|
| |||||||||||
What are readers saying about Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (Wicked Years)?
| Reviews of Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (Wicked Years) - Page 1 of 111 |
|
A Reader posted a review at 2009-01-25 08:31:08.
(Language: English)
 
Know Wizard of Oz, heard the musical, time to read the book. All I knew about it was that it was a background story of Wizard of Oz. Little did I know, it's not as related as I thought it'd be. Only the last 50 pages include familiar themes, but I won't go as far as to say that took away from the book. It was quite original on its own. Very creative and unlike anything else I've ever read, actually.REVIEW FOR SCHOOL: - We all know about the green Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz, but who is she? What's her story? That is what "Wicked" sets out to tell. The tale of the green character, Elphaba (a name Maguire chose due to the initials of the author of "The Wizard of Oz," L. Frank Baum: L.F.B....Elphaba. Savvy?) illustrates the challenges she had to face, being the only green human around. Readers get to see what she was like as a baby, as a bright and opinionated teenager in college (my favorite part of the story--very Harry Potter), and as a lonely woman with little to call her own. How did she become a witch? Why is she deemed "wicked?" Other familiars like Glinda the Good Witch, munchkins, and flying monkeys play their role as well. Gregory Maguire offers in "Wicked" an extremely creative adult extension of a child's story. -- I really enjoyed the character of Elphaba because she reminds me a bit of myself. She doesn't mind being alone with a book. She sometimes presents herself as unwelcoming, but she's really quite enjoyable when people actually take the time to get to know her. She's got talents she never knew she had, and isn't at all what people expected her to be. I wish I could say I was as witty as she, but I can't even pretend that's true. All the other characters were very well-developed as well. I enjoyed how Maguire, though determined to make the story his own, didn't destroy every image I had of the characters from the original Oz. He only embellished them quite wonderfully. -- "Wicked," has a lot of underlying themes: Good vs. Evil, discrimination, corruption--but the majority was political. I never have had an interest in things of the sort. Maguire does make very strong political points throughout the book's entirety, actually, but he does it in a way very connected with the story, so it flows easily with the reading. End run-on sentence. -- I think the people who will like this book are those who enjoy the adventures, people, and lands of "The Lord of the Rings," the friendships and atmosphere of "Harry Potter," the steam of raunchy romance novels, and the discriminatory history of textbooks...only more interesting. 
|
Yes (0) 
No (0)
|
Laura posted a review at 2010-05-21 11:41:02.
(Language: English)
I don’t think I got this book. One of my bus buddies gave it to me. A lovely woman, fellow governmental factotum, that I walk onto the campus with fairly often. A while back, she’d brought up Narnia as a fond part of her childhood, I’d somewhat awkwardly brought up The Problem of Susan, we had a moment of connection. She really attached to this one. But I don’t think I got it. It seemed to me to be a meditation on impotence. All these people who ultimately live lives that never climax, just stop or fade away. Our wicked witch means well, strive hard, and dies for nothing at all. A bumbling attempt at kindness from bumbling farm girl trying to do the right thing and utterly misunderstanding the consequences of her actions. I described it to J on a walk last night, trying to unlock it. He suggested it was really about the arc of the baby boomer’s attempt at meaning. And I can see that. A grandiose beginning, full of sound and fury, signifying . . .not as much as you might want. Nothing’s bad about it. Nothing made me roll my eyes. But if there was a little deeper level, I never heard its echoes.
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2008-10-07 03:03:03.
(Language: English)
I made the mistake of reading this as a prelude to seeing the Broadway musical. I thought it would help to understand the story before seeing the musical, as I figured I wouldn’t be able to make out much of the song lyrics. Big mistake! I spent half the musical complaining that it was nothing like the book! SO see the musical, by all means, just don’t dream of reading the book as any kind of guide to it! What about the book, you say? Well, having read the “Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister” by the same author, I had very high hopes for this one, but I was a little disappointed. You know the story; it’s a biography of the Wicked Witch of the West and her sister the Wicked Witch of the East and their school friend Glinda the Witch of the North (yes they all apparently went to school together). The witch is not wicked at all; in fact she is a campaigner for Animals’ rights. This campaign gets her exiled by the evil dictator-wizard of Oz, and then she starts to employ more magic in her anti-establishment campaigns. I felt that the story started well, but lost the thread in the last third or so, as the traveler from Kansas arrived. It did not really resolve that in my opinion, and so I was left with a kind of anti-climax ending; yes I knew what it would be, but it wasn’t achieved as well as it could have been. And yes, the musical does it much better! So it’s a worth a read, but I’d go for “Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister” first.Quote-right
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2008-07-16 05:47:26.
