Rereading: KABUMPO IN OZ by Ruth Plumly Thompson

Thompson’s second Oz book, and the first one with her name under the title, features some familiar characters and some new ones.

As it was so often done by Baum, the story starts in a remote part of Oz, the kingdom of Pumperdink. A birthday party in the royal castle for Prince Pompadore, also attended by his friend Kabumpo, the Elegant Elephant, is disrupted when the birthday cake explodes, leaving behind several items including a threatening message from an unknown magician. It seems that the Prince must marry a Proper Fairy Princess within seven days, or all the people of Pumperdink will disappear forever. Pompa and Kabumpo soon head off on a quest for that princess, who Kabumpo thinks must be Ozma, the ruler of Oz, so they aim for the Emerald City, but of course get sidetracked into other odd places along the way.

Meanwhile, the evil gnome Ruggedo, former king of the gnomes, has been plotting against Ozma. She has given him a home in the Emerald City where he pretends to be reformed, but in fact is digging under the royal palace with bad intentions. He has help from a rabbit, Wag, and uses a wooden doll he stole from the palace, Peg Amy, to throw around when he gets frustrated. When Ruggedo finds a hidden box of Mixed Magic, his revenge can begin, but it all goes wrong as he accidentally turns himself into a massive giant who carries off the entire royal palace on his head when he flees Oz for his former home, the country of Ev. Both Wag and Peg Amy have also been changed by the magic, making the rabbit very large, and also enlarging the doll and bringing her to life. They decide to follow Ruggedo and try to stop him. Others in the Emerald City run to tell Glinda, the powerful royal magician of Oz, who begins a plan to help, but meanwhile Prince Pompa and Kabumpo have met Wag and Peg Amy, and joined them in tracking Ruggedo. Will the box of Mixed Magic help them set things right?

A fun read, and Thompson adds some new elements and characters to Oz that I think fit in well, including a sort of romantic comedy side story. Recommended.

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