I read this for book club. Not what I expected. Some parts were really interesting, and others sort of dragged. I guess I was expecting some more elaboration on the Dorothy vs. Witch relationship stemming from the "Wizard of Oz". However, very little of that is mentioned. This book deals more with the Witch's life prior to that time. And from what I hear from others, readers either really like or really dislike Gregory Maguire's writing.

If I try to explain what Wicked is about, I sound like I'm describing a children's book. But Gregory Maguire's novel is hardly that, so here goes: Wicked is a retelling of the The Wizard of Oz from the viewpoint of the Wicked Witch of the West. This novel, however, is so much more than that. Wicked asks questions about the source of evil. It asks questions about making choices. It asks questions about why people turn out the way they do, and are they really what they appear to be?

Maguire uses dark humor throughout much of his story, which contrasts the serious questions asked. Many who read this book will identify with the Witch at several points throughout reading Wicked, and that's scary in itself.

Don't expect a children's book, or anything resembling the Oz from the movie or the original book by L. Frank Baum. At some points, this tale is quite tawdry. Have no expectations if you take on exploring it, but realize it is not light reading; realize this is not your grandmother's Oz.

Great! Absolutely loved getting a different perspective on the Wicked Witch of the West..quite a gal!

I read this book after i had seen the show WICKED. Not really the same thing at all. The show at least had a plot line you could follow. Maguire's premise starts out great but he loses you half way through it. At a certain point I actually put it down because it was giving me a headache to read it. I agree with the other reviewwer - eirhter you love Macguire's writing or you don't. Put me down for don't.

Reviewed by K. Osborn Sullivan for TeensReadToo.com

Have you ever read a popular book and wondered why it was so popular? That's exactly how I felt as I worked my way through WICKED. Actually, that's not entirely true. I know why it's a New York Times Bestseller. Part of it has to do with the reason I picked the book up in the first place. I expected a light, fairy tale-like story. It's based on a children's book. There's a Broadway musical about it. Sounds like it should be fun, right? Uh, not quite. I get the feeling, though, that a lot of people thought as I did and bought WICKED looking for an easy-to-read lead-up to THE WIZARD OF OZ. I wonder how many of them finished reading the book when they figured out the truth?

Although to be fair, WICKED doubtless also owes some of its popularity to the fact that it's a well-written, literary novel that can be appreciated by well-read, literary-type people. Unfortunately, I'm really not one of those. Giving me a piece of deep, meaningful literature is like giving a copy of Hemingway's THE OLD MAN AND THE SEA to a manatee. In other words, I was disappointed. My disappointment was partly in the book for not fulfilling my expectations, and partly in myself for not being able to appreciate a quality literary effort.

In case you've been living in a hollowed out tree for the last couple of years and haven't heard about the play, WICKED is the story of the Wicked Witch of the West and how she became the Wicked Witch of the West. The book delves far deeper into the witch's life and times than any musical could in only two hours, however. In the book version of WICKED, readers are introduced to the witch, whose real name is Elphaba, when she is first born. She's green and has dangerous, pointy teeth. Needless to say, she's not too popular with the other children. Even her parents aren't too sure about her.

As the story progresses, we see Elphaba at college. She falls in with a number of fellow students, some of whom are more and others less accepting of the strange green girl. It's not just her skin color that's different, though. Elphaba thinks and acts differently than other people. And she has this aversion to water.... Well, we all know how that turns out for her.

The book is an interesting departure from the Oz books, including such details as why the Cowardly Lion is able to talk, and the fact that everyone in Oz thought Dorothy's dog, Toto, was the most irritating thing to ever draw breath. I wish, however, that I could have liked some of the characters. No one was particularly likeable, as far as I was concerned. Even Elphaba, who readers should have had some sympathy for, seemed odd to me, and I never understood her motivation for anything she did. In other words, I could have gotten over the fact that she was green, but it really bothered me that she didn't act normal. Also, a word of warning: Even though these are essentially fairy tale characters, this book treats them like adults, complete with sex, swearing, and the occasional murder. Younger readers should steer clear, and older readers should be aware of what's in store here.

In general, I recommend this book for OLDER readers who are huge fans of the Oz books or the Wicked play and want to go deeper. According to my husband, who is capable of appreciating fine literature, it also has literary merit. But for those of us who want to keep our memories of the Oz stories as sweet as the old Judy Garland film was, those readers might want to be careful around WICKED.

The book wasn't what I thought it would be. The Dorothy part of the book was less than 20 pages. I stuck with it because it was well written but I was very disappointed!

This was such a creative book. I loved the thought of having the story from the witch's perspective and it was so well-written, my view of Oz will probably stick with this one instead of the original. I just loved it!

Could not get into it.

Read All Book Reviews of "Wicked The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West"

I'd seen the musical and was intrigued to find out more about the life and times of Oz and the Wicked Witch of the West. This book gave me what I expected and hoped for, and yet it didn't. The story is fleshed out more than the musical's plotline, and you do get more insight into the personality and life of Elphaba, the wicked green anti-heroine. However, the details start getting skimpier and Elphaba's motivations get murkier as the story moves along. How she actually becomes "wicked" and glories at her newly won reputation as the Wicked Witch of the West is treated shabbily. The plot details and looks at Elphaba's life get traded in for discussions of morality and the origin of evil and the theology of souls, and it's a poor tradeoff where readability is concerned. The story never recovers from this derailment and the last section of the book, which should have been exciting and enthralling as this is the section where Witch meets Dorothy, is a big letdown. Throughout the book, the main character is referred to by name, as Elphaba, although different nicknames are ascribed to her at various times, yet in the last section she is continually referred to only as The Witch and no longer called Elphaba, a distracting device designed to distance the reader emotionally from her death.

Characters are never fleshed out enough to garner sympathy or likeability and the sections of the story reflecting the well-known Wizard of Oz story are far too brief to enjoy properly. Author Maguire goes through all this trouble setting up a rich and detailed storyland and then pulls away the vicarious enjoyment we could've had comparing this refreshingly new take on old familiar scenes and people by removing almost all such references out of the plot.

An interesting but flawed read, not all I had hoped it would be.

Wicked was great because of the perspective it gave on how the Wicked Witch of the West came into her role. It was very fascinating to get a back story on the characters that eventually came into Dorothy's life. An awesome book.

Hey all! I have a paperback version posted, brand new. Check it out ;)

It was a pretty good read.

Absolutely fabulous, it's mystical while being earthly and political. I recommend this to anyone and everyone.

Novel on which the Broadway play is based. A morality tale warning us all not to judge people based on t he color of their skin - green or not.

an amazing book! much more comprehensive than I expected

Read All Book Reviews of "Wicked The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West"