An amusing take on Alice in Wonderland by way of the sh!tshow that is current british politics. By turns silly, funny, witty and slightly immature this is oddly cathartic especially if you're rathet sick of the current state of farce.

Alice in Brexitland by Lucien Young and Leavis Carrol is an amusing if somewhat predictable riff on Alice in Wonderland.

Alice dozes off on the afternoon of 23rd June 2016 to wake in a strange world of Brexit characterisations where she meets the Corbynpillar, the Cheshire Twat, Humpty Trumpty and the Queen of Heartlessness. If you were/are a Remainer you may find this mildly amusing and reinforcing of your views, if not you probably shouldn't waste your money.

Regardless of your political affiliations, it’s fair to say that the last year or so has been more than a little crazy. Donald Trump is somehow the leader of the free world, Britain is leaving the EU, and over 19 million people watched the former director of the FBI give evidence to the Senate last week. These are bizarre times. Sophie lives in England where multiple elections and the Brexit referendum have plunged the country into a level of uncertainty rarely experienced – anybody watching the British news last Friday would have caught a glimpse of just how bonkers everything seems to have become in Westminster.

Alice in Brexitland by Lucien Young is a parody of the Lewis Carroll classic in which Alice, sick of listening to grownups debating the pros and cons of EU membership, follows David Camerabbit down a hole and into Brexitland where everything is topsy turvy. There she meets the Corbynpillar, Humpty Trumpty, and the Queen of Heartlessness, reads the Daily Murdoch which fills her with so much rage she physically grows in size, and has an encounter with the General Public who “only know things in general and have no grasp of detail”. The world around Alice becomes increasingly out of control, until she eventually wakes up, finding herself back in a sane world where Britain voted to remain in the EU by 99%, Hillary Clinton was elected President, and none of her favorite celebrities died in 2016 – if only we all could be so lucky.

This is not a subtle book and it is one that certainly won’t appeal to Trump or Brexit supporters, neither of whom are caricatured kindly. But for readers who watch the news each night wondering where on Earth all the sane people are hiding, this is a story that will have you nodding your head in agreement at many of the on-the-nose characterisations and wishing that you could indeed wake up and discover that the last year was just a dream after all.

Alice in Brexitland is a brilliantly funny, political satirical twist on the classic children's book Alice in Wonderland. Instead of tumbling down the rabbit hole Alice is in Brexitland and the characters she comes across such as - David Camerabbit, Corbyn-Pillar, The Cheshire Twat, Trumpty Dumpty, Tweedleboz and Tweedlegove and the Queen of Heartlessness - are well known political figures.

It's only a short read, so great for a pick me up if you need a laugh, however it will date terribly due to how current the theme is. Even if you are sick of hearing about Brexit, this is well worth a read and will have you laughing out loud in places.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House U.K, Ebury Publishing for the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest and unbiased review.

Well imagend and humours idea possibly overlong , But overall an enjoyable and topical read , definitely a present on the secret Santa list .

An amusing title that I am looking forward to rereading in a few years' time.

(Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the review copy!)

This short book is a pretty good take on the political shambles leading up to the opening of the Brexit negotiations, which started today. Despite a general election fought (from the Conservative side) on a platform of 'strong and stable leadership', leadership was conspicuously absent in the decision to call for the EU referendum, in the referendum campaign, in the period since, the decision to call a general election, and the aftermath. What a mess! To take the 'Alice' metaphor further, we have allowed a political minority with a vision of Britain informed by the Rupert Bear Annuals and the novels of Captain W.E. Johns, to set this country on a course that will likely damage the standard of living of many of its citizens. To think that we elected this bunch of idiots that make the characters in Alice look positively sane. "Strong and stable, strong and stable...' Was that the Mad Hatter I just heard?

Brilliant satirical look at Brexit filled with disturbingly accurate political commentary about that decision which bombed clearly really understood across all political parties. Great read filled with fun caricatures of politicians.

I received an e-book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for a review.

This short book is a very good satire on the political situation surrounding Brexit. The author has taken the characters from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and replaced them with political figures. Alice remains much the same others are replaced (sometimes brilliantly) with aptly renamed politicians. The Queen of Hearts becomes the Queen of Heartlessness, Humpty Dumpty becomes Trumpty Dumpty, the Cheshire Cat becomes the Cheshire Twat and so on. Starting with Cameronrabbit's decision to hold a referendum, the book goes through Alice's attempts to make sense of what is happening. Like many people she finds it bewildering.

The illustrations are great and in the style of the original which adds to the fun of the book. Reading on Kindle doesn't do them justice though.

Recommended if you voted remain and need cheering up.

