Witches and magic–what could go wrong? I read this mostly out of curiosity–who can resist anything connected to the phenomenal story and movie, The Wizard of Oz. It’s the prequel, by an entirely different author, of course, but Maguire is a very good writer–and if you think you can skim through this book with the brain power of watching the movie, you’re going to miss a lot. I had to read some of the sentences twice or more to “get” the intent, but it was always worth it. Here’s a sample:
“People who claim that they’re evil are usually no worse than the rest of us… It’s people who claim that they’re good, or any way better than the rest of us, that you have to be wary of.”
I see from the reviews that some people didn’t like that Maguire never explained some things, like why Elphaba’s skin is green. Who cares–why does there have to be an explanation? I thought it was hysterical that she was a green baby and liked to bite people with her wicked sharp teeth.
The book is like the movie, in that it mixes magic with reality. But, Maguire does it with the same level of believability–I was hooked from the start and almost read the thing in one setting. But drinking tequila in Mexico interfered somewhat.
Maguire is very creative–who would dare to take on such a formidable task. You would risk alienating witch lovers and munchkins worldwide. We’re treated to all the things that make up the iconic Wicked Witch of the West. Her sex life, her conflict with her sisters, her struggle with evil politicians, her attempt to save mistreated Animals (as opposed to regular animals–note the capital A–very important), and her final confrontation with Dorothy.
This books is just wicked good.