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Out of Oz (The Wicked Years #4)

3.76 of 5 stars 3.76 · rating details · 6,106 ratings · 905 reviews

"Maguire's work is melodic, symphonic, and beautiful; it is dejected and biting and brave. How great that people flock to these magical novels."
--Los Angeles Times Book Review

Bestselling author Gregory Maguire's remarkable series, The Wicked Years, comes full circle with this, his fourth and final excursion across a darker, richer, more complex landscape of "the magical la...more

Hardcover, 582 pages

Published November 1st 2011 by Hodder Headline (first published January 1st 2011)

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Feb 17, 2012 Noelle Mills rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Hope this makes up for the big disappointment that was #3...

EDIT: Nope, not really. Got about halfway through and lost interest. :/

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Feb 24, 2012 Amanda rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: audio-have

Well, I was wholeheartedly applauding this last installment (Book #4) of the Wicked Years until about 3/4 of the way through. It was exciting and had all the shrewd, insightful remarks and general observations of life that I've come to expect from Maguire. If I was a more organized person, I would follow that statement with some of those great quotes. Unfortunately, I'm not.

This book has appearances from almost all the most-loved characters of the series, including Glinda, Liir (who is Elphaba...more

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Jan 26, 2013 Thomas Nichols rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I read "Wicked" fairly quickly after getting used to the strangeness of having a favorite story warped and perverted: The different take on "Wizard of Oz" was fascinating and the writing was fresh. "Son of a Witch" continued to hold my attention as I found Liir fascinating and complex. "A Lion Among Men" piqued my curiosity, but I found finishing the book rather challenging. This fourth installment"Out of OZ" is so dark and convoluted and confusing, I had to make myself read its pages. Perhaps t...more

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May 08, 2012 Keith Chawgo rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I have just finished reading the final volume of the Wicked series and have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed the finale of the saga. Mr Maguire really out did himself with the last installment by writing rich narratives, fascinating chareacters and even nodding towards updates of characters from the previous three volumes.

War has transcended on Oz and everyone is torn between the two camps which lives are lost and destruction is rife. Rain, Glinda, Liir, Candle, Brr (The Cowardly Lion) and Doro...more

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Jan 03, 2012 Michael rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

Wicked is one of my favorite books of all time. Not only is Gregory Maguire's writing one of the great joys of modern literature, but the expertise with which he created Oz within the boundaries put out by L. Frank Baum before him was enchanting. However, when he decided to write Son of a Witch a decade later and then A Lion Among Men, some of the magic was lost. Maguire's writing was still top-notch and kept me enthralled throughout reading those novels, but I couldn't help noticing it seemed a...more Wicked is one of my favorite books of all time. Not only is Gregory Maguire's writing one of the great joys of modern literature, but the expertise with which he created Oz within the boundaries put out by L. Frank Baum before him was enchanting. However, when he decided to write Son of a Witch a decade later and then A Lion Among Men, some of the magic was lost. Maguire's writing was still top-notch and kept me enthralled throughout reading those novels, but I couldn't help noticing it seemed as though he wasn't entirely sure where to take his story after killing off the Wicked Witch of the West. The groundwork of where he wanted to take his story was there, but they, in my opinion, didn't really come to fruition due to - possibly - the short length of those two novels.

Out of Oz is a monster. Clocking in at 563 pages, it's even longer than Wicked and tackles concepts much more grand. Oz is in complete disarray, with Munchkinland at war with the Emerald City, Glinda is under house arrest, Dorothy has returned and is being charged with the murders of both Wicked Witches, etc. To say the least, the land of Oz is not the one to which you were introduced in the 1939 film.

To be frank, the first two hundred (or even three hundred?) pages of this novel are long and tedious. Even painfully so. Without giving too much away, it involves a lot of walking through landscapes and visiting different places of Oz that have little importance except for the fact that certain characters are hiding out from the persecution of the army. If you've read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, I think you have a sense of what I'm talking about. However, as tedious as they may be, these scenes seem to offer a final farewell to places throughout the Oz landscape that have been visited in previous novels in the series, so they were for the most part forgivable. It's just the getting through it that's hard.

Once you pass those sections, however, it becomes much easier to appreciate the work as a whole. Maguire finally shows his vast talent at winding different, convoluted plotlines around each other, with twists that are both completely unexpected but make perfect sense. The characters introduced throughout this series that never really had a chance to be developed properly (Brr, Glinda, Candle, Nor, Trism, and of course, Rain and Liir) are all illustrated in this novel with great skill and care, making each character interesting.

