It is critical of the early administration of Prime MinisterArthur Balfour, who is represented by a little girl named Clara.[2] A number of other notable British politicians are identified in the book. The Red Queen is Joseph Chamberlain and Crumpty-Bumpty is Henry Campbell-Bannerman.[citation needed] There are additional characters, such as the Lion and the Unicorn, representing Britain and Germany respectively.[citation needed] The authors nonetheless included a tongue-in-cheek disclaimer denying any political intention: "Persons of a prying habit of mind have persisted in tracing political allusions in the innocent if not lucid narrative of Clara’s former adventures. The Author and the Artist beg to be allowed to disclaim anything of the sort."[4]
The book features 40 drawings by journalist J. Stafford Ransome (credited as "S.R.") after the originals by John Tenniel.