From the Bookshelf of Never too Late to Read Classics…

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Oz, #1)

L. Frank Baum

Start date: December 1, 2019

Finish date: December 31, 2019

Discussion: Children's Classics Buddy Reads

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Children's Classics Buddy Reads

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What Members Thought

Jan 14, 2023 midnightfaerie rated it it was ok

Shelves: rory-gilmore, classics, childrens

I agree that you're either a Wizard of Oz fan or a Wicked fan. And I am a Wicked fan. Still need to see the musical though. ...more

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Jul 01, 2013 Sarah rated it liked it

Always meant to read this. Enjoyable kids adventure book. Suprised by how closely the movie follows the book, of course things were condensed, but pretty reliable adaptation. Dorothy does actually say "There's no place like home." Shoes are silver instead of ruby. Fairly surprised by the level of violence. Lots of evil beasts are slayed along the way, many more than in the movie -- though the movie is pretty scary and violent for little kids too. I remember when my son saw the movie for the firs ...more

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Mar 30, 2012 Tim Callicutt rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2024-books, books-to-read-to-aw

Whisked away from the grey plains of Kansas by a freak cyclone, Dorothy Gale is dropped into the wonderful and strange world of Oz. Desperate to return home, she sets off to find the Wizard of Oz for help and collects quite an adventuring party along the way - the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion. The Wizard agrees to help, but only if Dorothy and her crew defeat the Wicked Witch of the West.

A stone cold classic. You’ve seen the movie and/or its various adaptations and reimaginings. But if Whisked away from the grey plains of Kansas by a freak cyclone, Dorothy Gale is dropped into the wonderful and strange world of Oz. Desperate to return home, she sets off to find the Wizard of Oz for help and collects quite an adventuring party along the way - the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion. The Wizard agrees to help, but only if Dorothy and her crew defeat the Wicked Witch of the West.

A stone cold classic. You’ve seen the movie and/or its various adaptations and reimaginings. But if you haven’t read the book, do yourself a favor and pick up a copy. Even in a pop culture landscape saturated in its influence, the Wonderful Wizard of Oz is bursting with creativity and imagination. Sure, the story beats are mostly the same, but there’s enough here that didn’t make it into the movie (the true source material when it comes to modern adaptations) that the novel still feels fresh.

I once read an article that explained the true impact of L. Frank Baum was his ability to step away from the moralizing of earlier children’s literature and simply create a story for the joy of it. This re-read made me question that argument. There’s certainly a moral present. Much like the movie (perhaps even more so), the novel is a paean to self-confidence. (Spoiler alert, if there is such a thing for this book), the wizard remains a fraud but step by step we see that the characters had what they needed all along. The Scarecrow is remarkably clever, the Tin Man tender-hearted, and the Cowardly Lion courageous - all without the assistance of that classic Nebraskan fraudster. There is something inherently modern about this moral - it’s certainly not the message you’d get from the Grimm Brothers, but it’s a moral nonetheless. Either way, it’s a powerful lesson for any little one’s listening along.

Much like the children’s stories of old, this is a violent tale. If you were scarred as a young child by seeing the Flying Monkeys on the silver screen, you’ll know that there has always been something dark lurking beneath the surface of Oz. And the novel is no different, even though the locus of fear is different. The flying monkeys are fairly tame here, but the crew’s journey to the Witch involves the cleaving of beasts and twisting off of heads (no, literally). Does this mean that you shouldn’t read this book to your little one? Of course not! Make the decision that best fits your family dynamic, of course. But there’s a reason so much children’s media has an undercurrent of darkness. Fear, for better and worse, is one of those base childhood instincts and stories are how we learn to process it.

This novel is just as much a joy as when I first read it and no childhood is complete without it, even if it’s more of a mid- to upper-elementary pleasure. ...more

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