Needless to say, Out of Oz is the best Maguire novel since Wicked. In equal parts heartbreaking, funny, melancholic, and rewarding, it gave the series a conclusion that is fully deserved and left just enough unanswered questions to keep the reader guessing at to what truly happened within its pages. Elphaba would be proud.(less)

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Nov 07, 2011 Dan rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: adventure, coming-of-age, fantasy, made-me-reflect, series

After the third book, I did not have high hopes for the end of the series. The previous books had left too much unfinished - too many characters had dropped off the map, too many unexplained occurrences, too much dull backstory (*cough* book three)

This book, however, was fantastic. The writing was fantastic, the plot moved along at a good clip, and storylines and characters were wrapped up in a very satisfying way. I enjoyed the callbacks to the previous books, musical, and movie - though I'm su...more

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Aug 02, 2012 Correna Mcclure rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

My question to all is - do you honestly love these books or do you love reading about the beloved characters and OZ? I read Wicked (before the musical) because I was entrigued by the question "are we born wicked or is wicked thrust upon us?". I loved the OZ books as a child and was exited to revisit them as an adult with adult themes. I continued through the series and have just finished Out of Oz. That is a whole lot of book for no more story than there is. Sorry Mr. Maguire, I wanted to love t...more

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Jul 18, 2012 Linda rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The final book in The Wicked series and probably the best of the lot. Reading this book, I was reminded of the importance of fairy stories and children's literature. Life is full of hazards and pitfalls and children's books help us prepare for the scary thing called life. And as a devoted L. Frank Baum reader, this definitely satisfied my hunger to know what happened after the Wizard left and Dorothy returned to Kansas. I was not disappointed in any way, and Mr. Maguire took his time finishing u...more

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Apr 27, 2013 Kathryn rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, sci-fi-fantasy

I'm having a tough time coming up with a coherent review of "Out of Oz". This book was just so...epic! It felt like it took three years to read, and not because it was boring. Far from it; this book just pulled me into the fantastic, DENSE world that Gregory Maguire has created (well, co-opted, but he's done an excellent job playing in L. Frank Baum's sandbox). I wasn't expecting to like this book as much as I did; I adored the first one, but found the next two a little harder to get through. "O...more

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Feb 02, 2013 Tricia Long rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

I was a little disappointed in "Out of Oz", but then it's difficult to write an ending and juggle so many characters' lives at once. Perhaps my greatest issue was that there wasn't closure, which I guess is realistic (and Maguire's Oz books are kind of the gritty reboot of Baum's Oz books) but a little unsatisfying for the reader. The ending left an opening for another book, which was an odd decision because this is supposed to be the final book in the Oz years. Storylines, instead of being reso...more I was a little disappointed in "Out of Oz", but then it's difficult to write an ending and juggle so many characters' lives at once. Perhaps my greatest issue was that there wasn't closure, which I guess is realistic (and Maguire's Oz books are kind of the gritty reboot of Baum's Oz books) but a little unsatisfying for the reader. The ending left an opening for another book, which was an odd decision because this is supposed to be the final book in the Oz years. Storylines, instead of being resolved, were practically scrapped. For example, Candle and Liir should have tried to work past their problems at the end instead of breaking up. I know people say that about most divorces, but it felt in this instance like an extremely convenient excuse to make one more broken situation in a book already riddled with them.
Character development was shoddy at best, especially when it came to Rain. In the beginning of the book she's practically autistic, and after a few weeks at school she's a brilliant and verbal child who makes friends out of the kindness of her heart? Sure, it was convenient to the narrative, but in my opinion the best books are driven by character choices instead of things happening at people. Again, not realistic, but much more engaging.
I'm not sure what the theme was supposed to be, though it might have been that isolation is not a good thing and we should all expand our horizons. There's definitely a parallel between Rain's step into the larger world and her escape from Oz at the end. But how does that apply to anyone else? It felt like the plot stumbled from scene to scene because it had to, meandering without direction. It did not feel tight, planned, or well-done in any way. I skipped most of the section where the Lion and pals go to save Dorothy, understanding that it was important from a narrative perspective but at the same time really not caring what was happening.
The only saving grace was the style, but even that was a little overwrought after a while. The descriptions were spotty - I got the gist of things, but I could have used more insight into what the characters actually felt. Maguire goes on ad nauseum about the damn Time Clock and then leaves us to imagine why the Lion said something to Nor? That's just a strange choice to make.
Final gripe: Just show us Elphaba talking to Rain. I don't know why that was withheld when it was implied throughout the whole book that Elphaba is coming back to Oz. It was a strange choice to not show her, especially when that was what the readers were probably looking forward to most.

If you like Maguire's style, you might like this. I personally think "Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister" was a much more coherent novel, as was the original "Wicked."(less)

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Jan 29, 2013 Liz Roberts rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book was a little harder for me to read. There were a lot of small details from the previous book that got turned into HUGE things throughout this book. I had to read the last section of the book slowly because I thought that I had missed something in a previous chapter. Only to discover that everything was explained as I kept reading.