(Language: English)
"The libertine is always the worst moralist"I finished after slogging through it for the last two or so weeks. It's billed as a comic allegory, a satire, and a "fantastical meditation on good and evil, God and free will."Hogwash. It's a self-indulgent, juvenile tirade against faith and authority that fizzles out into a wishy-washy "but then again, maybe not."Maguire retells the backstory of the life of the Wicked Witch of the West, trying to explain the familial, religious, inter-personal, and political reasons that fated a precocious green-skinned Munchin girl to become the Witch. Was it fate: did all these things conspire together that hurled poor Elphaba (as she's called) down the road of wickedness? If so, could she then truly be called evil?The book flirts with the idea of forgiveness and whether anything can truly be forgiven, but Maguire never really seems to have a grasp on it--or even on the dozen other metaphysical ideas he scatters about in novel.And as far as it being a comic novel: early on there were some chuckles, but by the end the quips tossed by some characters were drowned out by Maguire's clumsy heavy hand at ... well ... moralizing. "The libertine is always the worst moralist," or something like that, the saying goes.
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2009-11-30 10:21:55.
(Language: English)
I'm floored. I can't begin to explain how unimpressed I was with this novel. I remember my Freshman year in college EVERYONE was reading this book. I'm afraid I missed the appeal entirely. It was everything I could do just to finish this novel. I found Maguire's preoccupation with the physical relationships of his characters not only unnecissary but distracting. Often the expanse with which sexual encounters were discussed contributed very little to the novel considering the amount of time they absorbed. Furthermore I felt the book had your stereotypical "swiss cheese" plot. You get the basic outline of what occured, but the story came off as little more than a cause-effect description. Whole gaps of time are missing where one assumes a character's personality would have been shaped. We don't see this metamorphosis, though. We're simply left with the after effets and expected to put the pieces together ourselves. Lastly, because of these huge gaps in time, I found it very difficult to connect with any of the characters. I always felt like I was watching the world at a distance rather than sitting by Elphaba-- empathetic to her turmoil and cheering her on. Maybe this was the authors intention. Perhaps I've missed hook, but over all I would not recommed this book to anyone. The premise is creative-- revisiting old favorite tales and putting a twist on them. I don't believe Maguire successfully followed the device through, though. I'm sure the musical is charming, and if anything reading this book simply embedded me with a higher respect for its directors who were obviously able to take a dead story and infuse it with the life and emotion this book so desperately lacks.
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2010-06-23 12:52:21.
(Language: English)
Gregory Maguire gives us a well written book on the life of the Wicked Witch of the West. The story is interesting, intriguing and, what I least expected, dark. Elphaba is definitely a person you can empathize with because in the end, she is a person. The history that Maguire gives to her allows one to see a possible different perspective on how things were in the land of OZ. Though I enjoyed the book overall and the creative ways that Maguire takes in giving us Elphaba's life story, for my taste, the novel touches too much on politics and religion. Though their is no blatant agenda in the inclusion of both in the story (in the end, everything is really up in the air), I wanted more of Elphaba and her life. Maybe I'm missing the whole point because her life was surrounded by politics and religion, shaping the person that she became. But by the end of the story, I felt that the book was more of a history of OZ than Elphaba (which was what I was expecting). There were some great moments in the book that I enjoyed reading. But the book is definitely dense. Definitely not a book to just skim through. You would miss a lot of you did. Although this is not really my cup of tea, I would recommend this book because it is beautifully written and creatively interesting. It doesn't hurt to expand the types of books one is used to reading. Enjoy!
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2010-08-12 04:15:14.
(Language: English)
I finally finished after slogging through it for the last two or so weeks. It's billed as a comic allegory, a satire, and a "fantastical meditation on good and evil, God and free will." Hogwash. It's a self-indulgent, juvenile tirade against faith and authority that fizzles out into a wishy-washy "but then again, maybe not." Maguire retells the backstory of the life of the Wicked Witch of the West, trying to explain the familial, religious, inter-personal, and political reasons that fated a precocious green-skinned Munchin girl to become the Witch. Was it fate: did all these things conspire together that hurled poor Elphaba (as she's called) down the road of wickedness? If so, could she then truly be called evil? The book flirts with the idea of forgiveness and whether anything can truly be forgiven, but Maguire never really seems to have a grasp on it--or even on the dozen other metaphysical ideas he scatters about in novel. And as far as it being a comic novel: early on there were some chuckles, but by the end the quips tossed by some characters were drowned out by Maguire's clumsy heavy hand at ... well ... moralizing. "The libertine is always the worst moralist," or something like that, the saying goes.
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2009-11-12 04:09:13.
(Language: English)
FANTASTIC BOOK!!!!!!! I would reccommend it to ANYONE! :-) I know some of my friends mentioned that when I first started reading it that they were hesitant to read it because they loved The Wizard of Oz so much that they didn't want to ruin that by reading a "fan fiction" piece of one of the characters. I get that I guess. But after having read it now, I wouldn't see it as ruining your image of it per se, but it definately changes how you watch the movie. For example, she's not "The Wicked Witch of the West" to me any more, she's Elphie! Funny how once you give something a name, a character, a history, the label of something falls away, ya know? But I just loved how this formerly one dimentional character now has a history, a psychology, a reason for why she was the way she became. And isn't that true of most people that are categorized as "bad, evil, wicked" to begin with, that there is a reason for it; it's never just some arbitrary character flaw; it's just that most people never care enough to be bothered to find out why, to try to love or help them. I found/find myself really realting to Elphie to the point that I see her now as a sympathetic character. So this definitely has fallen under the category of my favorite books! :-) A definite must-read!
