Book Reviews of Wicked : The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West

I tried very hard to read this book because I do like the Wizard of Oz etc etc. The start of the book is good, but after that..it really drops off and gets to be rather dull, boring, and hard to follow. Half way through I was disappointed by the book, as I was expecting so much more, and was also disappointed with the content that was put into the book. Why children are reading this book I don't know..but they shouldn't be. Older teens perhaps, but not 8 year olds!! I have heard the musical is very different and have even looked up the differences, and yep, it's really different. I think the musical would make more sense, and move at a faster pace and not be so wordy and full of filler words and content.

I say don't waste your time with this book. Think what you want to think, you'll probably come up with a better story anyways!

A wonderful read. The book focuses on the wicked witch's life and even minimally covers the events occuring AFTER the fallen house. It was not what I expected but I was very pleasantly suprised and sad when the book ended. I want more.

I've noticed this is a highly requested book on PBS. Maybe it's just me, but I never got into it. There are a few good parts but it's a lot about the political climate of Oz at the time leading up to and during Dorothy's visit. I found it incredibly tedious to read, but I know a lot of people who felt differently! It just wasn't my cup of tea, but I wanted to read it before I saw the musical!

At times,I found the book difficult to dicipher the author's choice of complicated vocabulary vs imiginary words. I'm glad I had the challenge of reading the book, but it was a struggle for me. Others in my book club LOVED IT! Must be my mommy brain?

Interesting perspective on Animal rights and the witch's political struggles. I enjoyed this book but wasn't overwhelmed as many have been.

i absolutely adored this. i was hoping that wicked would be more adult and not just a cutesy tie-in for the much loved movie. this was a great "insight" into some of the characters that everyone is familiar with. i found myself really rooting for the wicked witch and didn't want to put it down.

When Dorothy triumphed over the Wicked Witch of the West in the classic tale, we only heard her side of the story. But what about her arch-nemesis the mysterious Witch? Where did she come from? How did she become so wicked? And what is the true nature of evil? Wicked is about a land where animals talk and strive to be treated like first-class citizens, Munchinkinlanders seek the comfort of middle-class stability and the Tin Man becomes a victim of domestic violence. And then there is the little green-skinned girl named Elphaba who grew up to the infamous Wicked Witch of the West.

Not the typical type of book that I read, but this was EXCELLENT. Anyone looking for a book to take you in this is it. I totally sympathized with the main character Elphaba! She definitely grows on you.

It was hard to get through this. If you know a lot about Oz before you read this it might be more interesting.

I loved it. I dont' know what rock I had been living under, but I had never heard of this book until I saw it on the shelf at Target. I found it difficult to do anything else until I finished it.

I finished reading it, but it was because of principle only. I would have just put it down, but I wanted to give the author the benefit of the doubt. I should have listened to my gut.

This book was on Nicholas Sparks recommended reading list. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. I thought it was a little slow getting started, but then I just had to finish it. I was not familiar with Oz at all except for the movie. This book made it feel like a real place and you'll never look at the Wicked Witch the same way again.

Turns the typical image of the Wicked Witch on its head. Very creative story.

I loved this story! So fun to read, a little slow at times but in the end it was a great read

Very interesting take on life in oz and in everyday life. I can't read more by this Author

We read this in our book club. Some of us found it a tough read. (It didn't hold my interest.) Some of us loved it.

I didn't particularly care for this book. It sort of dragged on and you pretty much already know the ending.

Couldn't get into it...would rather see the musical. Kind of graphic for my taste. :/

While I adored the musical (saw it twice), I hated this book. It's so different than the musical I almost couldn't follow some of the story. There were way too many characters, places and it was too long. I tried to read the new sequel but couldn't get past a couple chapters. I finally posted it and it was one of the first books I sent out as a new member.

MAM

This is one of those books where I think my expectations spoiled my reading experience. I've heard such wonderful things about this, and raves from people I trust. I went with friends to see the musical, and while it was cute, it certainly didn't blow me away. So on a whim, I picked this up because that's what I wanted. To be blown away. Everyone said the book was different than the show, so I figured it would be a given winner.

While it is different, it just wasn't as engrossing as I expected. It's all concept and no actual story. The premise is fantastic, and the first half of it really worked for me. I was excited about seeing the foundation being built for Elphaba's later deconstruction. But then she leaves Shiz, and everything goes downhill from there. Her characterization goes all over the place, and the story itself gets bogged down in all the political and thematic issues the author is obviously eager to explore. What should have been a pivotal emotional moment over halfway through gets swept under the rug, and I'm left feeling ambivalent about Elphaba and her gradual descent.