This book, the last book in the series, brings all the characters together in one last epic journey to save OZ. As war breaks out Laiir, The Lion, and The Go...more

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Oct 30, 2012 The78ms.j rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

First and foremost let me say when I initially started this series I was so amped because the author gave me a different perspective on everything that had to do with OZ instead of the supposed wicked witch of the west just being wicked she was actually misunderstood made me see her in a whole different light. Fast forward to the last of the 4 books in the series I think with this book the Author wanted to wrap everything up and clear up loose ends and blah blah blah. It was way too long, it was...more

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Aug 15, 2012 Randy Auxier rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: elevated-fiction

This is the fourth and final volume in Maguire’s series “The Wicked Years,” which started with his retelling of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz from the viewpoint of the Wicked Witch of the West –she’s called “Elphaba” in these books, a name made from the initials of L. Frank Baum, the original creator of Oz. At a crucial moment of telling stories, Baum’s eye apparently fell upon a filing cabinet and the upper drawer was labeled A-N, while the lower was O-Z. So I guess we might have had the Land of A...more This is the fourth and final volume in Maguire’s series “The Wicked Years,” which started with his retelling of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz from the viewpoint of the Wicked Witch of the West –she’s called “Elphaba” in these books, a name made from the initials of L. Frank Baum, the original creator of Oz. At a crucial moment of telling stories, Baum’s eye apparently fell upon a filing cabinet and the upper drawer was labeled A-N, while the lower was O-Z. So I guess we might have had the Land of An, but we got Oz instead. So, why the hell not name the nameless witch by a similar magic?

Maguire’s first Oz book didn’t go viral until Broadway got hold of the idea for a musical. I’m sure there will be a movie (or three). If you saw the play but didn’t read the book, I’m afraid that a flying house of gloom is gonna smash your naïve little heart. Maguire’s Oz is dark, despairing, even gives a body some reasons to long for Kansas. This dude specializes in re-telling children’s stories with grown-up intrigue and cynicism, including successful versions of Cinderella (Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister) and Snow White (called Mirror, Mirror) among others. He is to children’s literature what Tarantino is to B movies. Maguire is good at this, and it isn’t as easy as he makes it look. This is a delicate and complex exploration of our collective psyche.

There wouldn’t have been four books if not for the musical and the interest (and sales) that sloshed over. These books were not read by the lovers of musicals, but were found on dusty coffee tables by their existentialist siblings. If you liked the play, you don’t have the temperament for these books, and if you like the books, sitting through the play will be pure agony. If you try to have a discussion across these boundaries, well, just don’t. Baum’s own books made for a bad play and several bad movies before Victor Fleming and company captured the story in filmic archetypes that resonated at a complementary depth. Maguire’s Wicked Years will find its Fleming, eventually.

This last volume is only for the true believers and it’s a hard slog even for them. One great strength of the first novel was its ephemeral, unfinished feel –a thousand possibilities were opened and never pursued. In the subsequent books, all those possibilities were gradually closed down for the sake of a single epic story. It’s a good story, but I was ready for it to end about 300 pages before it actually did. Without injecting spoilers, I can say that Maguire follows the basic outline of Baum’s second book, The Marvelous Land of Oz, but he works in events, characters, and allusions from the whole Baum series. People who have read all of Baum’s books will feel some silly pride as they identify cryptic references and adaptations, but the point is this: it both is and isn’t Baum’s Oz.

This final installment brings together every thread in the sprawling story. It is pretty boring, but if you’re a devotee (and I am), you have to read it anyway. Out of Oz is primarily the story of Elphaba’s granddaughter, Rain, whose destiny is to cleanse Oz of the patriarchal powers that have destroyed the happiness of all, and to restore the matriarchy. If you know Baum’s books, you already know what’s going to happen, but how Maguire will finesse it and make it realistic is the fun of his books. This book is the least fun of the four. The first one is great, the second is weird, the third is all back story (almost nothing happens), and this last book drags its ass all over Oz trying to clean up every detail left hanging in the others.

Unhappily, it takes Maguire the full book to provide the background for every character from the first three novels. He could have cut a hundred pages by dumping this pointless exposition. Maguire (or his editors at Harper-Collins) seem to be laboring under the illusion that someone might read this book who hasn’t read any/all of the other three. That won’t happen. This book would be incomprehensible to such people. The story is too tangled to summarize here, but I wasn’t disappointed in what Maguire did to finish the epic.

