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Anne's Reviews > The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Oz, #1)
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Anne's review
bookshelves: classics, fantasy, audio, hoopla, hoopla-bonus-borrows, read-in-2022, young-children
Dec 14, 2022
bookshelves: classics, fantasy, audio, hoopla, hoopla-bonus-borrows, read-in-2022, young-children
I've never liked the movie.
And that's my shameful secret, Random Goodreader.
It terrified me that the mean neighbor was going to have Toto put down. And there was never any resolution to that when Dorothy came back from Oz! The movie just glossed over the fact that as soon as Toto set foot in Kansas again, Aunt Em and Uncle Henry are going to turn him over to Ms. Gulch.
Worse, nobody else seemed to notice this glaring plot hole, and they just kept insisting that somewhere over the rainbow, skies are blue and the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true.
And then they kill your dog!
Beyond that, I didn't like all the singing and skipping around. Or the munchkins' annoying voices.
At any rate, I never got the appeal of this beloved classic.
Until now.
The book was a bajillion times better than the movie! <--I don't know why I'm surprised, but there you have it.
There were several pretty big differences between the book and the movie that you may not be aware of if you're only familiar with the big screen version.
First, Dorothy and Toto go on an adventure to Oz without any mention of a dog killing neighbor lurking in the shadows awaiting their return. That storyline was something they made up for the movie, more's the pity.
Second, the slippers were silver not ruby! I'm guessing that was a choice made to show off Technicolor, and I can't really say I disagree with that one.
Third, there were all of these great backstories for all of the characters that got completely chopped out for the movie. Did you know that the Tin Man wants a heart because he was once in love with a young lady? Or that the flying monkeys were under a curse due to a practical joke gone wrong?
Cool, huh?
I can see why this was such a hit back in the day with the kiddos. It's not long, there are a lot of fun & fantastical characters, and THE DOG DOESN'T DIE.
Recommended!
And that's my shameful secret, Random Goodreader.
It terrified me that the mean neighbor was going to have Toto put down. And there was never any resolution to that when Dorothy came back from Oz! The movie just glossed over the fact that as soon as Toto set foot in Kansas again, Aunt Em and Uncle Henry are going to turn him over to Ms. Gulch.
Worse, nobody else seemed to notice this glaring plot hole, and they just kept insisting that somewhere over the rainbow, skies are blue and the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true.
And then they kill your dog!
Beyond that, I didn't like all the singing and skipping around. Or the munchkins' annoying voices.
At any rate, I never got the appeal of this beloved classic.
Until now.
The book was a bajillion times better than the movie! <--I don't know why I'm surprised, but there you have it.
There were several pretty big differences between the book and the movie that you may not be aware of if you're only familiar with the big screen version.
First, Dorothy and Toto go on an adventure to Oz without any mention of a dog killing neighbor lurking in the shadows awaiting their return. That storyline was something they made up for the movie, more's the pity.
Second, the slippers were silver not ruby! I'm guessing that was a choice made to show off Technicolor, and I can't really say I disagree with that one.
Third, there were all of these great backstories for all of the characters that got completely chopped out for the movie. Did you know that the Tin Man wants a heart because he was once in love with a young lady? Or that the flying monkeys were under a curse due to a practical joke gone wrong?
Cool, huh?
I can see why this was such a hit back in the day with the kiddos. It's not long, there are a lot of fun & fantastical characters, and THE DOG DOESN'T DIE.
Recommended!
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Reading Progress
May 17, 2009
– Shelved
November 17, 2022
–
Started Reading
December 14, 2022
–
Finished Reading
Comments Showing 1-50 of 99 (99 new)
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Iris
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rated it 3 stars
Dec 14, 2022 12:29PM
Obvs Ms. Gulch died in the storm. C'mon, man.
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I'm going to message you later about how I visited the "self-proclaimed" hometown of Dorothy in this crazy town in Kansas. They seriously were like "If it could be any town in Kansas, why can't it be ours?" and just ran with it.
I loved this whole series when I was a kid. Great review.
I read this series 15 years ago or so and thought it was pretty awful. Nightmare awful. Return to Oz awful. Some literary critic asked why England and Europe has all the best kids stories. Because this is the best America could do. Baum took Alice in Wonderland and removed all the icky puberty metaphors so you’re just left with a wasteland of horrors and freakish events, and you know, maybe that does sum up America. But I still prefer Narnia and Hogwarts.
Iris wrote: "Obvs Ms. Gulch died in the storm. C'mon, man."Hahaha! I like that.
Melanie wrote: "I'm going to message you later about how I visited the "self-proclaimed" hometown of Dorothy in this crazy town in Kansas. They seriously were like "If it could be any town in Kansas, why can't it ..."That's an AWESOME amount of crazysauce and I'm rooting for them.
Emily wrote: "I loved this whole series when I was a kid. Great review."Thanks! I'm still debating on reading the rest.
Virginia wrote: "I read this series 15 years ago or so and thought it was pretty awful. Nightmare awful. Return to Oz awful. Some literary critic asked why England and Europe has all the best kids stories. Because ..."That sucks.