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.

Brand new book. Great fantasy!!

A great read!

Very popular with our book club.

Another Maguire masterpiece!

Interesting "prequel" to the Wizard of Oz story....

Amazing story!

if you've seen the musical, it's a bit different, but it is interesting to see the roots of it. good fantasy read

My wife read this one.
She said it was just okay. It surprised her there was use of the F word in it since it's based on a children's book series.

I did not enjoy this book at all! I read it because my 20 something had seen the play in New York and was raving about the play. From what I've been told the play has a diffrent plot line and conclusion. I do not suggest this book

After reading Ashley B's review of Wicked, I really had to sit down and write one of my own. Maguire does not claim to follow The Wizard of Oz, and the fact that you find it "dull, boring and hard to follow" lays claim only to the fact that you perhaps have little interest in his premise, which is the political and religious undertones of the Witches' upbringing and whether or not she was born wicked or if wickedness was thrust upon her by others due to the fact that she was born green.

As with any novel (yes darling, I said NOVEL) that is made into a movie or stage musical or play), it is downright obvious that there will be PLENTY of differences between the book and the musical (one wonders if you've ever read a book and seen the movie or play equivalent of said book).

The novel is a fantastic prequel to The Wizard of Oz told in the perspective of Elphaba (The Wicked Witch of the West) and how her life was before Dorothy's flying house landed upon her. Don't expect Wicked to be a bright children's tale (allegory and dark, mysterious magic abound). Maguire also does not explain much, he introduces people, places and ideas without much hoopla, but the way he weaves them into the story explains them completely -- so don't feel left in the dark.

I would reccomend this to someone who has quite a bit of undistracted time. It's important not to take very long breaks in reading this novel, as the details become more important toward the end, when the witch begins looking back upon her life. Its richly detailed characters and interesting plot choices make for a wonderful read that you're surely not soon to forget. Tough it out through the middle (when the content can become a bit flat) so you can finish this great book. This book certainly sets the stage for the far more entertaining and fast-paced "Son of a Witch" and "A Lion Among Men", which are the second and third books in the series by Maguire.

If you pick up this book expecting to read something similar to the beloved movie then put it back. The only thing similar are the names. The life and times of Oz as Gregory Maguire sees it is another world entirely. It really cannot be looked to as the Witch's side of the story since its completely rewritten.
The wonderful Wizard of Oz is a tyrant, Elphaba (aka The Wicked Witch of the West) is a political activist, and Galinda (aka Glinda the Good Witch) is a hoity toity that can't get past her own beauty most of the time. While I did find this book interesting enough to read through, I ultimately did not like it. I certainly was not expecting all the sex, violence and political craziness in a book taken from a children's story.

A fun and captivating book, especially for those of us who grew up watching the Wizard of Oz on TV every year.

Interesting. The Broadway play is different and much better! Could have been written a bit more smartly and more creatively. Very interesting concept, but the execution of the concept was very melancholy and down-trodden.

I just could not get into this book no matter how hard I tried. I gave up after about 75 pages.

This book took some time to get into but once I did I was not dissapointed. I found Wicked to be a very interesting take on how Elphaba bacame the witch and the events that led to her death. Don't expect this book to go right along with the Wizard of OZ. In Wicked OZ and its charicters are much different than what you would expect. Keep an open mind and you might enjoy this book too.

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!

This is NOT your childhood tales of Oz!

Too much adultery, even serial adultery, presented as normal accepted behavior. The treatment of animals as equal citizens and the presentation of terrorism as jusitiable is politically and culturally unacceptable, I believe, to the majority of U.S. citizens and to paperbackswap.com's readers.

If I had known beforehand that this novel would be radical propaganda, I'd have never chosen this book.

The plot is ragged, the dialogue much too wordy and it drags along at a glacial pace. Sadly, this could have been an interesting addition to Frank Baum's tales of Oz, which were politically-driven satire. But Baum did not write pornography and he nevery trashed our cultural values as a nation.

