Karoline Leach (born 20 July 1967) is a British playwright and author, best known for her book ''
In the Shadow of the Dreamchild'' (), which re-examines the life of
Lewis Carroll
Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (; 27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet and mathematician. His most notable works are '' Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (1865) and its sequ ...
(pseudonym of Charles Lutwidge Dodgson), the author of ''
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (commonly ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English novel by Lewis Carroll. It details the story of a young girl named Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world of anthropomorphic creature ...
''. This book and her subsequent work on what she terms the "Carroll Myth" have been major sources of upheaval and controversy in recent years and she has produced very polarized responses from Carroll scholars and lay enthusiasts.
Leach was born in
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
. She studied acting and worked as both actor and director in British theatre before becoming a writer.
Theatre work
Her first professional produced work as a writer was an adaptation of
Hans Christian Andersen's ''
The Snow Queen
"The Snow Queen" ( da, Snedronningen) is an original fairy tale by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. It was first published 21 December 1844 in '' New Fairy Tales. First Volume. Second Collection'' (''Nye Eventyr. Første Bind. Anden Samli ...
'', commissioned by Orchard Theatre Company in 1989. "The Mysterious Mr Love" was produced in London's West End in 1997. Under the new title of
''Tryst'' that play opened
off-Broadway at the Promenade Theatre, on 6 April 2006, and has subsequently been produced in many cities around the world, including
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
,
Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
,
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...
, Los Angeles and
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...
.
[ ]
The Carroll controversy
Leach's theory of a "Carroll Myth" created a furor when first suggested, and continues to divide scholars, though has gained the support of authors such as Carolyn Siger offering it support. Authors including
Morton N. Cohen and
Martin Gardner
Martin Gardner (October 21, 1914May 22, 2010) was an American popular mathematics and popular science writer with interests also encompassing scientific skepticism, micromagic, philosophy, religion, and literatureespecially the writings of Lew ...
downplayed or dismissed her importance. Cohen, who was also a Dodgson biographer, repudiated Leach's position as being simply a plea for the defense, and, in a 2003 article in the ''
Times Literary Supplement
''The Times Literary Supplement'' (''TLS'') is a weekly literary review published in London by News UK, a subsidiary of News Corp.
History
The ''TLS'' first appeared in 1902 as a supplement to '' The Times'' but became a separate publication ...
'', labeled Leach and her supporters as "revisionists" attempting to rewrite history.
In 2004, Leach founded the Association for New Lewis Carroll Studies, that aims to promote reassessment of Carroll's life in light of the alleged 'Myth'. Its membership, as of 2010, includes scholars such as
Hugues Lebailly, Carolyn Sigler,
Sherry L. Ackerman, John Tufail and Cristopher Hollingsworth.
wild-reality.net; accessed 13 March 2016.
See also
* Hugues Lebailly
References
External links
In the Shadow of the DreamchildContrariwise
the Association for New Lewis Carroll Studies
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leach, Karoline
English dramatists and playwrights
1967 births
Living people
Writers from Liverpool