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2007-12-28 10:34:58.
(Language: English)
I picked up this book (in English) with the expectation of a light-hearted, comical twist on a classic, but the psychological profile of misunderstood Elphaba and darkly familiar warning against political and moral corruption were anything but that. The cruel dictatorial reign of the once simple wizard, the manipulative hypocrisy of Madame Morrible, the largely overlooked assassination of Dr. Dillamond and subsequent oppression of the Animals, the idealism of youth and demolition of ideals with age... This book proved to be much more realistic, much more terrible, and much more wonderful than I'd expected. Through it all, I fell in love with Elphaba - with innocent Miss Elphie, with impassioned Fae, even with the bitterly broken Wicked Witch. I enjoyed the linguistic subtlety with which Maguire transitions between these aspects of her character, the uncanny mirroring of real-life political and social systems, and the complex portrayal of the intimate intertwining of good and evil inherent in all. To paraphrase Glinda post-Shiz, everything in the world changes you, but you've still got some choice. And in this central theme lies a bittersweet mix of hope and despair. Elphaba sums up this book - and life - when she says that "there is much to hate in this world, and too much to love."
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2010-03-03 10:12:44.
(Language: English)
I was excited to read this book, but sadly did not enjoy it. Mainly because it centers around the politics of Oz, and I'm not one interested much in politics. It's full of coups, controversial laws, terrorist organizations, conspiracy theories; Maguire evidently bringing today's social and political climate to Oz. Can you imagine all the little munchkins, like the Lollipop Guild, fighting to secede from the Land of Oz? Not that I am accusing Maguire of desecrating a childhood classic as it would be interesting if I had any political interest. Secondly, I didn't connect with any of the characters. While I liked Elphaba, rarely did I have a deep emotional attachment to her or for her; however, never did I dislike her. And finally, I didn't care much for Maguire's writing; to me it didn't flow well. One of my main annoyances which may sound silly is that he threw crude words into his writing that was more formal and sophisticated. I have no problem with rough language given it mirrors the characters and context of the story, but it doesn't fit here. Maguire did pose some interesting questions addressing good vs evil and what that is exactly; as well as whether your destiny is set at your birth or you make your own destiny, or if there is a higher authority working for or against you. To end on a positive note, I did enjoy the last section of the book where Dorothy is introduced. Bottom line: if politics is one of your interests, you should enjoy Wicked; if you are looking for a good fantasy read to get lost in (in the vein of Harry Potter, Twilight) then go ahead and pass this one up.
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2010-07-09 10:46:20.
(Language: English)
I read the original Wizard of Oz to Gigi and Elijah during our schooling. I rated it a 3.5 out of 5*. I saw 'Wicked' the stage-show three times in London, with various visitors. I enjoyed it but wouldn't say it was my favourite of all the shows we saw. The book is good. It moved along not so very quickly until somewhere around the middle of the book. Then I felt it began to be interesting. I enjoyed the characters and the way they came to life. I enjoyed the protrayal of Elphaba except for a few things. I very much liked Fiyero. I didn't like that the two of them finally came together while he was married. But that's just me. I don't know how I missed the fact, right away, that Liir was obviously her son. I did, however predict, as Elphaba did, that Fiyero might return as the Scarecrow. I was greatly disillusioned when that didn't happen. I feel it would have added SO MUCH more depth! From the point where we realize the Scarecrow wasn't Fiyero things just fell apart for me. I thought there could have been even more intrigue, and certainly more loose ends tied up. I mean, Maguire worked very hard to make all the many varied connections throughout and then seemed to just end the book. There was no resolution for Elphaba. She never fully realized her maternal feelings toward Liir although I enjoyed seeing her attempt to come to terms with some sort of 'love' for him. She never achieved possession of Nessa's shoes from Dorothy. She never found out what exatlly happened to Sarima and her sisters and her son. And most glaringly, she never achieved ANY resolution toward the reinstatement of rights for Animals. Maguire seemed to be making a parallel statement of Animals vs animals that I felt was supposed to have some greater reflection on our society. I also felt he was alluding to something with regard to religion. If so, at least for me, he didn't make those statements clearly enough for me and so it remained a story, but one that was very involved, and, in the end, unfulfilling. If Maguire had connected the dots for me, as above, there is no way I'd have not rated this book 5*. The lack of finishing the story, in my opinion, brings it down to 4*, disappointingly. On the final page we are left with 'In the life of a Witch, ther eis no after, in the ever after of a Witch, there is no happily; in the story of a Witch, there is no afterword. Of that part that is beyond the life story, beyond the story of the life, there is --alas, or perhaps thank mercy--no telling. She was dead, dead and gone, and all that was left of her was the carapace of her reputation for malice.' How very sad that makes me feel. I will list some quotes from the book that I feel were meaningful or just well written. As a new user of the Nook I unfortunately lost a very FUNNY quote of dialogue between Elphaba and Liir with regard to Dorothy and his onset of puberty. If I can find it I will add it to the list! 