Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
    The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
    The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
    Ebook303 pages2 hours

    The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

    By L. Frank Baum, W. W. Denslow and Michael Patrick Hearn

    4/5

    ()

    Switch to audiobook
    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Originally published over 115 years ago, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz has captivated readers of all ages with its remarkable narrative and lovable characters. Although incredibly popular after initial publication, part of the book’s fame can be attributed to its many popular adaptations, most notably the iconic 1939 musical film starring Judy Garland, which skyrocketed the book to eternal fame.

    In this attractive, affordable hardcover edition, revisit L. Frank Baum’s masterpiece featuring young Dorothy, who’s swept in a tornado and carried off to the mythical Land of Oz. Follow the classic protagonist, and her adorable dog Toto, along the yellow brick road as they navigate through Munchkinland and Emerald City, and try to find their way back home to Kansas. Discover the origins of immortalized characters like the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, the Cowardly Lion, and the Wicked Witch of the West.

    The edition includes all of the original full-page color illustrations by W. W. Denslow, as well as vibrant spot illustration throughout, only enhancing this enchanting literature. Experience a classic in its truest form, and pick up this beautiful edition of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRacehorse
    Release dateMay 9, 2017
    ISBN9781944686895
    Author

    L. Frank Baum

    L. Frank Baum (1856-1919) published The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in 1900 and received enormous, immediate success. Baum went on to write seventeen additional novels in the Oz series. Today, he is considered the father of the American fairy tale. His stories inspired the 1939 classic film The Wizard of Oz, one of the most widely viewed movies of all time. MinaLima is an award-winning graphic design studio founded by Miraphora Mina and Eduardo Lima, renowned for establishing the visual graphic style of the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts film series. Specializing in graphic design and illustration, Miraphora and Eduardo have continued their involvement in the Harry Potter franchise through numerous design commissions, from creating all the graphic elements for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter Diagon Alley at Universal Orlando Resort, to designing award-winning publications for the brand. Their best-selling books include Harry Potter and the Philospher’s Stone, Harry Potter Film Wizardry, The Case of Beasts: Explore the Film Wizardry of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, The Archive of Magic: Explore the Film Wizardry of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, and J.K. Rowling’s Fantastic Beasts screenplays. MinaLima studio is renowned internationally for telling stories through design and has created its own MinaLima Classics series, reimagining a growing collection of much-loved tales including Peter Pan, The Secret Garden, and Pinocchio.

    Read more from L. Frank Baum

    Related to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

    Related ebooks

    Children's For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    Related categories

    Reviews for The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

    4/5

    3,880 ratings181 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 5/5
      I just finished reading this book to my son, who is almost six. He really liked it, which sort of surprised me as it was more challenging for him to stay with than all the picture books and easy readers we usually share. I am very glad that my edition had all the old pictures in it so that it still had a little picture book flavor. That made the transition to more advanced reading easier.

      The one thing I will note: As with the Beatrix Potter stories I also read in my childhood, I was a little surprised at the level of violence in this book. I guess it is just a reminder of how times have changed. But if you are at all worried about creatures of various sorts meeting a rather gruesome demise, I would sit this book out. But I truly believe you would be missing out on a really wonderful story.

      Keep in mind as well that there are some MAJOR differences from the MGM movie -- the ruby slippers are silver, and Glinda is not the same Good Witch as the one at the beginning of the novel. (Spoiler: This change is what makes the movie Glinda seem so awful if you really think about it. She knew the whole time about the slippers and she never said anything?? Not cool.)
    • 5/5
      A great book for the young and old alike. If you're familiar with the movie or with Wicked... throw everything you know away and immerse yourself fully in this wondrous piece of art. Dorothy is a determined, plucky girl, the Wicked Witch is very much a child herself, and the Scarecrow and Tin Woodsman are as humourous and heartfelt as you always thought them to be. I highly recommend this book to every little girl looking for some adventure and humour, and every little boy wanting the same!
    • 4/5
      It's REEEALLLY good. The kind of books I love to read :D It's ''childish'', but not written as though we were children of 5 to understand it. :D
    • 4/5
      A rather wonderful story! There were definitely some differences from the movie, which I found interesting, and I listened to the audiobook, which was a very nice interpretation/performance. I don't feel the political aspects were very pronounced, I'll have to read more analysis of that to understand it better, I suppose.
    • 5/5
      The book is definitely different from the movie. The tale is directed towards youngsters with the use of repeating things and simplified wordings. There is a bit too much violence for a children's book, though. There is a scene where the scarecrow kills crows by snapping their necks.
    • 3/5
      Although I've seen the 1939 film and more recent films, I had no idea what to expect. I remember looking at all of the L. Frank Baum books at the library, but never picked one up.