There is no way you’ll enjoy this book as a stand-alone read. But I think everyone should read Wicked. If you haven’t had enough when that is done, by all means, read the second book. And so forth. Not many will make it through to the end of Out of Oz, but that is no great tragedy. That’s how long series have always worked. I didn’t finish the fourteen Baum books. But a lot of people did.
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Jul 30, 2012 Susannah Perkins rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy-sci-fi

Let me get this out of the way: "Out Of Oz" is the best of the "Wicked" sequels. I knew it was going to be from the minute I saw the return to the typeface used in the original book. It's human and compelling in a way that the meandering "Son Of A Witch" never was, and it's about ten times as interesting as the infamously irrelevant "A Lion Among Men." Rain, as a protagonist, is a return to form for Maguire, and I was taken aback multiple times with how much she reminded me (in an unforced, orga...more Let me get this out of the way: "Out Of Oz" is the best of the "Wicked" sequels. I knew it was going to be from the minute I saw the return to the typeface used in the original book. It's human and compelling in a way that the meandering "Son Of A Witch" never was, and it's about ten times as interesting as the infamously irrelevant "A Lion Among Men." Rain, as a protagonist, is a return to form for Maguire, and I was taken aback multiple times with how much she reminded me (in an unforced, organic way) of Elphaba. We get to see Glinda again (much too briefly, but man, can he write her), and we get to revisit Shiz (another area in which Maguire's writing excels). And there is a romance at the heart of the story that is beautiful and beautifully written and honestly probably a better romance than any other one in the series, including Elphaba and Fiyero. It was heart-breakingly gorgeous to read.

But, being a sequel in a line of failed sequels, it isn't perfect, or even necessarily a great book. Maguire once again falls into his routine of making his characters walk aimlessly around Oz, a trick that worked for Tolkien BECAUSE HIS CHARACTERS WERE GOING SOMEWHERE. It doesn't work to show the audience your magical land by having a bunch of miserable sods wander through it without really looking. The story aches for the loss of Glinda after the first few chapters, and some conclusions that could have been really interesting to see happen offstage (i.e. Commander Cherrystone). He spends a lot of time on the strife between Candle and Liir and between Nor and her past - battles we don't really care about anymore, because he's already spent so many pages playing them out. Rain, as interesting a character as she is, takes a very long time to do much of anything, and it's a slog getting to that point.

But there are mysteries here that mirror the beautiful mysteries of the original book, and for that, this book is the most superior of the sequels. Morrible, that bizarre ladyfish, is never explained as I felt she probably would be. A skeleton cloaked in flora appears to Rain whose identity isn't spelled out for us. The ending is replete with ambiguity. And there are scraps and crumbs of a return, of a homecoming, that I think it was wise of Maguire not to show us in full. In this book, he eschews the plodding black-and-whiteness of the other two sequels for the hazy ambiguity of "Wicked," and the book is much stronger for it.

And what a beautiful way to end - a green speck of a girl, perched on a broom, holding fast to the wind - just as the first book began. Maguire, that wicked thing, did take his sweet time. But we finally got a glimpse of HER again.(less)

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Jun 05, 2012 Susan Emmet rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I love the Wicked Years series and continue to be amazed by Maguire's acumen and ear and eye for detail. So much in "Out of Oz" that recalls L.Frank Baum's books and characters therein. Jack Pumpkinhead and the TikToks even appear. And Dorothy and Elphaba and Nessarose and Glinda and Liir and Candle and Rain and Nanny and so many more.
Much that's very intriguing about gender, magic, following your own star, animals and insects and people interacting/interweaving.
One of my favorite paragraphs re...more

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Apr 27, 2012 Amie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I only gave this book three stars because I'm still not entirely sure how I felt about it. I liked it well enough to read it beginning to end, but I was somewhat ambivalent about it the whole time. It had its ups and downs. It wasn't one of my favorites, but I felt that I should read it, and I was never tempted to give up on it, even through the parts I found less interesting. The book definitely had a certain je ne sais quoi to it. I can't say that I was fascinated by the story it told, but at...more

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Apr 16, 2012 Trish rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Headline Review sent me this book to read and I accepted, even though it was the fourth book in the series and I hadn't read the other three. I haven't even seen the musical Wicked, which was based on the first book of the series. But I like the music: isn't that enough? I've even sung the opening number, One Short Day, trying desperately hard not to continue with the words, 'in the haemorrhoid city'. Emerald, must sing emerald!

This was also going to be a doubly difficult task as I can't say I'm...more Headline Review sent me this book to read and I accepted, even though it was the fourth book in the series and I hadn't read the other three. I haven't even seen the musical Wicked, which was based on the first book of the series. But I like the music: isn't that enough? I've even sung the opening number, One Short Day, trying desperately hard not to continue with the words, 'in the haemorrhoid city'. Emerald, must sing emerald!

This was also going to be a doubly difficult task as I can't say I'm a particular fan of the fantasy genre. However I merrily waded in, back to front and completely out of my comfort zone.

Much to my surprise, this was an extraordinarily good read. It's clever, inventive, very witty and although it did take me quite a long time to read it (all 580 pages of it) I kept with it to a satisfying end. I was grateful that the author took me by the hand and provided a synopsis of the first three books, some useful family trees and a comprehensive map of Oz at the beginning of the book. However, there was much flipping back and forth in bed at night which drove my husband quite mad.