'But the Witch stopped herself short, hearing in her words about Madame Morrible--she had a choice--an echo of what the Elephant Princess Nastoya had once said to her: No one controls your destiny. Even at the very worst--there is always choice.' pg. 343. 'The nature of the world is to be calm, and enhance and support life, and evil is an absence of the inclination of matter to be at peace.' pg 344 'Evil is an act, not an appetite. How many haven't wanted to slash the throat of some boor across the dining room table? Present company excepted of course. Everyone has the appetite. If you give in to it, it, thta act is evil. The appetite is normal.' pg 345 'She was thirty-eight, and just realizing what it felt like to have a sense of home. For that, Sarima, thank you, she thought. Maybe the definition of home is the place where you are never forgiven, so you may always belong there, bound by guilt. And maybe the cost of belonging is worth it.' pg 350 "Boq returned the smile, warmly. 'Glinda used her glitter beads, and you used your exotic looks and background, but weren't you just doing the same thing, trying to maximize what you had in order to get what you wanted? People who claim that they're evil are usually no worse than the rest of us.' He sighed. 'It's people who cliam that they're good, or anyway better than the rest of us, that you have to be wary of.' pg 357 Here is the funniest portion in the book, in my opinion: "I want to mee Dorothy," he said. "You're not that age already, lease preserve us," she said. "I always intended to pickle ou before you got to puberty." pg 386
|
|
Jennifer posted a review at 2009-11-16 07:06:49.
(Language: English)
Reviewed by K. Osborn Sullivan for TeensReadToo.com Have you ever read a popular book and wondered why it was so popular? That's exactly how I felt as I worked my way through WICKED. Actually, that's not entirely true. I know why it's a New York Times Bestseller. Part of it has to do with the reason I picked the book up in the first place. I expected a light, fairy tale-like story. It's based on a children's book. There's a Broadway musical about it. Sounds like it should be fun, right? Uh, not quite. I get the feeling, though, that a lot of people thought as I did and bought WICKED looking for an easy-to-read lead-up to THE WIZARD OF OZ. I wonder how many of them finished reading the book when they figured out the truth? Although to be fair, WICKED doubtless also owes some of its popularity to the fact that it's a well-written, literary novel that can be appreciated by well-read, literary-type people. Unfortunately, I'm really not one of those. Giving me a piece of deep, meaningful literature is like giving a copy of Hemingway's THE OLD MAN AND THE SEA to a manatee. In other words, I was disappointed. My disappointment was partly in the book for not fulfilling my expectations, and partly in myself for not being able to appreciate a quality literary effort. In case you've been living in a hollowed out tree for the last couple of years and haven't heard about the play, WICKED is the story of the Wicked Witch of the West and how she became the Wicked Witch of the West. The book delves far deeper into the witch's life and times than any musical could in only two hours, however. In the book version of WICKED, readers are introduced to the witch, whose real name is Elphaba, when she is first born. She's green and has dangerous, pointy teeth. Needless to say, she's not too popular with the other children. Even her parents aren't too sure about her. As the story progresses, we see Elphaba at college. She falls in with a number of fellow students, some of whom are more and others less accepting of the strange green girl. It's not just her skin color that's different, though. Elphaba thinks and acts differently than other people. And she has this aversion to water.... Well, we all know how that turns out for her. The book is an interesting departure from the Oz books, including such details as why the Cowardly Lion is able to talk, and the fact that everyone in Oz thought Dorothy's dog, Toto, was the most irritating thing to ever draw breath. I wish, however, that I could have liked some of the characters. No one was particularly likeable, as far as I was concerned. Even Elphaba, who readers should have had some sympathy for, seemed odd to me, and I never understood her motivation for anything she did. In other words, I could have gotten over the fact that she was green, but it really bothered me that she didn't act normal. Also, a word of warning: Even though these are essentially fairy tale characters, this book treats them like adults, complete with sex, swearing, and the occasional murder. Younger readers should steer clear, and older readers should be aware of what's in store here. In general, I recommend this book for OLDER readers who are huge fans of the Oz books or the Wicked play and want to go deeper. According to my husband, who is capable of appreciating fine literature, it also has literary merit. But for those of us who want to keep our memories of the Oz stories as sweet as the old Judy Garland film was, those readers might want to be careful around WICKED.
|
|
Elizabeth posted a review at 2010-06-02 11:18:51.