      I shouldn't be surprised by the darkness in the books, but coming from contemporary children's stories, I seem to have coddled my own understanding of the frankness and abrupt nature that "evil" is dealt with at the turn of the century.

      I enjoyed the book, probably more so because I have so many other versions to compare it to. I have yet to read Wicked, but I prefer this story to the other adaptations.
    • 4/5
      La storia del Mago di Oz la conoscono tutti tra film e citazioni in altre serie (e.g. Futurama).A rileggerlo però è proprio un bel romanzo per bambini con il tema del viaggio e delle prove da superare per i quattro protagonisti.Oz insegna che forse è inutile cercare di avere quello che si ottiene con l'esperienza e che forse si aveva già, mentre Dorothy ci ricorda quanto sia bello tornare a casa.---The story of the magician of Oz is well known thanks also to books and quotes in series (e.g. Futurama).I re-read it and I found this book a very interesting children novel that contains the theme of the travel and obstacles that the four protagonists have to overcome.Oz tells us that maybe what we already have what we are searching for and that experience helps in becoming better people, Dorothy instead remembers us how wonderful is coming back home.
    • 4/5
      It's a travesty that this book has been eclipsed by the 1939 movie made of it. Whereas the movie is a simple morality tale, the book is full of delicious ironies; two in particular that stand out are1) the Emerald City's not actually being emerald, and2) the fact that Dorothy's three companions clearly possess in spades the qualities which they believe themselves to lack.How could a man wearing a silly looking lion costume ever properly represent the fearsome Lion from this book?
    • 5/5
      One of my favourites! I just recently finished reading this (again), but this time to my 6yob. If you've only seen the movie, be warned, the book is very different. The whole wicked witch story comprises only one chapter of this book.
    • 2/5
      Classic children fiction...
    • 5/5
      I never read this in childhood, but I loved the Judy Garland film as a child. The book is a charmer, worth reading even if you've seen the film countless times. There are quite a few differences. For one the illustrations suggest a very young Dorothy--about six or so--not sixteen like Judy Garland in the film. The Dorothy of the book wears silver shoes, not ruby slippers. There are lots of other small details that are different, as well as whole chapters that never made it into the film--such as "The Queen of the Field Mice" and "The Dainty China Country." One thing was really striking given the film adaptation. Everything in Kansas is described as gray, the "sun had baked the plowed land into a gray mass" and even Uncle Henry's and Aunt Em's faces are gray--then when she gets to Oz it's filled with vibrant color. It seemed so right then that the part of the movie set in Kansas is black and white, while Oz is filmed in color. I don't know that as an adult, this quite appeals to me as much as Lewis Carroll's Alice books, and I don't think I'll be seeking out the rest of the series (Baum wrote 14 in all) but I can certainly see why this is seen as the classic American children's book, the way Carroll's is for Britain or Grimm's Fairy Tales for Germany.By the way, I've read the books were continually challenged from the time the first was published (1900) to as recently as 1987 because they presented some witches as good--and because it featured strong female characters. Heavens. And I thought the uproar over Harry Potter among some was screwy....
    • 5/5
      The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum Rating: 5/5

      Read from July 22 to August 03, 2013 — I own a copy
      This Review has light spoilers.
      This book is one of those cases that the movie is good, but so does not do justice for the book.

      The movie left out so much that I would have loved to have seen in the movie. Naturally, some things that are in the book, I’m glad they left out because it is not meant to be seen by younger audiences; unless you make an Adult/Young Adult version like they do with the fairy tales these days. But I did enjoy the book. It took me so long to read it because I just wasn’t in the mood to read but it is good.
      One of my favorite parts of the book were when they went to kill the Wicked Witch of the West and ran into the Winkies. And another part was the China People. Both of them I enjoyed.

      This book is one of my favorites this year. There are some parts in this book that I wouldn’t suggest for younger children (Under 10 y/o, and even that’s kind of pushing it, depending on your child).

      There was a part where the Tinman chopped off a few heads, and for me, younger children, if they’re a little more sensitive to that type of violence, I wouldn't suggest you let them read it until you know they can handle it. It didn't get detailed beyond saying he chopped off the heads but still, that much could upset some kids if they are sensitive. And there is also a part with a large spider as well.

