2005: #28 – Wicked (Gregory Maguire)

Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire
Series: Wicked Years #01
Published by Harper on September 25th 2007
Genres: steampunk scifi
Pages: 538

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 be 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.

Book #28 was Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, by Gregory Maguire.

I thought this book was really interesting. It certainly makes you think of the Wizard of Oz in a completely different way. I have to give it a thumbs up, and I would love to see the musical someday.

Book count: 28/50 — 56%
Number of pages: 448
Page count: 9,204/15,000 — 61.36%