You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
Never having read this as a youth, I only had the movie to gauge the story. The actual book I found to be sort of violent in parts (the Tin Man killing everything the Wicked Witch sends at the four).
I read this for the Machalo Challenge - a banned book.
Surprisingly, somewhere over the rainbow, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz has been banned several times in the past by US libraries for various reasons, including female empowerment, depictions of witchcraft and plain uselessness - see this article: http://www.openculture.com/2016/09/when-frank-l-baums-wizard-of-oz-series-was-banned-for-depicting-women-in-strong-leadership-roles-1928.html
Anyway, I loved this book since I first read it in that green Penguin Classics binding, and I love it even more after listening to Anne Hathaway narrate it. Because she's a darn good storyteller.
She does all sorts of fun accents (there's a stork that sounds like a high school cheer-leader trope), she narrates with an inherent sense of humor and wonder, and she has a calm, melodic voice. All the good things. I think anyone would enjoy listening to her.
The story itself is quite literally wish fulfillment at its best. Characters have a strange subtlety to them - no one is a single trait trope - and the best part really has to be the tongue-in-cheek humor. For example, the country of porcelain has a tall white ceramic wall - Great Wall of China, geddit? There's lots of little jokes hidden in the writing, and that makes me think Baum intended for adults to enjoy the book as well. The vocabulary is a bit advanced as well occasionally, so I wonder how much this was aimed at children. There is indeed female empowerment, some interesting takes on loyalty and a diverse range of personalities, to the point where Dorothy is the most boring character.
I think this would be best experienced as a parent reading to a child, chapter by chapter, so that everyone ends up enjoying. Failing that, the audiobook isn't bad at all.
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
adventurous
dark
funny
hopeful
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I get why it is a classic, I just don't feel the connection to it that so many people do. It is cute and classic, but almost feels basic to me 🤷🏻♀️
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No