      I generally try to keep spoilers out of my reviews, but in this case, for those who haven’t read the book yet, I wanted to give some idea what was in it. Now, I don’t know if all editions are the same, but the one I read had those things mentioned in the spoilers. If you like classics, I would suggest this book to anyone.
    • 3/5
      I watched The Wizard of Oz plenty of times as a kid. And by this I mean that I typically lasted until the end of the Lollipop Guild number and then I was out like Glinda the Good passed me the poppy dust to end all poppy dust. So it wasn't until I was older that I actually succeeded in watching the whole yellow brick road unfold, still, I liked it. What's more, I really fell in love with red shoes. And skipping.

      All that being said, the book was okay. I kept hearing "weeee'reee OFF to see The Wizard..." running around in my head the whole way through and I felt some poppy dust creeping along at moments. But it was cute enough and potentially more interesting as the rest of the books come into play. We'll see.
    • 4/5
      This Kindle edition of the classic children's book where Dorothy is carried by a tornado to the land of Oz is a pleasant read, very reminiscent of Lewis Carroll's Alice books. It is lavishly illustrated throughout, though the name of the illustrator on the cover differs from that on the title page (this may explain why Dorothy looks a bit different in some pictures - never like Judy Garland, though!). A nice, lighter read. 4/5
    • 3/5
      In most cases, I prefer the original books over their movie adaptions.The Wizard of Oz, however, took the best from the source material and embellished what was missing, adding what they needed to in order to create a truly magical experience that has endured to this day. Whereas the movie is tightly scripted, the book meanders and includes somewhat unnecessary (and violent) encounters with killer bees, evil crows and bloodthirsty wolves. Surprising really, considering Baum did not intend for it to be as violent as fairytales of the past.
    • 4/5
      Such a quaint tale about the wonders of the placebo effect.
    • 5/5
      The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum is a an outstanding book where a girl, named Dorothy, gets whisked away by a tornado to the Wonderful World of Oz.In this story, Dorothy has to talk to a talking Scarecrow, the Cowardly Lion, and a Tin Woodman. She must find the Wizard of Oz to send her back home, but when she gets to Oz, she finds that he is an imposter. After that, Dorothy goes to Glinda, the good witch, who gives her a pair of flying shoes which Dorothy uses to fly home.If you think about it, isn't Dorothy like the Greek God, Hermes, the messenger of the gods? They both have flying shoes. Hermes took people to the land of the dead, and Dorothy leads the tin woodman, lion, and the scarecrow to the City of Emeralds to find Oz. Could the Tin Woodman be one of Hephaestus' automatons? Could the Cowardly Lion be like the Nemean Lion, a vicious monster? Ha, Ha. Was this book inspired by Greek Mythology? (Answer the poll on the right sidebar, or post a comment to give me your opinion.)The moral of the story seems to be that there is no place like home. I think that because even when Dorothy had a whole kingdom at her fingertips, she still missed home.This book also has flabbergasting ***chuckles*** illustrations. They are inked drawings, with amazing effects. For example, in the illustration at the beginning of Chapter 4 - The Road through the Forest, you can almost see into the forest with the 3D effect.ozI recommend this book to anybody who wants a fantasy adventure story. It's a thrill ride all the way through.
    • 4/5
      So, so, so very different from the movie! And so much better! I feel an affection for the story now that I never had before, and I feel much better now about my dislike of the movie considering how much the original story was butchered!
    • 5/5
      This is a really, really enjoyable book and is one of those must read books. I really, really liked it.In this story a cyclone hits Dorothy's house in Kansas and, the cyclone caries Dorothy and her little dog Toto to a faraway land called "The land of Oz".There, she meets four new friends...The Scarecrow, The Tin Woodman and The Cowardly Lion.So Dorothy and her friends decide to go to a famous wizard called Oz. They all want to go there for a reason...Dorothy -To get back to Kansas, The Scarecrow -To get new brains, The Tin Woodman -To get a heart and The Cowardly Lion Wants to get.Will Dorothy and her friends make it to the Great Oz?
    • 3/5
      This lavishly illustrated picture book is an abridged version of the original book, Wizard of Oz, first in the OZ series. The story bears similarities to the popular movie of the same name, but is quite drastically different. Dorothy hitches a ride on a tornado, and flattens a witch beneath her house, but the magic shoes are silver. She lands in the land of the Munchkins and meets a good witch; not Glinda, this one is kindly and elderly and short. The Good Witch of the North kisses Dorothy on the forehead, giving her a charm that protects her against evil, although Dorothy is unaware of the kiss's power. She and Toto set off on the yellow brick road, in search of the and the powerful Wizard of Oz. En route, they meet the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodsman, and the Cowardly Lion. These three new companions learn about the wizard from Dorothy, and decide they can use a little help, too. The Scarecrow wants a brain, the Woodsman wants a heart, and the Lion wants courage. Their journey has many obstacles, however, like the deep abyss in the road or the field of poppies that causes all people and animals to fall asleep. Once they finally reach the Emerald City, they are greeted with the city guard, who locks a pair of green spectacles on everyone's head, even Toto. They are allowed into the wizard's presence, but the vast floating head
    • 4/5
      This classic novel, as most people know, is about Dorothy from Kansas, who rides in a tornado to OZ and tries to find her way home. This is the first time i ever read this book, and i thought it was very enjoyable.I found this book to be quite imaginative and fun to read as dorothy encounters many strange situations as she is trying to find the way to go back home.
    • 4/5