(Language: English)
Knowing that every story has more than one side, Maguire has recreated Oz to show the Wicked Witch of the West’s point of view, in Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West. Is Elphie, as she is known by her friends (Yes, friends!), evil or just cranky in her misunderstood isolation? She is a woman who has been harassed since birth due to her appearance. She’s a smart person, dedicated to the pursuit of truth and improving life in Oz. She has little patience with social niceties; her friends must accept her as she is. She has a love of her life and loses him. After a few disappointments and recovering from a breakdown, she becomes a recluse, doing her own thing. She’s been called derogatory names all her life, so the Wicked Witch title is no surprise and does not disturb her, though it gets in the way when she’s forced to deal with others. In the end, she is not the only one misunderstood. She also misunderstands Dorothy and lacks the communication skills to work out the problem. The best part of the book is Elphie and her growth as a person. She’s a strong person struggling with defeat and doesn’t manage to figure out a course for her future; she retreats from life instead. In retreat, she finds some enjoyment and is relied upon by her companions. There are some interesting explorations of evil centering around religion, politics, and human behavior, mirroring our world. One particular idea is the reappearance of the character Yackle throughout the book. She appears as an Earth Mother, a legendary figure with roots beyond history, a blending of good and evil. She reminds me of Terry Pratchett’s anthropomorphic personifications (ex. Death, Hogfather). I wonder if her existence and the idea of evil are meant to be in the eye of the beholder. Evil is one of those things that is hard to pin down. We believe we know it when we see it; but what if we are not seeing clearly just then? I enjoyed Wicked despite its fits and starts. There were some slow moving parts. If you are the kind of person who needs an explanation for everything, this book may not be for you. The book leaves the reader with more questions than answers. Personally, I like that in a book. It touches on The Wizard of Oz story just enough to remind us that it’s Oz, a much more real and depressing Oz. But more interesting, too. There were some parts and characters I would have liked to see developed more – Boq (Elphie’s intellectual friend) and the Animals (having human qualities but animal forms)
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2009-06-14 03:41:46.
(Language: English)
What Master Do We Serve? Wicked is a thematically rich book, which I always applaud, but I can't help feeling that it's slightest bit over eager in what it's trying to achieve-- and it's no surprise that given the success of the musical, there is a mountain of hatred from fans of the stage adaptation who came to the novel afterward. What I didn't like about the novel, I think more than anything, was Maguire's lack of position on the themes he puts forth-- at least I didn't perceive that he had any definitive position other than "it's all in the eye of the beholder." Also troublesome is the Maguire's lack of interest in finishing his plot lines-- Once a reader has become caught up in the events of a given section, Maguire takes it away without any intent on returning it. The plight of the second, third and forth sections of the novel is never truly resolved except in broad unsatisfying way, save for the second section's main conflict which is never resolved at all. In all, I think I prefer to look at this book as Elphaba's long Shakespearian kind of fall; railing against the flow history, desperate in individual struggle, and brought down by her conspiracy theories and paranoia. In this way the book succeeds, it's just a pity that the plots Maguire opens couldn't have completely been tied off neatly at the end-- if they had, I don't suppose the book would be under so much criticism. Even now I'm not totally sure how I feel about the novel, but it was a mostly enjoyable read, with some pitchy parts when it strays far from the Oz the general public knows, or when it shifts direction so significantly. Though hazy, it's themes are at the least thought provoking.
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2011-01-17 12:28:52.
(Language: English)
Half star off for some questions left unanswered, but it is such a deliciously smart fantasy book, one that turns the very innocent and static story of the Wizard of Oz into something dark, something different. It's the honest, rock hard side of the story we think we know so well. It turns the black-and-white definitions of evil and wickedness a medium shade of gray, asking what the TRUE nature of evil is and how you consider one thing evil and another not. I'm not going to lie, I still have a myriad of questions in my head about this book--whether I am just too dense to pick up every little detail or because Maguire wanted to keep you questioning about things you think you've successfully defined, I don't know [I hope for the latter though, it makes me sound more intelligent]. I know that it may be important to keep this and the original The Wizard of Oz separate, but be forewarned, separation is quite a feat after reading this book.
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2010-04-11 07:42:47.
(Language: English)
I read this book awhile ago, shortly after it was released in hardcover, and decided to read it again before I picked up the rest of the series. In Wicked, we read about the life of Elphaba, eventually known as the wicked witch of the west. We visit the shocking circumstances of her birth - the first green child ever seen. We follow her as she grows up, a fairly normal childhood, and then leaves for school. While at school she meets the rest of our cast of characters and becomes very politically active. Here is where the book really becomes interesting so I won't say too much more and risk giving too much away. I actually loved the young Elphaba and enjoyed seeing her grow up and learn. Maguire shows us a side of her story that does not stray from the facts of the original Wizard of Oz, but gives us an alternate viewpoint where evil may not really be so evil. Elphaba is just like any other person in the land of Oz, but gets a bad reputation by standing up to the Wizard and the things he does that she feels are wrong. Wicked is a quick read with enjoyable characters throughout. While the story is familiar, it is told in a way that makes it seem brand new. I hope to start Son of a Witch soon. 4/5
|
|
Shannon posted a review at 2010-04-29 04:49:13.
