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3.64 AVERAGE
3.64 AVERAGE
adventurous
lighthearted
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
An Oz book where the magic belt is not the solution. Thank goodness. This story actually has some plot and suspense!
Bini Aru learns the pronunciation of the word that will allow the speaker to transform into anything they wish. Eventually he is allied to the nome Ruggedo, and they attempt to get the animals of Oz onto their side by claiming that the Emerald City plans to enslave them.
While I'm still not a fan of the Oz books, this does stand out as one of the better releases. Holding back on Ozma's magic belt was a good decision. It allows Dorothy and the Wizard to win with cleverness.
Bini Aru learns the pronunciation of the word that will allow the speaker to transform into anything they wish. Eventually he is allied to the nome Ruggedo, and they attempt to get the animals of Oz onto their side by claiming that the Emerald City plans to enslave them.
Spoiler
After run-ins with Dorothy, the Wizard, and other Oz inhabitants, they are eventually defeated and drink the Waters of Oblivion, removing their threat from Oz forever.While I'm still not a fan of the Oz books, this does stand out as one of the better releases. Holding back on Ozma's magic belt was a good decision. It allows Dorothy and the Wizard to win with cleverness.
adventurous
lighthearted
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This has never been one of my favorite Baum Oz books, but on my first re-read as an adult, I found it surprisingly enjoyable. It's easy to dismiss as one of Baum's last four Oz stories because the other three are so startling in what they're doing differently, plot-wise; Lost Princess is a roadshow, with appearances from almost every one of Baum's protagonists, a peculiarly spiritual ending; Tin Woodman is an existential novel with moments of extreme dissonance; Glinda is female-oriented proto-science fiction. Magic is far more...well, normal...but there are still surprises: an unhappy, disgruntled protagonist; an invasion that peters out mid-book; and a generally melancholy tone for what's supposedly a book about a party. It's still not the most memorable book in the series, but it's better than I'd ever given it credit for, and more interesting than the mid-series books where Baum was clearly focusing elsewhere. If this is a "lesser" story, it's only because it's a bit more familiar; as a writer, he's clearly firing on all cylinders and perhaps, just before his death, at the peak of his abilities.
Again, Baum produced a solid book in the realm of Oz with a plot that holds together well.
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
There are way too many of these books, all with the same plot