brimming over with quivering curds" are sure to nurture a love of language and its possibilities, and Singh's daring illustrations will appeal to older children eager to leave the world of candy-colored cuteness behind. And who wouldn't love this charming Snark hunter's refrain?

"They sought it with thimbles, they sought it with care;
They pursued it with forks and hope,
They threatened its life with a railway-share;
They charmed it with smiles and soap."

[#image: /photos/590953ab019dfc3494e9e47c]Then, of course, there's Lane Smith's "It's a Book," a spirited parable that should be required reading for every youngster likely to find piles of shiny new gadgets under the tree this year. Here is a story simple enough for even beginning readers to understand: a well-read monkey must explain what a book is to a tech-savvy jackass who has a lot of trouble grasping the concept ("Does it text?" "Does it need a password?"). We wrote about the book earlier this year, but the need for this kind of explication of the role of book-as-object now seems more urgent than ever. Just the other day, I saw a television commercial for some new kid-friendly electronic reading device that began, "Once upon a time there were books, but now..." Perhaps we can convince some of our children that books are "vintage," like vinyl records: all the cool kids are reading them! At the very least, this particular book presents young readers with the chance to say the word "jackass" and get away with it. And that's as good a gift as any.