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I am a very picky reader and he is author that I learned to love. I have read Wicked and Son of a witch, I just cannot say enough about this authors books. They are very well written and they really keep you interested.
However, once that portion (and not until the very end) of the book was reached, it completely veers off from the film interpretation, to the point where Maguire might as well almost be telling a completely different story.Thus, not only was the book filled with philosophical/political/economical material that would have even the greatest of thinkers occupied for decades, it wasn't even able to draw a decent ending out of it. However, Gregory Maguire's "Wicked" fails at that task in nearly every aspect.For starters, this book should almost be required reading for college classes in philosophy, economics, or political science. Very little explanation is actually given for that transformation, and when it does come (towards the very end of the book) it is just more philosophical mumbo-jumbo.Perhaps the most disappointing part of reading this book, though, was not the too-deep material by the destroying of the original Oz canon. Perhaps this was done in a nod to the original film's underlying social messages about unionism and such, but in this format (out front and center) it makes for an incredibly confusing read.The book started off decent enough, with Elphaba being born essentially a "green monster" and treated as such, but from that point it got too politically involved and too many inconsistencies sprang up.
I began reading this book because I love prequels. Perhaps, if you have enough time to completely ponder all the issues, you would get something more out of it than I did, but other than that don't waste your time. Once I realized what sort of book I was getting myself into, I only continued reading because I wanted that thrill of understanding the events that led up to the Witch hating Dorothy, wanting the Ruby Slippers, and eventually dying at her own hand (or bucket, as it was). Whether it be Batman Begins, J.J.
For instance (the most egregious example), in one chapter Elphaba is a young monster, while in the next she is at college (where she meets Glinda) and, while a bit strange, is able to at least fit in to the boundaries of society. The premise of the book was to discover how Elphaba turned into the Wicked Witch of the West and, because of all the confusing and deep topics, that transformation is not clearly illustrated in any sense.About the only thing this book made me want to do is to see the "Wicked" musical, which I am willing to bet is much better than the book, as the heavy material would have to be excised so as not to put the audience in a daze.Bottom line: Skip the book, maybe go see the play instead. Abrams' Star Trek, or Terminator Salvation, I love the idea that a writer can take an entire canon of literature and explain how it came to be. Instead of the more light-hearted fare I was expecting from a book based on "The Wizard of Oz", I instead found what amounted to be a philosopher's approach to how Elphaba becomes the Wicked Witch of the West.
I know I will never read any other book by this author as I was very discouraged. Stuff happens and then Elphaba's off on her own. They don't really mistreat her, but they don't love her, but she also doesn't really seem to notice or care. Is she good or bad. You hear about her babyhood, but not about her exactly. I never did. She names herself the Wicked Witch of the West because she thinks its amusing. This was a story that was not very good and had to potential to be awesome.
That seemed to be the theme through the whole book. Both. She isn't nice or even interesting and she never really gets any witchly powers, just her broom that flys. Bad stuff happens, then it's twelve years later. I just kept waiting for something to happen. In the beginning it starts out interesting. We meet the parents, and know that they feel cheated when they get the little green Elphaba. She was a completely unsympathetic character by then.
Five years later she runs into Fiyero and they have an affair while she is some kind of animal activist/domestic terrorist. Just like all the other people. She seems to finally like Glinda, but it is more a love/hate kind of thing. For everyone who thought this was great, I am glad you enjoyed it and got so much more out of it than I did.
By the end of the book, I didn't even care what happened to her. It could have been so much better. The author stopped refering to her as Effie or Elphaba and just started calling her The Witch. Her mother is a promiscuous drunk, her father a bible thumper of the area.
It never explains exactly, and then bad stuff happens and it's three years later.Everything she does turns out badly, and it just makes her bitter and reclusive. Then Nessarose, her deformed sister comes along, another character who you never really know. I didn't understand why, and I kept waiting to find out. She goes to school and makes what seems like friends, but you never really know.
After this, there needs to be credible characterization and an interesting plot. My overall impression throughout was that the book was trying too hard and took itself too seriously. I bought this book because of the buzz and after reading reviews on Amazon. Instead this book offers unlikeable, unsympathetic and uninteresting characters whose motivations and choices are not believable or consistent, and a tangled, overwrought plot that strains to make something complex out of the familiar fairy tale. Ultimately, it was ponderous, undramatic and clever for the sake of being clever. I feel lied to (by the reviews that I read). The most genuinely inventive aspect of this book is its premise, but that only carries one through the first few chapters.
People thought that the Animals looked too different to be a part of their world; so they slowly started taking away their rights. I enjoyed this book because it forced me to think about how I treat people who are different from me. Throughout the story, Elphaba, the green skinned protagonist, is treated with prejudice and fear because of her distinctive features. They are afraid to venture out to the unknown; out of the safe bubble they have created and stayed in for so long. Why is looking, seeing, acting, or thinking differently considered threatening to society.
For example, generally, older people are against gay marriage because they have lived so long under an impression that being gay was not honorable. In addition, there are Animals who have the same mental competence as the people of Oz but are shunned because of their visual peculiarity. Wicked is a great story because it makes the reader connect this fictional land to the one we live in today. Elphaba taught me that everyone has good in them; no matter what. The figures of authority in Wicked were limiting Elphie, the Animals, and others because of what they could do in terms of alterations to a society.So why is being different so bad. The truth is people are afraid of change.
This question is planted many times in the minds of the readers of Wicked by Gregory Maguire. Not only is Elphaba disliked but she is also feared by many. They fear people will stir things up with their new ideas. This book is a journey through the life of a the Wicked Witch of the West or Elphaba. Most would consider it to be a good quality; a strength, a uniqueness, a new perspective. The Animals are also dreaded because of their aspirations to obtain more rights.
Other important characters, such as Nessie and Fiyero, also have "strange" qualities and get treated unfairly because of them. Those who observe her realize her potential and her different mind and assume that, because of her unusual appearance, she doesn't have good intentions.
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