Book Review 7: Wicked

Take a well known fictional story, a story that almost every American can recite by heart, that almost everyone cherishes as a popular culture icon, and then write a book that completely changes it. Write a book that warps the well known world that people have come to love into an strange and sometimes frightening place fraught with all the problems and social issues that we have here in the land of reality.

That's essentially what author Gregory MaGuire does in Wicked, a novel that takes the well known characters and events from The Wizard of Oz and tells it from the point of view of the Wicked Witch of the West. The point of this novel on the surface is to show that every story has two sides and history is written by the victors, it's just a quirky twist on a classic story. The deeper point of this novel is to show, through heavy symbolism, issues of social injustice and hypocrisy.

Caution: If you love The Wizard of Oz and the rose-colored glasses version that most Americans know, then you may want to avoid Wicked because it might taint your idealistic version of the story. Once read, there is no unreading it, you can't click your heels three times to go home. At times it's a difficult read, but its well worth it because it is also an example of an author who knows a lot about literature and has used that knowledge to weave a highly fascinating, if somewhat confusing, story.

This is book worth reading, if for nothing else but to see the strange twist on a classic story. The book was so popular that it has spawned a musical production (I have not seen it so I'm not able to tell how well it follows the book), and has consistently been on the best-sellers. I'm glad that people have enough interest in literature to read a story that makes use of a fictional place and characters from a classic story, but I'm not so sure that Judy Garland would have signed on to play the role of Dorothy in this land of Oz.

Recommended Reading: Son of a Witch

Also by Gregory MaGuire, Son of a Witch is the sequel to the best-selling Wicked. If you do read Wicked, and you enjoy it, then prepare to spend money to buy a copy of Son of a Witch because you will want to know what happens to the characters and the land of Oz. But also be prepared to be slightly unsatisfied. Son of a Witch is well-written and interesting, but it may just leave you with more questions then answers.