(Language: English)
This book was, for me, an extremely tedious read. The first half was okay but not great, I thought it was slow because we were being introduced to the characters and settings, etc. Unfortunately, it never picked up steam, it just got weird, then it got ridiculous. I have a pretty good suspension of disbelief, but I really did not believe the character's motivations for most of their actions. I think this is because I didn't really KNOW their personalities. Sure, Maguire went on about them for pages and pages, but it didn't grant us any insight into the characters. They would do things and I would find myself wondering why, why, why?? The plot... can't really pinpoint what it was exactly. I know it was supposed to be the life of the Wicked Witch, which it was, but there was so much extra stuff that just didn't need to be there. Her college years felt like just a bunch of spoiled rich kids whining about stuff. Maybe that's what it was supposed to be, I don't know, it just came off as annoying. Her life after that seemed, from what I can gather, out of character. She spends a lot of time just relying on a man. Up until that point she was just grumpy and only relied on herself, then she gets out of college, and starts relying on a guy and is still grumpy. Every major change just happened very suddenly. I know Maguire was trying really hard to put in some kind of political agenda. The book is so thick with it I'm surprised it doesn't rub off on the readers hands when touching the book. Unfortunately I have no idea what that agenda is, from things I've read online it sounds like he's trying to criticize American Politics and Organized Religion, and that's really painfully obvious in his scene involving the "Philosophy Club." It's so forced though. That's the biggest cause of tedium in this book, everything just seems forced and crammed in there. It's like he's trying to cram all his personal opinions into this world where it really doesn't belong, and it overpowers the story. Pile on top of that the fact that his language is so THICK. Don't get me wrong, I'm not against books with a good vocabulary, but this is really excessive. I don't know Maguire, and I don't know what's in his mind, but to me, it FELT like he was just throwing in "college words" to seem more intelligent. It made it frustrating to read, and a lot of the time I found my mind drifting away while I was reading. That seems to be the theme of this book though, unnecessary. This really affects the method of storytelling and was frustrating. Whenever he'd bring up a new event or character or something that is seemingly important (like the introduction of a Lion which hints that it might just be the cowardly lion) he just grazes over it, or completely changes the subject or day or month and never returns to that idea. When there's an idea or point of view that he wants to express though, we get to read a discussion that goes on for pages and pages. He wants a discussion about the nature of good and evil and there it is, wedged into the story in a long discussion between a few characters. He wants an allegory for how bad organized religion is then we get the Philosophy Club. It doesn't feel like a natural progression of the story. It feels like he wrote the story, then went back and added in all these big ideas and discussions to beef it up. I know that probably ISN'T what happened, but that's certainly how it reads. Another big thing is that her conflict with Dorthy seems like just an afterthought!! Dorthy is kind of mentioned a few times in the second half of the book, then at the end.... BOOM the confrontation which is just a huge letdown, and a little bit of wrap-up afterward. I know it's not ABOUT Dorthy, but I feel like she plays a pretty big role in the whole Wizard of Oz story. I know a lot of people really, really LOVED Wicked, and that's great. I really don't understand WHY, but I'm glad that it reaches people. For me though, this was just a TERRIBLE book, and has permanently turned me off from his books.
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2008-09-16 09:56:43.
(Language: English)
If you go into this story with expectations of a retelling of the classic "Wizard of Oz", then you may be disappointed...but enter with an open mind and a desire to be fully entertained, you'll find yourself incredibly satisfied by the end of this "Wicked"-good book.Gregory Maguire sets out on an ambitious journey into the story that we grew up with, but by giving it a clever twist and fleshing out the characters we never got to know in the original. Yes, we all know about Dorothy and her annoying little dog...the twister, the house... But, how much were we told about how Oz came to be, or Munchkinland, or the Wizard himself? We were expected to accept these places and things as they were, without any explanation, and as kids, we did. We accepted that Glinda was the good witch and that the Wicked Witch of the West was evil...but why? Well, when you read "Wicked", you get the story, warts and all! You find that perhaps the Wicked Witch of the West (born Elphaba) wasn't entirely acting out of pure evil at all, nor was Glinda acting on behalf of all that's good. You find that perhaps there was a lot more going on in that particular world than you ever imagined...but luckily for all of us, Maguire does an excellent job of imagining it for us! The politics, the treachery, the origin of The Wiz himself...all of this included in this highly readable, immensely likeable book!Don't start it expecting to read another take on Dorothy or her adventure in the "wonderful Land of Oz". She doesn't even enter into the picture until the very end! What you will find is an incredibly imagined story, for adults, that you'll find yourself thinking about for a long time after you've finished reading it!
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2010-09-24 07:33:20.