I loved Narnia as a kid, too! Although, I do think Harry Potter is probably a lot more accessible and interesting to kids now. I was thinking about doing a re-read of all of the Narnia books now that I'm older but I'm not sure how all of the religious content would hit me now that I'm older. I'm wondering if those books might be better left to my nostalgia.
The movie was required watching growing up. I can’t remember how old I was when it was first forced on me, but it terrified me, too. Not the impending loss of Toto, but those flying monkeys� 😬
Later in life, it still terrified me because I had the great misfortune of being born in Kansas. I was deathly afraid of that being discovered and having to endure “Dave, I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore.� Very clever, that one.
Now, I have made my peace with the movie. And the Scarecrow’s refrain “If I only had a brain…� has become a staple at work.
Thank you for the review. I should probably read the book. I like tragic backstories.
The monkeys didn't scare me for whatever reason, but the damn woman on her bike-o-death surely did!
I was raised by a very stern mother who was often chasing me on her bike.The “damn woman� was the equivalent of a Scooby Doo villain to my mother’s Freddy Krueger. 😜
I think I was four when I first saw the flying monkeys. Yikes!
You must have loved animals as a child.
Oh yeah. I used to be a total softie.
Anne wrote: "Oh yeah. I used to be a total softie."And you’re not anymore? Hmmm�
Well, maybe not “total�. You have survived a couple of teenagers. No one escapes that unscarred.
Anne wrote: "Your mom! LOL!"My friends thought it was funny, too.
“Dave, is that your mom chasing us on a bike?!�
“Aw, @#$&*!�
Dave wrote: "Anne wrote: "Oh yeah. I used to be a total softie."And you’re not anymore? Hmmm�
Well, maybe not “total�. You have survived a couple of teenagers. No one escapes that unscarred."
IT BURNS!!!
Dave wrote: "Anne wrote: "Your mom! LOL!"My friends thought it was funny, too.
“Dave, is that your mom chasing us on a bike?!�
“Aw, @#$&*!�"
Please tell me you aren't exaggerating...
Anne wrote: "IT BURNS!!!"A-N-T-I-B-I-O-T-I-C-S.
(That took waaaaaay too long to type on an iPad.)
My mom kept chasing us on her bike even after my friends and I were driving.She was relentless. She was like Lance Armstrong with both of his testicles.
That woman was a demon on a bicycle. And there were few things more scary. Nothing quite like seeing my mother gaining on us, pedalling furiously, through the rear windshield.
I still suffer from PTSD and nightmares.
I'm may have peed myself a little reading that, not gonna lie! That story makes me want to buy a bike and chase my kids.
Sorry about the pee accident. Quick rinse and spin and you’ll be good as new.The bicycle was definitely part of the terror, but my mother had other…qualities. Very stern woman. She also was born in Kansas. Unlike me, she grew up there, too. On a…shocker…farm.
If Wizard of Oz hadn’t been made a few years before my mother was born, I would swear Miss Gulch was based on my mom. Only…Miss Gulch was not quite as scary. My mother didn’t need the sheriff. That’s a city folk pleasantry.
HAHA! I'm trying to imagine and I just...can't.
Anne wrote: "HAHA! I'm trying to imagine and I just...can't."Then, you are indeed fortunate that your mind cannot conceive of something so dreadful.
Protect that innocence.
I am trying to forget. There simply isn’t enough Nyquil in the world.
Poor guy. We all have our cross to bear, yours is just called Mom. lol
Have you read Eleven Days in December? It’s about Agatha Christy going missing and turning up at a posh spa claiming amnesia.
Dang. I never thought about the plot hole there. I assumed Dorothy had grown a spine from visiting Oz and would refuse to turn over Toto. Maybe Dorothy should throw water on the neighbor—see what happens.
Yip Harburg (who wrote the lyrics of the songs, and was actually very good) is probably better represented by Finian's Rainbow (which I've seen live twice, and the later - 1962 - movie at least once - well worth looking for) and other works than by the 1939 Wizard of Oz movie (not the earliest movie based on the book, btw - that probably belongs either to a 1908 anthology or 1910 short film; the 1914 full(er)-length "The Patchwork Girl of Oz" was, according to IMDb, the first adaptation of a book from the series that wasn't a "short film", but the hour-long "The New Wizard of Oz", partially based on this novel, did also come out in 1914...)
In the series, Auntie Em and Uncle Henry *spoilers omitted*
I also liked the Oz books more than the movie. As a kid the flying monkeys terrified me lol. There’s a TON of Oz books, too. I want to look and see if there’s a box set anywhere because I’d love to own it and reread them at my leisure!
Toby wrote: "I also liked the Oz books more than the movie. As a kid the flying monkeys terrified me lol. There’s a TON of Oz books, too. I want to look and see if there’s a box set anywhere because I’d love to..."I have 3 digital "boxed" sets, one of which (the Delphi edition) also contains the Oz short stories (e.g. the Wogglebug book) and many of his other (nonOz...) stories and novels (he wrote quite a few) but only some of Ruth Plumly Thomson's Oz books (for copyright reasons), I think.
