Admiring a 'Wicked' Tale

Jennifer Conlee, co-news editor

At the end of “The Wizard of Oz,” audiences everywhere cheered as Dorothy melted the Wicked Witch of the West.

However, no one really knew the “real witch.” Who was she to Oz?  After all, every end must have a beginning.

Gregory Maguire stunned readers everywhere with his premier novel, “Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West,” a book that chronicles the life of Elphaba, the misunderstood child who would grow up to be the title character.

From Elphaba’s birth, the green child had an interesting life.  Readers are aware from the beginning that she is not her father’s child.  Her mother, a wealthy Munchkin, had married a preacher, a man who was beneath her, only to find out that she was lonely when he traveled to preach to surrounding congregations.

She found solace in the arms of a mysterious salesman, who gave her a green potion.  Nine months later, she gave birth to a wicked, green skinned infant with extremely sharp teeth.

The story follows Elphie, as she is called, from her childhood as a missionary child in the Vinkus to her college years at Shiz, where she meets Galinda, who later becomes Glinda, the Good Sorceress.

While at Shiz, the reader is also introduced to Elhpie’s armless sister Nessa, who Elphie has agreed to care for.

The story then continues to Elphie’s rebellion after discovering how the Wizard of Oz is oppressing the talking Animals of Oz.  Nessa becomes the Eminent Thropp of Munchkin Land, and she is considered to be a tyrant by the Munchkins.

Elphaba eventually finds a home in the West, at the home of her lover, Prince Fiyero, who was killed by the Wizard’s army while they were looking for her.  Fiyero’s widow insists that Elphie never mention what has happened, and the family forms a tense bond between each member.

Maguire does a great job forming the world of Oz, a job that was not quite accomplished by L. Frank Baum, the author of “The Wizard of Oz.”

Baum only opened the reader’s eyes to the existence of Oz, but Maguire made Oz a tangible, vivid land.  The book teems with politics much like what exists in the world we know.  The citizens of Oz are searching for a balance between their classes. 

The novel was very well written, drawing me into the story, and making it hard to put the book down.  At the end, though the death of the witch is inevitable, it was still difficult for me to read. 

Maguire makes the reader question the very definition of wickedness.  From what viewpoint is the Witch really wicked?  Is the Wizard really as wonderful as he is portrayed in the original story?

I give this book five out of five stars.  It is well written and a joy to read.

“And there the wicked old Witch stayed for a good long time.”

“And did she ever come out?”

“Not yet.”