In Out of Oz dear old Dorothy of Kansas returns to the story. I won't spoil the surprise but I thought the way the author brought her back to the proceedings was pure genius. The once peaceful and prosperous Land of Oz is bubbling with social unrest. We see Lady Glinda (the good witch) under house arrest, the cowardly lion (Brrr) is on the run from the law and although the wicked witch, Elphaba, has passed into legend, her boy Liir and his wife are in exile.

Although the tale is fantastical, with talking animals and oodles of magic, the themes are universal: love, compassion, war, loss and fear. The enjoyment for the reader comes from the author's wonderful way with words. They are fresh, frothy, seemingly nonsensical but always just right: "Well, stuff him with a rippled rutabaga"

I suppose now I know how it all ends I could just move onto something else but I'm tempted to try the other three just to soak up more of Maguire's talent. But should I read backwards: the third, second then first or just follow the yellow brick road and see where it goes?
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Apr 04, 2012 Dayle rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As always, I'm a touch dumbstruck after finishing a Gregory Maguire novel. He spins a tale so fine, you can lose yourself in the details and imagery. Don't get me wrong, Out of Oz is not without its faults, nor does it live up to Wicked, but really, how could it?

I'm a little surprised after glancing at a few other reviews however, I noticed that some people felt that it was overly long and included too many unnecessary details. I can't deny that while reading, I spent more than a few times tryin...more As always, I'm a touch dumbstruck after finishing a Gregory Maguire novel. He spins a tale so fine, you can lose yourself in the details and imagery. Don't get me wrong, Out of Oz is not without its faults, nor does it live up to Wicked, but really, how could it?

I'm a little surprised after glancing at a few other reviews however, I noticed that some people felt that it was overly long and included too many unnecessary details. I can't deny that while reading, I spent more than a few times trying to figure out exactly why certain things were being indicated or stressed. But this shouldn't be unexpected... Son of a Witch may have been a direct link to Wicked, and filled in some missing details or backstories for Wicked, but A Lion Among Men was of the same respect as Out of Oz. Both novels dealt with both past and present, slight backstories or side stories but were their own novels.

That is what I love about Out of Oz... it will never be Wicked, and didn't try to. Elphaba was an incredible character, but her story is over - Son of a Witch, A Lion Among Men and Out of Oz are the stories of people from her life, other characters from Oz. Maguire convinces you that Oz really does exist, and then tells a few interesting stories about it. For people like me, who often are left hanging from series' because we wanted a backstory to our favourite character/curious character that wasn't part of the main cast, Maguire gives it to us.

I'm not going to lie though, Out of Oz is long-winded and a few parts of both the entire series and this particular novel I still don't understand (Yackle, the dragons, etc.) but Rain's story is just as incredible as Eplhaba's, only different. Reader's are thrown through a number of hoops, Maguire's characteristic absurdly modern but yet realistically sensational situations appear a few times as well as a few clever references.

In the end, I would recommend this to any Wicked Series lovers, or anyone who enjoyed A Lion Among Men, however if you haven't read the previous three, you will have an extremely difficult time with references to past characters life events. Different from Wicked, but not necessarily a bad different.(less)

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Mar 11, 2012 Andrea McDowell rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: good-fantasy

The only thing I have against Out of Oz is that it's not Wicked.

Elphaba kicked ass. She was such an amazing character, the kind of female character we almost never see in fiction, and in fantasy fiction even more rarely. She was an uncompromising, sharp-tongued, idealistic, ugly, morally flawed, brilliant, shy, political, complicated character.

Maguire's other Oz books have been good, even excellent, but how could they live up to Elphaba?

So it is with Out of Oz. Maguire competently and beautifu...more

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Mar 09, 2012 Laura rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book felt like it took forever to get through. While parts of it were very creative, at times I felt hit over the head with the authors message. And it could have been at least 200 pages shorter! I thought the inclusion of maps in the endpapers meant he wouldn't have to describe in every detail the fields and topography of Oz! It was great to catch up with Glinda, Liir, Candle and the other characters we've grown to love, and Maguire is very creative and at times quite funny. The story pick...more

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Feb 17, 2012 Riccarla Roman rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As much as I love Maguire's Oz series, I highly recommend that you read all of them in order. Otherwise this book will make very little sense to you. It also helps if you are familiar with the original books by L. Frank Baum. Although, being familiar with the Oz books made one of the big surprises at the end of the book not a surprise for me because I knew what was going to happen.

