Rating: 
Summary: a little dissapointing...but still good
Review: I started reading Maguire's 'Confessions', and absolutely loved the twists on the original story. I thought I could expect the same thing from 'Wicked'. When I first picked up the book and started reading it, I was sure I was in for a similar experience. The begining was witty, grounding all characters in both Oz and in themselves. I admired Maguire for the way he worked the major characters in with all the subplots that seemed to come in from all directions. He uses plain language paired with sophisticated philosophies and sexual explicitness to entice a readers interest.
Dorothy takes a only very small part at the very end, as do her cronies. And it is the last part of the book where things begin to fall apart. Seemingly important threads tend to be left hanging or not explained. The pace picks up at this point as opposed to the relatively leisurely pace of the rest of the book, and many details are glossed over. All Maguire's characters seem to lose their 3-dimentional sparkle as he tries desperately to work the story close enough to Baum's Oz. All in all, it was an enjoyable tale, but not what I expected from Maguire at all.
Rating: 
Summary: 1/2 a good book
Review: I really wanted to like this book. I enjoyed the premise, and like many people I too am interested in the source of evil. This book does start out very well. Elphaba, the future Wicked Witch of the West (WWW), is born green and grotesque. She does not get the warm love every child needs to grow up well adjusted, but her dysfunctional family does its dysfunctional best. My favorite part of the book is when we meet WWW in college, she meets Glinda and there is an interesting plot twist involving the Intelligent Animal population in Oz. I have read that the original Wizard of Oz has connections with American history, particularly the argument about the gold standard in the 1890's, but this is definitely beyond me. I think that Wicked is trying to do a similar thing with the plight of imigrants, or maybe African-Americans, or maybe the Irish, I never really got that. But it was an interesting plot line. The last half of the book is where the wheels really come off the track. Having created an interesting leveled character the author has to connect her up to the movie caricature. And therefore Elphaba gets less and less interesting. Although it can be interesting to see how that transformation happens, it is not interesting enough. The author also takes up a lot of the last half discussing, in a very muddled way, the nature of evil. No conclussions are really drawn here about evil. I wished I had enjoyed this book more.
Rating:
Summary: Rushed at the end
Review: Wicked was something of an unauthorized prequel to The Wizard of Oz. It tells the story of Elphie who will later be known as The Wicked Witch of the West. She is not wicked though, only scorn by the fact that everything she tries to accomplish in her life, including winning her own father's love, fails miserably. In this tale you'll learn the origins of The Yellow Brick Road, the ruby slippers and the flying monkeys. The first three sections of the book were wonderful. I had high hopes for the last section, which is when Dorothy finally comes into play, but the final section disappointed me greatly. It was a chance for the author to tie everything together. To explain and finalize Yackle and the Wizard. To learn more about this other world the Wizard and Dorothy come from and why that Book is so important. I ended up liking Elphaba SO MUCH that the whole last section just irritated me. She wasn't acting like herself, I don't think. She was acting how the author wanted her to act in order to advance the story to the point where we all know it would end up. Maybe the subtlety was lost to me, but I gathered no resolution at all from this book. All I really have to say about it was that I was disappointed, although I am glad I read it.
Rating: 
Summary: Exquisite writing in a captivating tale
Review: Maguire's writing is stunning. I find myself re-reading countless passages and phrases over and over again for the sheer beauty of the imagery and clever use of metaphor. Of course, the story is wonderfully entertaining as well! There are a few (very few) places in the middle where the politically based storyline becomes more heavy than charming, but on the whole, the fact that the book makes one actually think is in fact pleasurable and not tedious at all. For those who have the chance to see the new broadway musical based on this wonderful book, be sure to read the book first. Otherwise much of the wonderful complexities of the story will be lost in the singing.
Rating:
Summary: A Wicked Good Read
Review: Don't pick this book up expecting the action-packed fantasy adventure of, say, a Harry Potter novel. Sure, the main character is a witch, and every once in a while she does ride a broom. But for the most part, Elphaba (the Witch) just spends her time arguing with other characters about predestination, free will, minority rights, and the existence of God. She doesn't even consider herself a "witch." She's a natural scientist. It's kind of heady stuff. The author packs a lot of opposed philosophies into this book without ever really making a stand himself. It's the kind of book where everybody's name "means" something- all the characters stand in for various big ideas. Fascinating for those that have both the intellect and inclination to mull over the many symbolic references the author makes. Yep, it's pretty much a masterpiece - but only if you "get it" and want to chat about it in your book club. This is the IDEAL book for a book club. Unfortunately, the narrative plot is constrained and finally overrun by all the symbolism. So its not a particularly exciting read. Personally, I could have done with a bit less symbolism and a bit more fantastical, escapist adventure. But maybe I'm just lazy that way.
Rating:
Summary: Unique!
Review: I've never read anything quite like this before. I though it was terrific. I've always had questions about why the characters in the movie behaved in the ways they did, and the way this book was written explains some of the all too human motives behind the story. I don't usually read in the fantasy genre, but this was very satisfying and thought provoking.
Rating:
Summary: ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS I HAVE READ
Review: This book is one of the most enlightening books one can read in regard to the Wizard of Oz. When you pick it up you simply cannot put it down. It sets up the expositions brilliantly leaving nothing unanswered. However, if you don't like books on which to contemplate chances you will not like this book, the detail in it only is entertaining to those readers who are more interested in evaluating than just being presented. But regardless, it is a literary masterpiece, an excellent first book for any author who will surely come to be one of my favourites!
Rating: 
Summary: Not as Wicked as One Would Think
Review: Although the plot, and story its self seem great, it is an "okay" book. Not a favorite, but I dont' hate it. If you're bored, an like Oz, read it. If you're not into magic or politics, don't read.
Rating:
Summary: A little too out there
Review: This book started out really good. You get to see where the witch comes from early in life and possibly reasons why she is so different from everyone else (skin color). After those few first chapters, you forget you are reading a book based on The Wizard of Oz. It gets extremely boring in the last 100 pages and I would not recommend anyone read this book.
Rating: 
Summary: One of the all time worst books
Review: I was so excited to read this book after learning about the premise. Once I started it, I was really disappointed. I could not finish this book. I was bored out of my mind! I finally flipped ahead to see if it got any better, but figured there were way too many excellent books out there to waste my time further with this piece of garbage. Believe me, I am being generous with the 1 star rating!!
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