I liked the clever use of aspects of the Alice in Wonderland story.
I liked the use of the political commentators within the book.
A short but entertaining piece of modern satire.

My thanks to Netgalley and Penguin-Random House UK (Ebury Press) for a copy in return for this review

Brexit is one of the most defining political events in, at least, European history since the creation of the European Union. Whereas the latter ushered in a time of ever closer bonds and peace, the former has set off a period of unrest, disenchantment and anger. All throughout the Western world discontent is spreading and the popular vote seems to swing to the right side of the spectrum, although there seems to be a recent return to sanity. Swiftly followed by the election of Donald Tr*mp in America, Brexit is casting long shadows over Britain. So how do you deal with a situation like that? Well, if you're British, it includes a lot of humour and satire.

So how do you move on when you feel like the country you love is sinking further and further down the Brexit-hole? You find the similarities to one of England's most beloved Classics and write a hilarious book. Or at least, that's the way Young found. It is a typically British book, in many ways. The dark humour, the exasperation, the throwaway nods, the biting social commentary, Alice in Brexitland couldn't be more British. From dedicating it to David Cameron to Alice's immediate disgust to Tr*mp, Young never ones loses his sharpness and humour. This novella is also beautifully illustrated by Ollie Man, his drawings being hilarious, fitting and perfectly in sink with the illustrations we know and love from Alice in Wonderland.

Young tackles almost all the major characters in the Brexit drama and finds their perfect equivalent in Carroll's Wonderland. Jeremy Corbyn is the slightly aloof and puzzling Caterpillar, Boris Johnson and Michael Gove are Tweedledee and Tweedledum, Donald Tr*mp is Humpty Dumpty, etc. It makes so much sense in how overdrawn it is that it's a miracle no one thought about it before. It is cathartic to read such an over-the-top story about the mess that is Brexit, even when some of Young's points strike a little bit too close to home. What is the meaning of truth post the Brexit debate and the Tr*mp election? Did the Leave campaign have any plans for after the referendum or is their best bet really to hurl us all to the sun and go down in a blaze of glory? For as long as this novella lasts, Alice in Brexitland can make you slightly forget just how much is up in the air right now, replacing worries with laughs. But in a surprisingly heartfelt finale, Young's Alice does pull at the heartstrings with her pleas for sanity.

Young's writing is a great combination between a tribute to Lewis Carroll and a satire on contemporary political discourse. On the one hand there is the beautiful, nonsensical prose of Alice in Wonderland with its strange words and phrases, while on the other hand there is the disconcerting, frightening prose of Tr*mp, Farage and co. with their strange words and phrases.The fact that Carroll can make sense in his writing, reveal truth by seemingly obscuring it, while many politicians nowaday make no sense in their attempts to obscure the whole concept of truth, is incredibly saddening. Young combines Carroll's sense of humour and fun, with the reality of Brexit and creates a hilarious mishmash of seriously worrying statements by the Cheshire Twat (Farage), over-the-top yet accurate caricatures of the Tea Party, and a befuddled Alice who just wants a straight answer for once. There are many laugh out loud moments in Alice in Brexitland, not least of all whenever a poem or song rears its head. Released at the beginning of this month, I'm almost saddened by the fact Young couldn't factor in the recent General Election, bringing along the downfall of his Heartless Queen and the rise of the Corbynpillar. But perhaps this means there is now room for a sequel? Alice Through the Brexit-Glass?

Although rather short, Alice in Brexitland is a delight! Excellently thought through, Young writes the perfect satire for Brexit England, never letting up on his scrutiny of our politicians. However, this book will make you crave for an escape from the Brexithole. I'd recommend this to those interested in contemporary English politics and in an escape from those very same politics.

I laughed all through. Super insights into current politics.

A short parody of the farce called Brexit. Re-imagining the entire business as Alice in Wonderland works quite well, although I am still in the dark on what the actual Brexit plan actually entails. Here we meet all our beloved politicians starting from Camerabbit, the Caterpillar and Nigel Farage as the Cheshire Cat. We also meet lovely characters such as Trumpty Dumpty, Tweedleboz and Tweedlegove and the Queen of Heartlessness. The book is also illustrated in a style similar to that of John Tenniel, but populated with our current political heroes. A nice little book, the only problem with it is that things are moving so fast in British politics and there are so many twists that a sequel is already needed.

With some funny and many ironic moments this is a book for its time. A gift book to raise a few laughs rather than a classic with a longer lifespan.

Alice in Brexitland is a hilarious parody that tells the events surrounding the referendum in the form of Alice in Wonderland. Poor young Alice makes the horrible mistake of following David Camerabbit down the rabbit hole and quickly finds herself in a world that doesn't make sense anymore. The tale follows Alice's journey through Brexitland as she is introduced to characters like the Corbyn-pillar, the Cheshire Twat and Trumpty Dumpty. The characters are all instantly recognisable as both the fictional version from the original story as well as the real life politician they represent and they've been very cleverly written to show their biggest personality traits.