I LOVED THIS BOOK! I couldn't put it down. I didn't have high hopes for this one; since a lot of the reviews I read said it started out good and fizzled towards the end. I didn't think that was the case. Now, if you loved the Harry Potter books; this is fantasy, but not written in the same style at all. If you are easily offended; this also isn't the book for you. This is an "R" rated book and NOT for children. If you LOVE the "Wizard of OZ" this may also not be the book for you. This book isn't without it's faults; te author goes on a little bit here and there with his thoughts on "good and evil", but other than that, it's really good.

Excellent book! I love how Maguire takes the world created in the Wizard of Oz and expands on it, weaving modern politics and history into the story and questioning the nature of good and evil. The Witch becomes a human character that is easy to identify with, even as she becomes more desperate.

I really wanted to love this book because so many people claim to have loved it and it was on the NYT Bestseller list and all. But I really did not like it. It went on and on and on about the social and political climate of Oz which really held no interest for me at all. There were a lot of phrases and vocabulary that the author made up and never really explained very well. The motives of the characters are bizarre at best, and some of the exchanges and dialogue of characters was just plain weird instead of colloquial or friendly. There are also conversations where the second person knows what the first person is going to say before the first person says it and so it seemed stupid that the second person would know this bit of vital information before the first person said it. There were also some sexual interludes which just struck me as forced and out of place instead of going with the flow of the story, and in my opinion they weren't really necessary and didn't contribute much. I read the whole thing in case the end was somehow redeeming, but it was tortuous getting through it. And in the end, I was disappointed and wished I had just set it down after the first 50 pages and left it, like I wanted to. There were times when I would check to see how many pages I had left to read so I could be done with it finally and start on the next book that I am going to read. There are so many better books out there, don't waste your time.

I hade high hopes for this book and couldn't wait to read it but I must say this is one of the worst books I have ever read. I didn't even finish it. I kept hoping it would get better but at page 200 I gave up.

With all the hype about this book I wasn't sure I was going to like it, but I LOVED it. It was a bit slow and hard to get into in the begining. There are a lot of characters and different locations. It gave so much insight into the character of the Wicked Witch of the West and how she came to be. Maybe I liked it since it was about her life and not focused on Dorthy.

While I am a big fan of the Wizard of Oz, I could not get through this book; hence I have posted it on the website. Meanwhile-the witch was a dream Dorothy had while knocked out!

Boy was I confused, its not a children's book!

Different take on Wizard story - from Wicked Witch's view.

Very dark and somewhat "adult" in content. I'm sure others might enjoy it, but I was very surprised in just the first few chapters.

I know a lot of people enjoyed this book but I just couldn't get through it. I hope there is someone out there who will finish it and be happy to have it in their library!

An interesting peak at the history behind Oz and how the characters ultimately became who they are.

I realy liked this book and almost hate to get rid of it. It was long but I couldn't stop reading it. The ending was sad but I still liked it.

It took a while to get into the book. when i started reading it was a little confusing. but the more i read the more it made sense.

I liked this book a lot! I am a teen and would definitely recommend it to other teens and adults, but not children because of language . Reading this book really makes me want to see the musical, I hear it is really good!!!

Interesting look at the other side of the story.

Interesting take on the other side of the story. Loved it!

When Dorothy triumphed over the Wicked Witch of the West in L. Frank Baum's classic tale, we heard only her side of the story. But what about her arch-nemesis, the mysterious Witch? Where did she come from? How did she become so wicked? And what is the true nature of evil? Gregory Maguire creates a fantasy world so rich and vivid that we will never look at Oz the same way again. "Wicked" is about a land where animals talk and strive to be treated like first-class citizens, Munchkinlanders seek the comfort of middle-class stability, and the Tin Man becomes a victim of domestic violence. And then there is the little green-skinned girl named Elphaba, who will grow up to become the infamous Wicked Witch of the West, a smart, prickly, and misunderstood creature who challenges all our preconceived notions about the nature of good and evil.

When Dorothy triumphed over the Wicked Witch of the West in L. Frank Baum's classic tale, we heard only her side of the story. But what about her arch nemesis, the mysterious witch? Where did she come from? How did she become so wicked? An what is the true nature of evil?

Maguire creates a vivid, seamlessly believable world. This is a very unforgettable book.

Gives you a whole new perspective on the whole story of the Wizard of Oz.

Explores the life and times of Oz before Dorothy lands. Focuses on the Wicked Witch of the West and her family and friends.
I enjoyed this book very much. Oz will never look the same to me again.

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