"Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West"

Lex

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Fri May-13-05 11:41 PM
Original message

"Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West"

Edited on Fri May-13-05 11:44 PM by Lex

.
An excellent book that I'm reading right now. Really, really good. It sounds like a strange premise, but author is brilliant and highly imaginative. An enjoyable read. Thought I'd let my fellow DU'ers know about it.

Part of a review:

-----------

"We�re DEFINITELY not in Kansas anymore.

WICKED is, at its core, a character study of what we thought we knew about the Wicked Witch of the West�whether you�ve read L. Frank Baum�s masterpiece, or seen the Disney-ized adaptation of The Wizard of Oz. This version might be tough for the die-hard film enthusiasts to digest, but rest assured there�s plenty of material in here to enliven even the staunchest critic.

What Gregory Maguire (the author) has done is to create a back-story for the Wicked Witch of the West. He also gives her a special name: Elphaba, a nod toward her creator, L. Frank Baum, as Mr. Maguire incorporated the author�s name (work on it, you�ll figure it out).

There�s almost too much information in the book to cover in one simple review: there�s the quest for the existence of souls, the search for God (in something called the Unnamed God), a challenge to our knowledge of what true evil is (is Elphaba REALLY evil?), family and how they impact our growth (or stunt it), adultery (is it adultery if it happens in another realm?), sexual behavior, mythology within this mythological world, politics and government, sibling rivalry, fate versus individual choice, and a smattering of other ideals. Wow!"

http://www.fwomp.com/rev-wicked.htm

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

knowbody0

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Fri May-13-05 11:45 PM
Response to Original message

1. i read it last summer

white wine, the beach, and that fantastic book. enjoy

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

Faygo Kid

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Fri May-13-05 11:46 PM
Response to Original message

2. Thanks. One for my daughter.

It's OK; she's 28. Looks like a great gift!

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

Lex

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Sat May-14-05 12:00 AM
Response to Reply #2

4. I got it as a gift for my birthday from a friend who knows

how much I like to read--and what kinds of things I like to read.

She was spot-on with this gift!

So . . . yes! It would make a great gift!

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

davidinalameda

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Fri May-13-05 11:52 PM
Response to Original message

3. I'm convinced

I'll going to get it

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

Lex

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Sat May-14-05 01:34 PM
Response to Original message

5. bumping just in case anyone's looking for a good read

and for the daytime crowd

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

petron

(176 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Sat May-14-05 03:01 PM
Response to Original message

6. Fantastic book

I read it two years ago and loved it. The author has an amazing imagination. His grasp of English is awe inspiring.

Get it, read it.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

DU AdBot (1000+ posts)

Fri May 03rd 2024, 05:32 AM
Response to Original message

Advertisements [?]

Top

Powered by DCForum+ Version 1.1 Copyright 1997-2002 DCScripts.com
Software has been extensively modified by the DU administrators

Important Notices: By participating on this discussion board, visitors agree to abide by the rules outlined on our Rules page. Messages posted on the Democratic Underground Discussion Forums are the opinions of the individuals who post them, and do not necessarily represent the opinions of Democratic Underground, LLC.