The book also includes wonderful illustrations that again follow the format of the originals but have been edited to fit the new characters created for this parody.

I coud have included quotes from practically every page but I've seen a lot of my favourites in other reviews already and I don't want to spoil the best jokes for anyone so I'm going to limit it to just this one:

How doth the politician lie
To burnish his career
And with his bogus slogans try
To bend the voter's ear!

He'll promise in each interview
That perfect joy awaits
And all the while he's screwing you
To help his wealthy mates

I know I'm not the only one who feels a bit like they fell down the rabbit hole in this last year so I laughed out loud the whole way through reading Lucien Young's take on events. This really does highlight some of the most shocking events from British and American politics over the last year and it probably hits a little close to the bone for some of us "remoaners" but if we can't laugh about the state of the world right now I'd probably have to cry and this was the perfect laughter inducer.

A well-written satire about a much-talked event of the European immediate reality. Brexit is here and the UK is ready to leave us, the rest of Europe, at least institutionally. The enigmatic Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll is used as a literary frame to explain and translate the current British realities. Surprisingly, the old good characters are easily matching the actors of today's world, from Theresa May to Donald Trump. Recommended if you need a bit of British humour to challenge the greyness of London politics.

Oh woah! What a great book!
I was grinning throughout the whole thing and was shocked at how funny the satire was.
I ended up loving it far more than the real Alice in Wonderland. The way the author made light of a serious topic was just wonderful.
I think I'm mainly shocked at how much I enjoyed it because I don't know a hell of a lot about politics, but it was clearly enough to understand and enjoy this book.
It made some really valid points and kind of helped my understanding of the matter in a silly way.
I liked that the style of illustrations stayed true to the original style, but also mimicked the funny political cartoons you see in newspapers. That enhanced the appeal for me.
The ending was amazing too and left you wondering what really happened, which was a good open ending perhaps because things were still undecided about Brexit on the time of writing this? I don't know, but it was great.

Really enjoyed the post-truth poem as well.

Overall, this was extremely humorous and had some points that really made me think. I think it could be something classes should read in future history lessons haha!

This is a brief, amusing read. It's a very good parody of Alice in Wonderland (complete with some very clever illustrations which closely mirror the great Tenniel originals), which excoriates the Leave campaign in the Brexit referendum.

Alice in Brexitland is a very clever piece of work, because "Leavis Carroll" has the skill to stick closely to some of the original scenes and characters in Alice while neatly skewering some of the Brexit events and people. The author is very obviously opposed to Brexit so it's not at all even-handed (although Jeremy Corbyn is mercilessly satirised) but it is clever enough and accurate enough to remain witty pretty well throughout.

I didn't find this laugh-out-loud funny, and the idea was beginning to pall a little by the end, but it's an entertaining read which I can recommend for a diverting hour or two.

A timely read which, brilliantly executed with wit and sharpness. You don't have to have a political view to appreciate this clever piece of writing. Sharp observations and a rearranging of children's works, it re-enforces the expression '...out of the mouth of babes....' It is, indeed, a mad,mad world

Without giving away too much, I have to say that quite a few times through reading this book I found myself giggling away to myself. If you're anything like me when it comes to election time you recognise how important it is that we each vote, but tend to get really P-ed off with all the constant backbiting that goes on, the arguments and the sheer drivel and 'empty promises' that get made.

Whilst this book doesn't feature on a general election - what we're going to the polls for in a few days - it does relay the many thoughts and feelings when the UK voted to leave the EU and Brexit became a thing.

The characters are all based on the traditional children's story of Alice in Wonderland - with a twist of going down a rabbit hole with Dave the white rabbit (who sounded like he'd gone to a posh expensive school for rabbits!) heading down the hole to BrexitLand.

People who find politics - especially right now - a joke will enjoy this book, and even though it does make digs at Polish workers (Ahem! I am of Polish descent (My Grandfather came to the UK in WW2 to escape the Nazi's who had tortured his family before his own eyes - and just whilst we're on it... he immediately signed up with the British Army and fought against the Nazi's) - so you know... be careful as it can really offend some people! They aren't the only Europeans who have come to the UK recently from the EU) it is all rather tongue in cheek.

It's a fun enjoyable read and one that I'm sure people will enjoy reading as it's just a fairly quick read.

It's not going to become the "new" classic, but right now, with the times we are living in, and the right audience, it could be a fun read of the moment.

So, my overall rating has to be 3/5 on this one.