Basically, EC (Emerald City) led by Shell Thropp, the younger brother of Elphaba and Nessarose is at war with Munchk...more

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Jan 15, 2012 Darin rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Hmmmph.I was worried about this book as I felt the Oz Chronicles had gone on too long and become increasingly hard to read. Imagine my surprise when shortly into this book I found myself completely pulled in and immersed. I was particularly impressed by the way all of these random characters and story lines were finally coming together to move forward in one narrative arc. Then halfway through the book it fell apart for me. The momentum of the narrative got lost and I felt the author kept meande...more

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Jan 07, 2012 Randy rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I have to say that this series is quite depressing. The world of Oz was originally intended for the imagination of children. This entire series is all realism. Although I usually thoroughly enjoy reading realistic things that make me think, this book just left me feeling worse. These imaginary worlds are often places of refuge and escape from this crazy world, but this book takes you deeper into the craziness. It's as if life sucks. We just have to deal with it. I read this entire series because...more

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Dec 30, 2011 Linda I rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: gregory-maguire, fantasy, first-reads

"Out of Oz" is Maguire's fourth and final installment of the Wicked Years Series. Of course, I was thrilled to be sent a copy of this book to review on behalf of HarperCollins publishers, as I've been closely following these books over the past decade or so. Before reviewing the actual book, I'd like to give a brief synopsis of my thoughts on the first three books.

"Wicked: the Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West". This is by-and-large one of my most favorite books ever written. In my...more "Out of Oz" is Maguire's fourth and final installment of the Wicked Years Series. Of course, I was thrilled to be sent a copy of this book to review on behalf of HarperCollins publishers, as I've been closely following these books over the past decade or so. Before reviewing the actual book, I'd like to give a brief synopsis of my thoughts on the first three books.

"Wicked: the Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West". This is by-and-large one of my most favorite books ever written. In my humble opinion, it's as near to perfection status as any novel can attain. This magnificent story sweeps a plethora of topics (philosophy, romance, infidelity, revenge, friendship, betrayal, racism (speciesism?), xenophobia, terrorism, love, courage, wisdom, etc, etc.) into an unforgettable saga that keeps the reader thinking long after the last page has been read. The discussion on the nature of evil could be pulled out the novel and published separately it is so thought-provoking. With that, I had high expectations for the following books.

"Son of a Witch". Unfortunately, not as captivating, witty or philosophical as "Wicked" but it was a great story, with a doozy of an ending that left you wanting more.

"A Lion Among Men". Frankly, I found this one a bit boring. Probably because it focused so much on Brr (the Lion) and didn't have Maguire's trademark multiple threads weaving their way throughout the novel. It was readable, just not as engrossing. While it gave a good backstory and filled in the gaps of Brr's activities after Elphaba dies in the first novel, a reader could take-it-or-leave-it without significant knowledge gaps coming into the final book.

And now, "Out of Oz". Great story! Not as amazing as "Wicked" but a realistic synthesis of events and their ultimate conclusion. The war between the Emerald City and Munchkinland finally comes to a head. Rain, Liir and Candle's daughter (Elphaba's granddaughter), makes her initial appearance as a young servant in Glinda's household before Glinda's P.O.W. status forces Rain to flee. After finding her parents, she is sent to a boarding school in order to get an education, but mostly to hide her from the eyes of both the Munchkinlanders and the new Emperor, Shell (Elphaba's brother and Rain's great-uncle) who has fashioned himself a deity. Dorothy makes her way back to Oz, only to face trial for the "murders" of sisters Nessarose and Elphaba Thropp, the Wicked Witches of the East and West. Events culminate with Rain and Dorothy confronting Shell, nearly destroying the Emerald City and rediscovering the long-lost Goddess of Oz, Ozma. Of course, this is a uber simplification of an over 550 page novel. Along the way, Liir, Candle, Brr, Nor, Granny, the Tick Tock Clock, General Cherrystone, Iskinaary and Toto all make their reappearances, too. Parts of the story proceeded at a much slower pace than I would have liked, but on the whole the story flowed effortlessly between storylines and moved quicker as the climax approached. The end wasn't really an end, but then, life rarely has cookie-cutter endings.(less)

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Dec 16, 2011 Rick F. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Here is my review, posted on goodreads, Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

"The marvelous land of Oz is knotted with social unrest: The Emerald City is mounting an invasion of Munchkinland, Glinda is under house arrest, and the Cowardly Lion is on the run from the law. And look who’s knocking at the door. It’s none other than Dorothy. Yes, that Dorothy."

At long last...Gregory Maguire has completed his magical series based on L. Frank Baum's immortal OZ books. Taking on the task of continuing so lege...more Here is my review, posted on goodreads, Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

"The marvelous land of Oz is knotted with social unrest: The Emerald City is mounting an invasion of Munchkinland, Glinda is under house arrest, and the Cowardly Lion is on the run from the law. And look who’s knocking at the door. It’s none other than Dorothy. Yes, that Dorothy."

At long last...Gregory Maguire has completed his magical series based on L. Frank Baum's immortal OZ books. Taking on the task of continuing so legendary a series, not to mention, characters that have become part of the World lexicon due to a CLASSIC 1939 film that continues to win new generations of devotees is no easy job. Gregory Maguire has indeed shown that he is up to so monumental a task. The three previous books, starting with Wicked, have all been imaginative and fascinating takes on the OZ legend. Out of Oz is the perfect conclusion to a four book series that will long be considered a major achievement.

