Through the Looking-Glass And What Alice Found There
by Lewis Carroll
The Reverend Dodgson (aka Lewis Carroll) followed Alice In Wonderland with the weird and wonderful further adventures of Alice in the book Through the Looking-Glass And What Alice Found There.
Generally viewed as an exercise in the the absurd, it includes the wonderful poem Jabberwocky which still delights both children and adults who still remember what it was like to be a child with its invented vocabulary and fantastical landscape.
Through the Looking-Glass is also famous for Alice's encounters with the living chess pieces on a giant chess board. Pictured here are some of John Tenniel's famous illustrations of the Red Queen and the Red King, the White Knight Sliding Down the Poker, and Alice Holding the King.
Here are the Red King and the Red Queen,’ Alice said (in a whisper, for fear of frightening them), ‘and there are the White King and the White Queen sitting on the edge of the shovel – and here are two castles walking arm in arm – I don’t think they can hear me,’ she went on, as she put her head closer down, ‘and I’m nearly sure they can’t see me. I feel somehow as if I were invisible – ’
Here something began squeaking on the table behind Alice, and made her turn her head just in time to see one of the White Pawns roll over and begin kicking: she watched it with great curiosity to see what would happen next.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
by J.K.Rowling
Amongst the many incredible magical elements that J.K.Rowling introduced into the world of Harry Potter and Hogwarts is that of Wizard's Chess. Essentially, it is the same as ordinary chess except that it is played with animated pieces which are instructed where to move by the player and then actually physically attack the opposing player's piece if they are to take it!
At the exciting climax of the first of the Harry Potter novels, Harry and his best friends Ron and Hermione find themselves as human chess pieces in a giant and life-threatening game of wizard's chess. This scene transferred particularly well to the big screen in the movie of the same name directed by Christopher Columbus.
Image:Cropped web-resolution screen shot - Fair use
