Automated Alice

Jeff Noon's "Automated Alice" catapults Lewis Carroll's iconic heroine from her serene Victorian garden into the chaotic, grimy streets of 1998 Manchester. This audacious trequel sees Alice inadvertently tumble through a time portal via a magical looking-glass, landing in a dilapidated urban landscape riddled with talking animals, sentient pigeons, and strange, mechanical inhabitants known as 'automats.' Disoriented but ever curious, Alice embarks on a surreal quest to find her missing grandmother, who, it turns out, is a pivotal figure in this fractured, futuristic world. As she navigates the bizarre logic of this new Wonderland – a distorted reflection of her own – she encounters a cast of eccentric characters, from the philosophical Queen of Hearts to the enigmatic Caterpillar. Noon masterfully blends Carroll's whimsical absurdity with a gritty, post-punk aesthetic, creating a dizzying, dreamlike narrative that explores themes of identity, technology, and the relentless march of time. It's a challenging, imaginative, and darkly humorous reinvention of a classic tale.