Gregory Maguire's style of writing is far more ...pun intended..wicked than Baum. His portrayal of characters are more Roald Dahl and Terry Pratchett than L. Frank Baum. Once the reader accepts this, they are in for a truly wonderful, thrilling and magical journey- in, and now OUT OF OZ.
So many of the plot lines that were so well done in the previous books are nicely tied up here. Glinda, who is certainly no Billie Burke (Who so wonderfully portrayed the "good witch" in the film)is far more worldly and wily. The Cowardly Lion is satiric in the best sense of the word, his efforts to avoid capture are hilarious and the rest of the characters, those we all know, and those special to this series, all have their turn in OUT OF OZ bidding farewell to the reader.

This is bittersweet. We are sad to see this most imaginative series end, yet so happy that Gregory Maguire has perfectly chosen the correct manner in which to conclude. While there is little need to go into specific plot descriptions, I feel comfortable in saying that OUT OF OZ leaves the reader more than satisfied. There are no loose ends left dangling. Most importantly, those who are great fans of the Baum books (as I am) will not feel as if these books are attempting to overshadow their predecessors. Rather, Gregory Maguire has used his considerable wit and writing skills to update characters so beloved, and in doing so, has provided the ultimate tribute to L. Frank Baum and the world of OZ he created well over a Century ago.

AN OFFICIAL JAMES MASON COMMUNITY BOOK CLUB MUST READ

RICK FRIEDMAN
FOUNDER
THE JAMES MASON COMMUNITY BOOK CLUB
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Dec 05, 2011 Jill Furedy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

So this was the end? It seemed like it was leading off into a new series, involving the sea or waterlife that was referenced by the shell, the Chancel of Ladyfish, the lakes, Dorothy's story of the ocean and deserts of Oz, the beavers dam and implication of an ocean, plus a mention of water below Kiamo Ko and of course the water that killed Elphaba. The Atlantis quote at the end also led me to wonder whether he would be writing something to connect Atlantis or some other lost underwater world to...more So this was the end? It seemed like it was leading off into a new series, involving the sea or waterlife that was referenced by the shell, the Chancel of Ladyfish, the lakes, Dorothy's story of the ocean and deserts of Oz, the beavers dam and implication of an ocean, plus a mention of water below Kiamo Ko and of course the water that killed Elphaba. The Atlantis quote at the end also led me to wonder whether he would be writing something to connect Atlantis or some other lost underwater world to Oz. But as usual, nothing is fully explained.
I'm not a fan of tying everything up in neat bow at the end all the time, but there was a little too much left unfinished to me. What happened to Dorothy (though that I understand, this isn't her story, still I'd like to know..)? What happened to Brrr when he was free to leave Oz again, he can't follow the Time Clock, he's lost Nor, so now what? Liir, Candle and Trism all disappear, but they've been relatively boring throughout, so I only partially wondered where they ended up. And Glinda...I assume I know who opened her door, but then what?
Mainly I wanted to know what was happening with Tip...he found Rain previously and we assume could do so again. But what was taking so long, does he not want to find her again with the change in, um, circumstances? I was a little disappointed that in the ending, getting rid of the Grimmerie seems to be Rain's big step...I'd hoped she was looking for Elphaba, or discovering other countries beyond Oz, doing something big. Instead it seems the Grimmerie represents all that was bad for the family, instead of it being something that none of them past Elphaba bothered to try to use it or to learn about it. In theory you can be a good witch or a bad witch, right? Perhaps power does corrupt, but I'm not sure that we could tell that since it was hardly used. And with the loss of the Time Clock and the Grimmerie, it seems Rain only helped with the destruction of magic in Oz. Sure they say she should live life without 'grasping for magic', which I guess is supposed to be admirable, but I must have missed the part where she was much affected by magic. It seems a waste and almost a loss of her heritage.
I liked that this book had Glinda, Dorothy and I liked Mr Boss and Little Daffy. The other characters tend toward so much melancholy that it's hard to feel affectionate towards them...even Brr...I want to like him, but he annoys me so much of the time! When I first read Wicked, I liked it but was the only one of the bookclub to get past the first three chapters, everyone else found it boring. I did wonder how it got to be so popular and inspired a musical, because it's interesting but not particularly fun to read. I read the rest of the series even though you feel like there's not a plot, just rambling through Oz, even when significant events are occuring. They'll mention a year has passed since the last sentence, and apparently nothing interesting enough to share happened. If the writing wasn't so well done, the characters and the plot might not have been enough to keep me reading. And that was how it wrapped up as well. Mild curiousity as to what happened to everyone, but no real sense of urgency to find out. (less)

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Nov 27, 2011 Kathleen (Kat) Smith rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy-adventure-fiction, young-adult-fiction

Once peaceful and prosperous, the spectacular Land of Oz is knotted with social unrest: The Emerald City is mounting an invasion of Munchkinland, Glinda is under house arrest, and the Cowardly Lion is on the run from the law. And look who's knocking at the door. It's none other than Dorothy. Yes. That Dorothy.

