Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (Harper Fiction)

Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (Harper Fiction) | Gregory Maguire | Ozmazing....

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Wicked: The Life a...

	Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (Harper Fiction) Gregory Maguire Harper, 2007 - 560 pages average customer review:based on 1439 reviews view larger image
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When Dorothy triumphed over the Wicked Witch of the West in L. Frank Baum's classic tale, we heard only her side of the story. But what about her arch-nemesis, the mysterious witch? Where did she come from? How did she become so wicked? And what is the true nature of evil?

Gregory Maguire creates a fantasy world so rich and vivid that we will never look at Oz the same way again. Wicked is about a land where animals talk and strive to be treated like first-class citizens, Munchkinlanders seek the comfort of middle-class stability and the Tin Man becomes a victim of domestic violence. And then there is the little green-skinned girl named Elphaba, who will grow up to be the infamous Wicked Witch of the West, a smart, prickly and misunderstood creature who challenges all our preconceived notions about the nature of good and evil.

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the details that Mr. Braum did not envision

"Wicked" by Gregory Maguire, © 1995 (?)

This is a pretty good story. I really enjoyed the filling in of all the details that Mr. Braum did not envision. The reality of life in Oz is really something that he was glossing over, and this story puts it to rights, sort of. There are a lot of loopholes and other problems here, but by and large, Mr. Maguire does a really good job of describing Oz as it must have been.

Ozmazing....

I have never seen the musical "Wicked" nor have I heard the music from it. The only thing I've ever seen of the musical was the minute or so clip from it on "Ugly Betty" last season. I have, however, read the classic "Wizard of OZ" and seen (numerous times) and loved the MGM movie. Seeing the book on every bookshelf from Borders to Wal-Mart to Walgreens finally peaked my interest enought to purchase the book. I went into this with ABSOLUTELY no expectations whatsoever. I was hooked immediately into the story with the birth of Elphaba, the little green baby with sharp teeth who later became the Wicked Witch of the West. The baby Elphaba was literally a monster when she was born but as she aged Elphie became a normal young woman. Or as normal as she could be, what with her green skin and all. We follow Ephaba as she leaves home and goes a woman's boarding school/college. There she becomes roomates with Galinda, a snotty thing. Galinda of course later becomes Glinda, the Good Witch. From this point on we follow Elphaba's life and slowly witness the events that later change this intelligent woman into a wicked witch. This story isn't for children, or the easily offended. If someone is completely obsessed with the movie Wizard of Oz, and you don't want that image tarnished, skip this one. We definately see a side of Oz, Frank never intended us to see. Maguire's Oz makes a lot of sense. It is apparent the author truly knows his "Wizard of Oz" from the book to the movie. I found that a lot of blanks were filled in for me here, while also allowing me at least a degree of empathy for the Wicked Witch. Only the last fifth of the book or so, brings in Dorothy and her motley crew, the scarecrow, lion, tinman, and Toto. Maguire follows this part of the story fairly closely. The only things that really stood out to me was the fact that Elphaba wasn't present to see her sister lying dead beneath Dorothy's house, and the Wizard of Oz is truly the evil party here. There was no kind man behind the face of the Wizard here. This guy comes off like a fictionalized Hitler. There was also no scene involving Dorothy and crew getting their desires and learning they already had them all along. Again, this isn't your normal fairy tale. And it defenately isn't a book for your kids. There is plenty of sex here, far more than should have been in my opinion. Of course I've read worse, but that part just feels odd in Oz. The lion talking about castration made me balk a little...but maybe that's one of the intents in "Wicked". I found myself thinking about this book awhile after I finished it. Tracing back how Elphaba drifted down the path of wickedness. I think the seed was always there and she fought to be normal, and then it just became to much for her. I'm babbling here too much. This book was amazing, far more than I ever intended. I did a little research into the musical "Wicked" and I can say it appears to be very different and a lot more kid friendly. I can't say that those changes will sit well with me because I truly love this story as it stands.

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Wickedly fantastic!

I always knew that Dorothy was a naive, little twit. As an author, I admire how Maguire redeems a misunderstand, archetypal character. Elphaba is a heroine for the 21st century and beyond. This is one read that will stay with you.
Amber LaShea Holmes
Snow White on Acid: Nine Fantastical Nightmares

Better than I expected

The book was in even better condition than I expected. It shipped very quickly and in about 3 business days after i placed my order, it was in my mailbox. The service is great and I definetely would keep ordering from here.

Unexpected

First of all I must admit that I've never read the original Wizard of Oz. Of course, I have seen the movie with Judy Garland, and I even saw Sci Fi's attempt at a miniseries, Tin Man.

Wicked is a thought provoking work. I suppose as a treatise on good and evil, politics and education it has it's merits. I found it a bit tedious to get into, and kept wondering how the whole piece related to the Wizard of Oz I was familiar with. I saw no relationship between the Wicked Witch I am familiar with from the movie and Elphaba the protagonist of this story.

I prefer my leisure reading to be for entertainment. This book doesn't really fit that description. It was very heavy on the political overtones to the point of being almost preachy. Personally, that turns me off in a book.

I might pick up the sequel just to see what happens with some of the loose ends, but I can think of other works I'd rather read first.

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