Joni wrote: "Have you read Eleven Days in December? It’s about Agatha Christy going missing and turning up at a posh spa claiming amnesia."NO! But I keep meaning to! It's on my list once I'm done with all of the rest of her books/shorts/plays.
Eric wrote: "Toby wrote: "I also liked the Oz books more than the movie. As a kid the flying monkeys terrified me lol. There’s a TON of Oz books, too. I want to look and see if there’s a box set anywhere becaus..."Toby wrote: "I also liked the Oz books more than the movie. As a kid the flying monkeys terrified me lol. There’s a TON of Oz books, too. I want to look and see if there’s a box set anywhere because I’d love to..."
I saw how many books there are in the series and I nearly fell over! It was like finding out that Tarzan was a series all over again.
WHO KNEW? <--not me
I'm reading a book rn written by Baum and its actually really great, it's The Life and Adventures of Claus
Really? That sounds very festive!
Anne wrote: "Poor guy. We all have our cross to bear, yours is just called Mom. lol"There are much worse crosses.
A mother pedalling after her teenage son shows some amount of care and dedication even if that care and dedication intimidated me. I’m not even sure I could muster the energy to throw a rock at my sons off to make their own glorious mistakes.
I had a mother who loved me. I am fortunate. Dorothy did not have that.
Dorothy. Dog Mom. Tornado survivor. Multiverse Traveler. Orphan.
Anne wrote: "Dorothy. Dog Mom. Tornado survivor. Multiverse Traveler. Orphan."
Best summary ever! A very powerful, sympathetic and understanding review in a single line.
I’ve got something in my eye�
Well done, Anne.
While I think the books are awful (at least rereading them now as as a middle aged editor), I hope you Anne read the next on The Land of Oz. It doesn’t have Dorothy, but takes place after Dorothy. It’s freaky with half-baked ideas, like a flying couch, and weird plots, like all the women have risen up in Oz and have deserted their kids and husbands and they’ve dug up all the emeralds in Emerald City to beautify themselves. It’s weird and I’d love to know your thoughts .
I thought the movie was weird and the characters were annoying.I like classic fairytales,etc but this one was very weird and a even a bit boring maybe I should rewatch it now that I'm older to see of it still too weird or boring to me.
I remember remakes being worst that I had watched.
The books are often better than the films but sometimes they are worse.I have this book on my "want to read" shelf amd I'm looking forward to reading it.
Virginia wrote: "While I think the books are awful (at least rereading them now as as a middle aged editor), I hope you Anne read the next on The Land of Oz. It doesn’t have Dorothy, but takes place after Dorothy. ..."That does sound a bit batshit! although, if those women had a houseful of teenagers, I can see why they'd jump ship! lol
Dave wrote: "Anne wrote: "Dorothy. Dog Mom. Tornado survivor. Multiverse Traveler. Orphan."
Best summary ever! A very powerful, sympathetic and understanding review in a single line.
I’ve got something in my..."
I should write blurbs! Hahaha!
K (Promoting non bias,honest reviews & condemning unnecessary censorship) wrote: "I thought the movie was weird and the characters were annoying.I like classic fairytales,etc but this one was very weird and a even a bit boring maybe I should rewatch it now that I'm older to see..."
K (Promoting non bias,honest reviews & condemning unnecessary censorship) wrote: "The books are often better than the films but sometimes they are worse.
I have this book on my "want to read" shelf and I'm looking forward to reading it."
It always surprises me when the movie is better than the book! It happens, though.
Amazing review!I can say, and not embarrassed, that I haven't watched the film. I'm a huge cinema fan, but I can't seem to find a moment to watch it. But after your review, I am really intrigued by the book, so maybe I can do a 2x1 and read the book and then later watch the movie.
Anne wrote: "I should write blurbs! Hahaha!"You have the gift.
I’m sure reviews and answering comments consumes enough of your time.
Marcos wrote: "Amazing review!I can say, and not embarrassed, that I haven't watched the film. I'm a huge cinema fan, but I can't seem to find a moment to watch it. But after your review, I am really intrigued b..."
The book is really short, so that would be a doable thing, Marcos. I'd love to hear what you think of the differences between them. Obviously, they are both classics, but...
Dave wrote: "Anne wrote: "I should write blurbs! Hahaha!"You have the gift.
I’m sure reviews and answering comments consumes enough of your time."
True. Too much time! But then I meet such cool people and it makes it worth it.
ah, seeing this review I was reminded of this book I adored as a kid, which is sort of a Russian rip-off of Wizard of Oz/ sequel, some names are changed, and I think I read it 10x times more than I read the Wizard of Oz. Don't know if I can find it anywhere to reread though!
Anne wrote: "But then I meet such cool people and it makes it worth it.�Indeed.
I have met a few. I would probably meet more if I was less socially inept.
Ruxandra wrote: "ah, seeing this review I was reminded of this book I adored as a kid, which is sort of a Russian rip-off of Wizard of Oz/ sequel, some names are changed, and I think I read it 10x times more than I..."Oh man! That sounds very cool! Kind of reminds me of those knock-off toys you see on the internet. Still fun to play with, right?