Yet amidst all this chaos, Elphaba's granddaughter, the tiny green baby born at the close of Son of A Witch, has come of age. Now it is up to Rain to take up her broom - and her legacy - in...more

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Nov 02, 2011 Amanda rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

See My Full Review Here: http://www.hippiesbeautyandbooksohmy....

First Impressions: I can’t even begin to describe how much I have loved the entire Wicked Years series! I began with the first book, Wicked, before it ever became a hit on Broadway and beyond and absolutely loved it from the very beginning. I even fell in love with A Lion Among Men, even though I didn’t think it was the best in the series. So imagine my excitement when I was able to review this final novel in the series. Needless t...more See My Full Review Here: http://www.hippiesbeautyandbooksohmy....

First Impressions: I can’t even begin to describe how much I have loved the entire Wicked Years series! I began with the first book, Wicked, before it ever became a hit on Broadway and beyond and absolutely loved it from the very beginning. I even fell in love with A Lion Among Men, even though I didn’t think it was the best in the series. So imagine my excitement when I was able to review this final novel in the series. Needless to say, I was ecstatic! The publisher even sent me a signed ARC which was amazing to me. Can you tell I really adore this author and his work?

First 50 Pages & Style of Writing: I knew from the start that this book would stay true to the, what I call, “Maguire” style right from the get go. Gregory Maguire writes in a very lyrical manner that I personally love, but not everyone will. His prose is beautiful and almost poetic in the way he describes different situations and characters. This book had no slow parts, and right from the beginning, the action kicked up and the plot sped off. It was much faster paced then the last book, and I was extremely happy with how the beginning began. If you haven’t read the other books in the series, I would highly suggest you read them before beginning this book or you will be completely lost.

Plot: I’m not going to give much away here because the book was just released and I hate giving away spoilers. I will say that in this book we finally get to know Rain who is Liir’s daughter. She is a very odd child and her parentage is a complete mystery to her. Other key characters in the edition are Liir, Glinda, the Cowardly Lion, and…Dorothy! Finally, Dorothy has her own unique role in this particular book besides staging a cameo! I honestly think that her parts in this book were some of my favorite in the whole series. For anyone who is a big fan of the original Wizard of Oz movie or the original Oz books, Dorothy will be a big surprise!

For the most part, the plot centers around the war between Oz and Munchkinland. Like I had said before, the plot is very fast paced and it is full of excitement. There is never a dull moment in this book! So many events happen in this book that at times it was difficult to keep up with all of it. I hate to say that because it makes it seem like it was too much, but it really wasn’t. All of Gregory’s books are like that. If it had been a shorter book, all of the action probably would have bothered me, but since this book is almost 600 pages in length, the author gives us plenty of time to digest everything that is happening.

Final Thoughts: This was an outstanding finale in an outstanding series! I wasn’t disappointed at all with the final book. I think that the author did a really good job wrapping everything up nicely. Just like with any other great series, I am a little sad to see it end, but I’m extremely glad it did end with a high note. I would definitely recommend picking this one up! (less)

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Dec 31, 2012 Sarah rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Finally. Something brilliant to wrap up the series. I liked it a lot. Maybe I just like allusions a lot more than flashbacks.

Rain, Elphaba's granddaughter, grows up isolated and in poverty and believing that she is an orphan. This mirrors Elphaba's childhood somewhat but not entirely. For instance, both girls were isolated, but Rain was isolated for her safety whereas Elphaba was isolated for her skin colour. This was portrayed throughout the novel.

I was happy to see the return of many character...more

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Mar 16, 2012 Dan rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

If it were possible to give a book 0 stars I would have done so. Wicked was a wonderful story. The other books in the series dragged on, but I always assumed that there was a point to the story. I read every single page of the books..... and I wish that Maguire was going to bring us to a fun and exciting conclusion. However, it wasnt meant to be. I dont think the problem with the story was Rain, other people didnt care about the character. I think the problem was that the story felt like an inco...more

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About Gregory Maguire

Gregory Maguire is an American author, whose novels are revisionist retellings of children's stories (such as L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz into Wicked). He received his Ph.D. in English and American Literature from Tufts University, and his B.A. from the State University of New York at Albany. He was a professor and co-director at the Simmons College Center for the Study of Children'...more

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Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (The Wicked Years, #1)

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“I may not know how to fly but I know how to read, and that's almost the same thing.” — 24 people liked it

“There were people everywhere but no one was mine, and I was no one's.” — 17 people liked it

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Out of Oz (The Wicked Years #4)

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