***** - Excellent
**** - Good
*** - Okay
** - Bad
* - Terrible
+ - Half-star
The Wizard of Oz
(The Oz series, Book 1)
L. Frank Baum
Puffin
Fiction, YA Fantasy
****
DESCRIPTION: Young Dorothy of Kansas, caught in her house with her dog Toto during a tornado, finds herself in a strange and magical land where she is hailed as a
hero: her house landed on the Wicked Witch of the East, ending her reign of terror over the peaceful Munchkins. The good news is there's only one Wicked Witch left in all
the land of Oz. The bad news is, the great and powerful Wizard of Oz won't send Dorothy home until she, Toto, and her unlikely companions - the Tin Woodsman, the Scarecrow,
and the Cowardly Lion - destroy her.
REVIEW: Okay, okay, I admit it. I'd only seen the movie. A while ago, I realized that there are a few books I've never read and probably should, and for some reason
this one wound up on my list. This fairy tale, considered by many to be the first such story of any notoriety written by an American, was first published in 1900. It holds
up fairly well, and has a certain whimsical charm about it that is indeed timeless. It's different enough from the classic Judy Garland musical movie that it's worth one's
while to read the book in addition to seeing the movie. A fairly simple tale, yet not too simple to be enjoyed.
You might also enjoy:
The Everworld series (K. A. Applegate, YA Fiction - Four Chicago teens are pulled into a world where magic and elder gods reign)
Peter Pan (James M. Barrie, YA Fiction - The boy who refuses to grow up leads three English children to the magical island of Neverland)
Peter and the Starcatchers (Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, YA? Fiction - In a prequel to Peter Pan, an orphan boy discovers a potent magical substance called starstuff)
The Sea Fairies (L. Frank Baum, YA Fiction - Young Trot and Cap'n Bill visit the wonder-filled realm of the mermaids)
Magic Kingdom For Sale - Sold! (Terry Brooks, Fiction - A laywer buys a magic kingdom in a catalog)
A Princess of Mars (Edgar Rice Burroughs, Fiction - A Civil War veteran finds himself transported to the dying, hostile planet Mars)
Dragon Companion (Don Callander, Fiction - A librarian is suddenly transported to a world of elves and dragons)
The Best of Lewis Carroll (Lewis Carrol, YA Fiction - Classic tales by Lewis Carroll, including Alice in Wonderland, Through the Looking Glass, and more)
Gregor the Overlander (Suzanne Collins, YA Fiction - A modern boy and his toddler sister fall into a dark, strange world beneath New York City)
The Wiz Biz books (Rich Cook, Fiction - A Silicon Valley programmer is pulled into a magical world)
Coraline (Neil Gaiman, YA Fiction - A girl finds a surreal mirror version of her flat)
Librarian: Little Boy Lost (Eric Hobbs, YA Fiction - A bookish boy discovers secrets and dangers in a mysterious library)
The Book of Story Beginnings (Kristin Kladstrup, YA Fiction - Children who write stories in a special notebook find themselves living out the tale in real life)
Un Lun Dun (China Miéville, YA Fiction - Two English schoolgirls find their way to the bizarre "abcity" mirror of London)
The Diadem series (John Peel, YA Fiction - A strange messenger plucks three children from three worlds for a special quest)
Jake Ransom and the Skull King's Shadow (James Rollins, YA Fiction - An ancient artifact pulls two teens into a lost world)
The 100 Cupboards trilogy (N. D. Wilson, YA Fiction - A boy on a Kansas farm finds mysterious cupboard doors leading to other worlds)
The Wizard of Oz (70th Anniversary Two-Disc Special Edition)
(1939 movie DVD)
Return to Oz
(1985 movie DVD; Dorothy returns to Oz, finding the Emerald City in ruins and the Gnome King in charge)
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The Sea Fairies
(A Trot and Cap'n Bill Adventure, Book 1)
L. Frank Baum
Public Domain Books
Fiction, YA Fantasy
***
DESCRIPTION: Bold young Mayre, affectionately known as Trot, has always loved the sea. No wonder her best friend is Cap'n Bill, a peg-legged old sea dog who used to
sail with her skipper father. With pockets full of wonders and a head full of stories, he regales her on their many walks beside the seashore. One fine day, Bill tells Trot
about mermaids, sea-dwelling fairies so beautiful yet so dangerous that no sailor who ever met one lived to tell the tale. His story awes the girl, but inadvertently offends
eavesdropping mermaids. They offer to show Trot and Bill their wonder-filled world beneath the waves, to set the record straight. It's an offer neither of them can refuse.
Trot and Bill dive into an adventure far grander than any salty sailor yarn - but will they live to tell the tale?
REVIEW: A frivolous little fancy by the author of the Oz series, it follows the basic, non-threatening formula of many elder-day children's tales. A young hero (and
often a friend or two) encounter a friendly guide who takes them to a magical world, shows them pretty things, introduces them to benignly odd characters, then returns them
home with minimal fuss or bother. Any threat, usually minimal, is dealt with not by the young visitor but by the guide or another magical ally (save, perhaps, once or twice
toward the end, when the hero/heroine might make a minimal, even accidental, contribution to their own survival.) Such tension-free adventures remind me of those bland,
unappetizing yet healthy "treats" that well-meaning parents sneak into their children's lunches: no-calorie, sugar-free, fun-shaped objects that appeal more to overprotective
parents than the kids stuck eating them.
You might also enjoy:
The Everworld series (K. A. Applegate, YA Fiction - Four Chicago teens are pulled into a world where magic and elder gods reign)
Peter Pan (James M. Barrie, YA Fiction - The boy who refuses to grow up leads three English children to the magical island of Neverland)
Peter and the Starcatchers (Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, YA? Fiction - In a prequel to Peter Pan, an orphan boy discovers a potent magical substance called starstuff)
The Wizard of Oz (L. Frank Baum, YA Fiction - A tornado sweeps young Dorothy from Kansas into the magical land of Oz)
Magic Kingdom For Sale - Sold! (Terry Brooks, Fiction - A laywer buys a magic kingdom in a catalog)
A Princess of Mars (Edgar Rice Burroughs, Fiction - A Civil War veteran finds himself transported to the dying, hostile planet Mars)
Dragon Companion (Don Callander, Fiction - A librarian is suddenly transported to a world of elves and dragons)
The Best of Lewis Carroll (Lewis Carrol, YA Fiction - Classic tales by Lewis Carroll, including Alice in Wonderland, Through the Looking Glass, and more)
Gregor the Overlander (Suzanne Collins, YA Fiction - A modern boy and his toddler sister fall into a dark, strange world beneath New York City)
The Wiz Biz books (Rich Cook, Fiction - A Silicon Valley programmer is pulled into a magical world)
Coraline (Neil Gaiman, YA Fiction - A girl finds a surreal mirror version of her flat)
Librarian: Little Boy Lost (Eric Hobbs, YA Fiction - A bookish boy discovers secrets and dangers in a mysterious library)
The Book of Story Beginnings (Kristin Kladstrup, YA Fiction - Children who write stories in a special notebook find themselves living out the tale in real life)
Un Lun Dun (China Miéville, YA Fiction - Two English schoolgirls find their way to the bizarre "abcity" mirror of London)
The Diadem series (John Peel, YA Fiction - A strange messenger plucks three children from three worlds for a special quest)
Jake Ransom and the Skull King's Shadow (James Rollins, YA Fiction - An ancient artifact pulls two teens into a lost world)
The 100 Cupboards trilogy (N. D. Wilson, YA Fiction - A boy on a Kansas farm finds mysterious cupboard doors leading to other worlds)
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