Wicked By Gregory Maguire

Synopsis:  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?
            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 first-class citizens, Munchkinlanders seek the comfort of middle-class citizens, 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.

My thoughts:  One of the most amazing books I’ve ever read! We are presented to Elphaba, or as we know the Wicked Witch of the West, from her birth to her death and as we keep reading, we got to meet many characters that have an essential role in the original The Wizard of Oz as much as in Elphie’s story, like Glinda, the sorceress that helps Dorothy when her house falls from the sky.

            In this book, we are able to realize that Elphaba became wicked not by choice, but by consequence: hated by her mother because of her skin color, ignored by her father, slaved by her sister, mocked by her school colleagues – including Glinda. Everything goes around her skin and because she was green, she suffered intense prejudice, for been the only green girl of all Oz. This prejudice can be even related to what happens today at school with some children because of their appearances or income.
            When Elphaba gets to the University, she becomes the joke because of her ways and dressing, so she learns to take care of herself and have attitude for self-protection. The saddest of the tale is that every time that she finds a little bit of happiness – (SPOILER) like her love affair with handsome prince Fiyero, who owned the lands that one day the Witch would live in – she gets into an ocean of sadness.

            Concerning the Broadway Show, only the characters were maintained and most of the story was changed – in my opinion. It’s good as entertainment, but not very truthful to the book.

Rate: Book-

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