Wicked

Wicked by Gregory Maguire

When Dorothy's house comes hurtling out of the sky and falls on the Wicked Witch of the East in Frank Baum's tale The Wonderful Wizard of Oz readers are introduced to her sister, the Wicked Witch of the West. Gregory Maguire has taken this classic tale and filled in the blanks, giving us a background on this seemingly evil character. Will your interpretation of Frank Baum's novel change once you've heard both sides of the story? Afterall, maybe the Wicked Witch of the West hadn't always been so evil...

This novel was fantastic! I couldn't read it fast enough and I was really sad to finish it. I have only seen the movie adaptation of "The Wizard of Oz", so my interpretation of the original story is taken from that movie rather than from Frank Baum's novel. Gregory Maguire's Wicked fills in the blanks almost flawlessly. Readers are transported further back into the history of the land of Oz and introduced to an odd, young, green child named Elphaba who grows up to become the misunderstood Wicked Witch of the West. This novel is extremely well written and gives the reader a wider understanding of the land of Oz, including its politics and the insurrection of the people against the Wizard.

I very highly recommend this novel to anyone looking for a good, rewarding read. This is a novel that I will think about often and I already cannot wait to re-read it. This is a must, must read!