      I've been a huge fan of the Wizard of Oz movie, I can't believe it's taken me this long to read the book. It's a cute, entertaining story with much more detail about the land of Oz. I'm also a fan of Gregory Mcquire's Wicked series, and I was interested to find some of the characters from his books in the original book (Boq). The entire time I was reading I kept thinking that I can't wait to share the book with my kids someday. I now want to read the entire series.
    • 3/5
      I don't think many more than a few fans of L. Frank Baum's 14-book Oz series claim The Wonderful Wizard of Oz as a favorite. Speaking as a childhood Oz fan myself, I always considered this as not much more than a forgettable set-up for the much more interesting excursions that occur later in the series (with Ozma, and Glinda, and Captain Bill, and *insert your favorite combination of characters here*).Rereading this now, as an adult, it's easy to see why: Baum's prose here is rather stilted and almost dour at times. It's not helped along by W. W. Denslow's illustrations, which, while rather intelligently using the limited color-printing to great effect, interpret Oz almost as a toy land. His Dorothy and crew in action seem almost dumpy and static, posed doll-like even, in comparison to the more sprightly drawings of John R. Neill (illustrator of the remaining 13 books by Baum, and the next 24 canon Oz books, including three he penned himself).Yet in one way, Baum was entirely successful: he created a new American fairy tale. His talent for creating memorable characters created from both pillaged archetypes (echoes of parables and folktales abound) and strange invention is in full force here. And they tap into symbolic universal struggles. The iconic Dorothy, Tin Man, Cowardly Lion, Scarecrow, the humbug Wizard- they’ve become intrinsic within pop culture. In that way, I’m really glad I reread it, not taking my own memories, “the populist interpretation”, Wicked, etc- as “good-enough” readings of the text.This Oz isn’t the Technicolor dreamland of the 1939 MGM musical; this isn’t the joyful utopian adventure-land I remember. The land of Oz surprised me in both its simplicity and dangerous charm. The characters astounded me over and over again: Dorothy’s blessed frank and common-sense nature, the Scarecrow philosophical argument about the benefits of mind over heart, the Wizard’s people-pleasing nature, the Tin Man’s combination of compassionate heart and brutal ax hand. Please don’t take my word for it- it’s something new and something old… and unforgettable.
    • 4/5
      Just finished reading this to the kids and they loved it. They can't wait to start on the next book in the series.
    • 3/5
      The Wizard of Oz was one of my favorite movies as a child, so I was curious to see what the original story was like. I was a little bit disappointed and I definitely like the movie version was better, but it was very interesting to see all the differences between the movie and the book.
    • 5/5
      I thought I should get around to actually reading the original stories as I have been a life-long fan of the 1939 movie and quite enjoy the book and subsequent musical Wicked. L. Frank Baum's inaugural story was fantastic. It is a classic fairy-tale but instead of being set in a nondescript European atmosphere, it derives it's wonder from a middle-American setting. There are instances of the juvenile in his writing, but then again, Baum did have a very young audience in mind. It's so easy to forget that our beloved films and spin-offs come from a beautiful and solid base, such as Baum's original series. Highly recommended.
    • 3/5
      Having gotten caught up in a cyclone, Dorothy's house whirls her away to the Land of Oz. Here she makes friends with a Scarecrow, a Tin Woodman, and a Cowardly Lion who are all missing something in their life. The group of newly met friends have many adventures as they travel to the Emerald City to see the wizard who they hope will grant all their wishes.It is fun to read this book as an adult after having seen the movie numerous times. The story is generally the same, but is a bit more violent. Although the story line is very interesting, I found the language rather unexciting. Concept/classroom connection: Read the book and compare/contrast it to the well-loved film.
    • 4/5
      The charming writing style of Baum reminds me of listening to stories made up at bedtime or around the camp fire. The descriptions of places and the actions of the characters are just enough to keep the plot flowing, but are not so heavy that they drag down the motion either. Baum has a way of describing something so that your mind knows exactly what the thing looks like without having to give a lot of time that would take away from the action.Each character shares the same adventure, but along the way has smaller personal adventures that prove that what they seek is really what they have all along. The reader knows this, but the characters never really do, which is also an interesting idea. This classic stays in the hearts and minds of young children all the way through their adulthood and is always worth reading over and over as we grow up, just to prove that in our hearts we can still be young again.
    • 5/5
      I loved this book! I've seen the movie several times but I can't believe how much I enjoyed the story. The little things that were different, the big things that are different. No wonder this is such a timeless classic.
    • 5/5
      Oh my gosh! I loved this movie as a kid and I loved the book as a child too, both for different reasons. Reading this book again as an adult, it brought back wonderful memories of my Grandma and I reading this together when I was a child. How could any reader, young or old, not like this book?! This wonderful classic takes the reader on a wonderful journey to far away lands full of magic and wonder. With a wonderful plot and such classically wonderful characters this is an instant love for any reader. The wonder of the plot of being swept away to a far away land and trying to find a way home is great for the imagination. The characters only add to that love and wonder. With characters like Scarecrow, Tin Man, Lion, Dorothy, Toto, the witches (good and bad), and the wizard there is a character for each and every reader to love and to dislike. The pictures are perfect in this book as is the writing. It's a book so fantastic and magical any reader gets lost in the pages and before they know it, the end of the book is upon them. A great book to create great memories with!!5/5 Stars!!

