L. Frank Baum's classic children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was published in 1900 and was an immediate smash hit. If you've at least seen the musical you know the story: a young girl named Dorothy is swept away from her Kansas farm by a tornado and is plopped down in a fantastical land of wonder. This novel stands on its own as a brilliant work of American literature whose characters, unlike many European counterparts, don't come from any ancient legends, but were simply made up: talking animals, good and wicked ...
Read More
L. Frank Baum's classic children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was published in 1900 and was an immediate smash hit. If you've at least seen the musical you know the story: a young girl named Dorothy is swept away from her Kansas farm by a tornado and is plopped down in a fantastical land of wonder. This novel stands on its own as a brilliant work of American literature whose characters, unlike many European counterparts, don't come from any ancient legends, but were simply made up: talking animals, good and wicked witches, and of course, the wonderful Wizard himself!
Read Less
This was one of the few books I owned as a child. This was my first fantasy novel and I did read it over and over. Of course I built stories about what else may have happened in OZ as I read. I did read it until the covers fell off.
As my kids grew of course I introduced them to OZ, to Dorthy, the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman...and the Lion. But they went on and read many of the other OZ books I never did.
I think things that last, things that one generation can share with the next...and for that matter the next and the next are great and should be cherished.