(Language: English)
Gregory Maguire’s Wicked is a full-scale fantasy novel telling the life story of the Wicked Witch of the West in Frank Baum’s classic tale, The Wizard of Oz. Although it is fantasy, it reads like a realistic biography and character study as well as social and philosophical commentary on religious and political issues. We learn not only about the Witch and her family, but also about Oz and its political power struggles and social prejudices. And about it’s amoral ruling Wizard! A theme that permeates the book is most clearly expressed in a conversation with the Witch near the end of the book: “…weren’t you just doing the same thing, trying to maximize what you had in order to get what you wanted? People who claim that they’re evil are usually no worse than the rest of us…. Its people who claim they are good, or anyway better than the rest of us, that you have to be wary of.” Several characters are well developed to support this theme. In the end, the almost puritanical Witch of the West cannot grant forgiveness to Dorothy for accidentally killing her sister, though she also had wanted forgiveness for a much more deliberate transgression of her own. Because of the way Maquire has analyzed the issues throughout the book, we can’t help but wondering whether if she had chosen faith in the transcendent God she would have been able to forgive and been saved from her fate. Everyone already knows what happened, though, because Maguire agrees with Baum’s account of how Dorothy accidentally killed the Witch. This unabridged audio edition is superb thanks John McDonough’s expressive interpretive reading.
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2011-08-17 09:33:00.
(Language: English)
There have been a number of parodies, satires, remakes, sequels and more surrounding L. Frank Baum's classic story 'The Wizard of Oz'. Very few, however, come close to recreating the land over the rainbow than this biography of the Wicked Witch of the West. Born Elphaba of the ancient House of Thropp, she came into the world with green skin, an allergic reaction to water and pointed teeth. The story gets weirder from there, covering her years at Shiz University, her relationship with her family, especially her physically challenged sister Nessarose (later to become the Witch of the East) and the beautiful Galinda (later Glinda, the Witch of the North). We learn of Fyero, the love of her life, her time in the Oz Underground fighting the forces of the mysterious Wizard and her later years in a monastery with a young boy named Liir. We learn of her plans to earn her father's favor and how they were upset by the arrival of a girl from a 'star' called Kansas. Maguire weaves a carefully crafted tale with characters known to all...and yet unknown.
|
|
|
Emily posted a review at 2007-09-28 04:41:47.
(Language: English)
Unlike many other readers on this site... there were too many parts of this story where I wanted to beat my head against a brick wall. Sorry, but that is my opinion and I am happily sticking with it. Maguire's pathalogical need to break what he apparently thinks to be "barriers" in the personalites of the classic Oz characters leaves us with rather blatant stereotypes. Sure, he probably did not intend them, but it still happens. Everytime he comes close to an original break-through on a character, he seems to get bored and leave them as a half-formed figure. Oh, I'm certain there are plenty of readers who will be dazzled by the psychological displays of angst, but there really isn't much there. The "true story" angle has been done to death, but even so I'm sure it's possible to make for something original, if one tries. No, Maguire just gives us the usual angst and cliche situations whilst pretending he's going above and beyond. Okay, now for the good stuff. There were moments where I was not beating my head against that brick wall. There were moments where I was considerably enthralled. The idea is pretty cool, and Maguire brings in some fantastic bits of writing, and how could you not love this deeper, more serious look at Oz, complete with a healthy mythology and social system? But Maguire's big mistake was that he tried too hard to capture philosophy and character to make an obnoxious social commentary. Honestly, most of the time I was bored out of my mind.
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2007-07-31 12:47:04.
(Language: English)
I read this book not actually knowing it's link to the musical, and not really knowing much about the musical itself, except the song "Popular" which i wasn't exactly crazy about. However, once i discovered that it was infact the musical i was intigued, especially at the genious that must've gone into transforming it into a stage-play. The book itself was very good as a whole, and i see it as a must read for everyone at some point in their life, may i emphasize SOME POINT. For young readers this would by far be a book to avoid, you have to have patience for long descriptions, be prepared to flip back and re read when you forget something, and be dedicated to read all the way through. Gregory Maguire Turns the Wicked Witch into a young Elphaba, a character that catches the readers attention from the begining, a passionate, inspired yet misunderstood girl, set appart by her green skin. Elphaba grows up accustomed to her father's negligence, and the Ozian's judgemental looks due to her appearance. This book not only flips our views of the Witch but also the Oz which we first saw in L. Frank Baum's The Wizard of Oz, showing a all around more developped Oz. Even the Wizard himself is shown through a different light as a manipulating and evil dictator. With all this said, Wicked's explicit sexual content really makes it a book that should not be read to children as a bedtime story. There were moments when i was flat out disgusted at how explicit it got, but you have to persevere and read the whole thing, because as a whole the novel is amazing and those scenes can be overlooked.
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2007-07-16 12:08:52.
(Language: English)
I love the book (it's my all time favorite). I also love the musical (it is not my all time favorite, but it's still fun). I'm a very fast reader. This is because when I assume that I can pretty much guess what's going to happen my eyes automatically start skimming, sometimes skipping entire paragraphs, sometimes pages. Right now, I'm reading Prince Caspian and I just skipped three chapters of backstory cause I could guess. Wicked is one of the few books in recent memory that has kept my attention from cover to cover. I believe I read every single word in this book and it took me almost two weeks to read the whole thing, which is highly unusual. As well as loving all the characters and the over-all plot, I loved Maguire's exploration of evil, which ultimately is left fairly open ended, which I liked. Also, I never saw the twist at the end coming. Maybe I'm dense, but really, I was shocked. If you open this book expecting the musical you WILL be disappointed. It is not the stage show. Each are wonderful in their own ways, but they are very, very, different. This book took me a full month to read, which is much longer than a book of its length normally would take me. It is an incredibly dense but, in my opinion, satisfying read. I understand why others did not enjoy it (it DOES take a while to get into), but Gregory Maguire's style and his clear adoration of all his characters made up for that in the end. This book is most definitely an acquired taste, but if it is a taste you have acquired you will be left thinking about it for years afterward.
|
|
|
A Reader posted a review at 2009-01-03 09:07:57.