    Book preview

    The Wonderful Wizard of Oz - L. Frank Baum

    Chapter I.

    The Cyclone.

    Dorothy LIVED IN the midst of the great Kansas prairies, with Uncle Henry, prairies, with Uncle Henry, who was a farmer, and Aunt Em, who was the farmer’s wife. Their house was small, for the lumber to build it had to be carried by wagon many miles. There were four walls, a floor and a roof, which made one room; and this room contained a rusty looking cooking stove, a cupboard for the dishes, a table, three or four chairs, and the beds. Uncle Henry and Aunt Em had a big bed in one corner, and Dorothy a little bed in another corner. There was no garret at all, and no cellar—except a small hole, dug" in the ground, called a cyclone cellar, where the family could go in case one of those great whirlwinds arose, mighty enough to crush any building in its path. It was reached by a trap-door in the middle of the floor, from which a ladder led down into the small, dark hole.

    When Dorothy stood in the doorway and looked around, she could see nothing but the great gray prairie on every side. Not a tree nor a house broke the broad sweep of flat country that reached the edge of the sky in all directions. The sun had baked the plowed land into a gray mass, with little cracks running through it. Even the grass was not green, for the sun had burned the tops of the long blades until they were the same gray color to be seen everywhere. Once the house had been painted, but the sun blistered the paint and the rains washed it away, and now the house was as dull and gray as everything else.

    When Aunt Em came there to live she was a young, pretty wife. The sun and wind had changed her, too. They had taken the sparkle from her eyes and left them a sober gray; they had taken the red from her cheeks and lips, and they were gray also. She was thin and gaunt, and never smiled, now. When Dorothy, who was an orphan, first came to her, Aunt Em had been so startled by the child’s laughter that she would scream and press her hand upon her heart whenever Dorothy’s merry voice reached her ears; and she still looked at the little girl with wonder that she could find anything to laugh at.

    Uncle Henry never laughed. He worked hard from morning till night and did not know what joy was. He was gray also, from his long beard to his rough boots, and he looked stern and solemn, and rarely spoke.

    It was Toto that made Dorothy laugh, and saved her from growing as gray as her other surroundings. Toto was not gray; he was a little black dog, with long, silky hair and small black eyes that twinkled merrily on either side of his funny, wee nose. Toto played all day long, and Dorothy played with him, and loved him

    Enjoying the preview?
    Page 1 of 1