Faryl Smith (born 23 July 1995) is a British soprano who rose to fame after appearing on the second series of the ITV television talent show Britain's Got Talent in 2008. She received praise throughout the competition, and although the favourite to win after the second round, she finished outside the top three in the live final on 31 May. During the competition, she was tutored by singing coach Yvie Burnett and received offers from various record labels. After the show, she, unlike other finalists, did not sign with Simon Cowell's Syco, although she did appear on fellow finalist Andrew Johnston's debut album, One Voice.

In July 2009 it was announced that Smith was hoping to release her second album later in the year. In an interview, she expressed surprise and pleasure that the label wanted her to do another album so soon after the first. In September, further details about the album were released, including its name, Wonderland, and planned release date, 30 November. Smith claimed that Faryl "was an introduction to me and an introduction for me to recording", while Cohen, producer of both Faryl and Wonderland, said Smith had "matured as an artist since the first album and I have no doubt that once again, people will be astonished and moved by her performances". The album, which was recorded at Sarm Studios in Notting Hill, London, was completed in early October, and is loosely based on Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland. Wonderland was released on 30 November. To publicise the album, Smith appeared on numerous radio shows, as well as television appearances including Ready Steady Cook, Blue Peter, the BBC News Channel, The Alan Titchmarsh Show and Sky News Sunrise.  Wonderland was well received by critics; Paul Callan, reviewing the album for the Daily Express, described it as "a joy". He compared it to other Christmas albums, saying that "[t]oo many are tired, much-repeated carol selections." He described Smith's "control, tone and warmth" as "very moving". Andy Gill, reviewing Wonderland for The Independent, gave a less positive review. He said that the influence of Alice in Wonderland was often hard to perceive and that Cohen and Smith had "sweetened the classical elements". However, he praised the arrangements of "Adiemus", "Barcarolle", "Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence" and "Blow The Wind Southerly", but noted that on tracks including "Close To You", "the lack of emotional weight is telling." Overall, Gill gave Wonderland 3 out of 5. However, the album failed to perform as well as Faryl; it entered the British album charts at number 56 for the week ending 12 December before dropping to number 92 the following week and then out of the top 100. After Wonderland, Smith's contract with Universal ended, and she subsequently received less attention from the press. Smith described the break with the label as mainly her decision, as she needed to focus on her A levels, which would allow her to get to university, explaining in an interview that "It wasn't like it ended horribly."  Smith performed at the 2009 Royal Variety Performance in front of Queen Elizabeth II, where she sang "God Save the Queen" with The Soldiers. She later said that the experience, including subsequently meeting the Queen, as the highlight of her year. Smith also performed elsewhere with The Soldiers, including at St Paul's Cathedral and Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital.Answer this question using a quote from the following article:

What else did others think?
Paul Callan, reviewing the album for the Daily Express, described it as "a joy".