(Language: English)
I think I'd like it better if I was older, and knew what I was getting into. With the musical being what it is, I had expected a Cinderella story - an insightful, witty (even snarky), imperfect one, but one nonetheless.What I got was a book for adults. Profanity and sexual content aside, its themes are very much for adults. It explores religion, sexuality, ambitions, destiny, government, free will, and the individual. Its exploration of Oz is a wildly fantastical one, but submerged in gloom and darkness and overridden by our human tendencies. It is and isn't the Oz we know. It is indeed witty and funny, but is most often a very dark affair. Those bright spots are mostly at the beginning, and spotty at that. It's hard to struggle through it. Some find it boring. I find it unbearable at times, not because it lacked drama or I couldn't grasp the plot. It was just simply not what I had expected, and, being still a teen, I couldn't grasp and face the cruelty and themes often in the book. Fiyero, the Goat doctor, even the life of the Elphaba herself. I loved her (just as I loved them all), felt some connections and appealing disconnects, but as she lived longer and delved deeper and became "wicked" (mad even) it became very hard to deal with the cynism and cruelty she had been inflicted with and was inflicting. I gave my heart to both Fiyero (despite qualms on his marriage) and the Goat, and had them smashed as well. The ending was somewhat uplifting, but reflecting on her life, not. Being different is not always rewarded. Furthermore, Elphaba is different, yes, but with all our flaws, worsened by her treatment. What then? There is no happily ever after here. I had thought I'd become okay with bittersweet endings, had expected them to come with books aimed at older readers, but I couldn't take this. I recognize the quality. Beautiful writing. But couldn't enjoy it. I felt I was reading a masterpiece, but one I'm unable to appreciate just yet.
|
|
Jessi posted a review at 2010-09-08 07:40:30.
(Language: English)
After going to "Wicked the Musical," I just had to dive into the book again. In the musical, the themes are strong and thought provoking, the characters and their motivations are well defined and enduring, and their fit into the original story is recognizable. In the book, the plot and characters are so different than the original storyline, that its gains nothing by being related to its "source" material. Dorothy is clueless, the Tin Man is a bit murderous with his ax, and really barring the namaes nothing else meshes with the original beloved work. None of the characters are particularly likable in the first section. Munchkins are nasty and cruel to everyone. It was very draining to read. The second section at Shiz university was smart and thought provoking. Maguire's Oz is a complex political society with creation myths that feel Egyptian in nature. The themes and philosophies of this section made me not want to put it down! Though there was NO POINT to the Philosophy Club scene or all the questions about Elphaba's sex. Neither over-explored idea advanced the plot or developed the characters. The last two parts of the book began to drag on again as Elphaba doesn't have a clear voice. She's the main character, and you do not get a feel for her. Glinda, Nanny, Nessarose, Morrible, etc., all have a distinct language. You can tell when they're talking. Sadly, Maguire never lets the reader in on Elphaba's thoughts. So the book becomes very dry. Isn't that the point of the book is to glimpse into the witch's mind? The book is very anti-religious as Elphaba does not want a soul, and the religous characters are portrayed as crazy and obessive. I really hate this view of religious people, and it turned me off. another thing that turned me off was Elphaba's treatment of Liir. She should come to realize that he is the son born from her and her killed lover. Yet she scorns him. Why? its a piece of something that she lost. Its an awfully cold attitude and turns me off from the main character I'm supposed to be sympathizing with as the reader. Fiyero's kids are mean and many characters become grumpy and unrelatible in the last couple sections. Irony surrounds Elphaba especially in her similarities to Dorothy and their longing for forgiveness. In the musical, Glinda became a better person because of her relationship with Elphaba, and she helped to make a change for the better. In the book, the author gives Elphaba nothing but failure in her life, and her death makes you go, "What was the point of the entire story?" The themes that Maguire raises never come to fruition. He never seems to make a statement about anything! There were some good moments and ideas, but nothing seemed to bear fruit for the reader. Maguire is an intelligent writer, but unfortunetly his story never seems to go anywhere. Even when reading the next two books of the series, nothing is answered! He takes fairytale characters and turns them into swearing, murdering, and sexually aggressive adults. This is a very adult read and a little disappointing. Good ideas which could have become so much more if it would have gone somewhere! What a rich and detailed backdrop for a story that seemed to fizzle out half-way through. Catch the musical though! Wonderful adaption that gives you an ending!
|
Share your views!
Similar books
