Rating: 
Summary: Best book I have read this year.
Review: What an incredible novel. Maguire had the courage to require something from his readers. He asks some difficult questions. Where does evil come from? What is evil? Still, the only reason that this book is a hit is because it is a great story. Darkness, love, forgiveness, friendship, rejection. Elphaba is given a human side. She is smart, but not very pleasant. She is ugly, but she has real feelings that can be hurt just as easily as anyone else's. I think everyone can see a little bit of her in themselves. The novel is funny and suspenseful, but dark and mysterious. Finding out how she evolved to become "The Wicked Witch of the West" is a wonderful epic journey.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful! My favorite book ever, I think!
Review: This is a wonderful book! On the light level, it's a fun read full of familiar characters and places. On the deep level it explores such themes as oppression, prejudice, evil and good, and love and hate. It's great fun and very well written, and Maguire creates a "Wicked Witch of the West" who becomes an immensely poignant character full of contradictions ... . I'm re-reading it already to catch all that I missed the first time.
Rating:
Summary: Intricate & Engaging
Review: I found this throughly creative, well thought through novel compelling. It was a gift and I really wasn't certain I was interested in it, but then I couldn't put it down. The mention of Tolkkien in a previous review is valid I think because the author has invested the time to consider the many aspects of developing an entire new world (OZ) and does it quite well. All characters are fleshed out. As an original skeptic I ended up quite sold.
Rating:
Summary: Phenomenal...
Review: I just loved the approach the author took with this story, making a formerly completely unsympathetic evil into a woman with dreams and hopes for a better world. Wow. I loved the politicization of the land of Oz, the simplification of the wicked witch's arch-nemesis Galinda/Glinda, and the glimpses into the complicated person that she was. I guess there are truly two sides to every story and this time the other side was magically captured. If you like intrigue, politics, powerful women, magic with a logical explanation and lastly, if you like to look at stories you THINK you know in a whole new light, this is the one for you.
Rating:
Summary: A More Imaginative Oz than L. Frank Baum's
Review: I've been curious about reading this book ever since I saw it in the store. It just fits my guilty-pleasure nerd bell DING profile. But I didn't get around to reading it until just recently and have to say it is a really wonderful read! Although Harry Potter is appealing to adults, it really is a kid's book as far as the writing and subject matter goes. "Wicked" is really an adult book that combines philosophy, sex, politics and an interesting, fast moving story, yet it of course is based in L. Frank Baum's Oz books and the classic movie. What I found so compelling is that Maguire has created an extremely interesting Land of Oz, which is full of intrigue, politics, etc. which are all familiar to our own world, but mixes it up with magic and mysticism as well. It's much more interesting than the Oz in Baum's original books, or the movie. One wishes he would write more about "his" Land of Oz.
Rating:
Summary: Wicked
Review: I'd been hearing great things about Wicked and Confessions of an Ugly Step-Sister for quite awhile, so I finally read Wicked. And I was blown away. It's a book that you can't put down. Maguire's Oz is a far cry from the original Oz, but it's presented with such radiant clarity and so dynamic that you instantly feel part of the setting. The characters are beautifully developed, despite my fears that Maguire would rest most of their personality traits on what the reader remembered from the movie or from the original books. An amazing twist on a classical story, Maguire's portrayal of the Wicked Witch of the West (aka Elphaba) gives a new face to evil, a new persepective on what we normally take at face value. An enjoyable yet thoughtful read!
Rating:
Summary: Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West
Review: This was truly one of the most unique books I have ever read although the underlying story is familiar to most Americans. Normally I am uninterested in literature dealing with fantasy, science fiction or manufactured environments but this is a surprisingly gripping work of fiction. The ethereal yet strangely recognizable world created by Gregory Maguire in this book evokes so many complex mental images that one could easily go into overload. It simply cannot be digested in one or two sittings. The basis of the book is the familiar Wizard of Oz story that we all know from fiction and film. However, the characters in the book and movie are one-dimensional compared to the richly developed characters in Maguire's book. Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, is presented from childhood as a complicated, pitiable and unappealing creature that could only be fated for a cruel end. At times we feel sorry for her, at times she angers us and at times she confuses us. But at all times she fascinates and intrigues us. All of the other characters are similarly distinct, multidimensional and memorable. The chapters read like discreet tales unto themselves with twisting plots and vividly described locations. The end is somewhat predictable but the reader expects from the beginning that there cannot be an upbeat conclusion to Elphaba's story. This book will appeal to the lover of detail and exquisite description. It is a feast for the creative mind.
Rating: 
Summary: MGM movie plus the original books equals a Wicked Tale!
Review: I must say that I was pleasantly surpised by this story. I've heard a number of bad things about it, so my expectations were quite low, but unjustified. The story brings together a number of elements from the original Oz books and the MGM movie, indicating that Maguire is familiar with both. Still, it is clear that this book was written for (and for the most part reviewed by) fans of the MGM movie. While Maguire liberally borrows from the books and the movie, the world of Oz that he creates is entirely his own. It is a dark Oz, yet richly detailed. One thing that sets Maguires Oz apart from the "real" one is that each of the main regions of Oz has its own unique character. In the books, all parts of Oz are rather generic and more or less the same. Maguire, however, gives us the poverty-stricken farm belt of Munchkinland, the socially outcast swamplands of the Quadling country, the dry, barbarian badlands of The Vinkus (a nickname for the Winkie Country) and the urban decadence of Gilikinland. The Oz that Maguire paints is a dark and unforgiving land. Many alternative-Oz books are like this. I'm not sure if this derives from a simple desire to be different, or if a harsh Land of Oz gives the writer more room to create a good story. The Emerald City is right where it's supposed to be, in the center of the land. However, this Emerald City is a grim and forbidding place. As we walk through it, we feel that it disapproves of everything, including itself. In a departure from the books, there is no green area around it. It simply rises from the ruined land around it, and is mainly a gigantic slum. We follow the career of the Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, for the most part. Her name is a curious mangling of original Oz author "L. Frank Baum". As we follow her trials and tribulations, we observe the rich tapestry that is Ozian society. Many elements in Oz are explored, from religion and social mores to the more base elements of prejudice. I was particularly intrigued by the "Amas", beings whose sole purpose is the chaperoning of highborn Gilikin ladies. The character who suffers the greatest change is perhaps Glinda. In this universe, her true name is Galinda, and she is much like her incarnation in the MGM movie, instead of the dignified woman from the books. Elphaba is portrayed as someone who is not truly wicked, only abused and misunderstood. She takes it upon herself to fight for the rights of Animals. The capital "A" indicates that they can speak. In this version of Oz, they are persecuted and oppressed. Elphaba finds that to be repugnant and battles against it. One weakness in the story is Maguires use of the idea of the "Kumbric Witch". This was a term used in Glinda of Oz, the 14th Oz book. It was mentioned fleetingly in once sentence and never re-visited, but Maguire grossly overuses the term. Nearly every witch mentioned in the story is a Kumbric Witch, it seems, and it is most annoying. Or possibly there is/was only one Kumbric Witch, and this person is mentioned constantly. Further, the name is misspelled from the original "Krumbic", and it is more difficult to pronounce Maguire's version. It is not recorded whether this spelling change was intentional or inadvertent. While Maguire definitely writes from an MGM perspective, he does give some nods to the book. He often refers to the Tin Woodman, Ozma and the Winged Monkeys. The Wicked Witch of the West has her bees and wolves. On the other hand, the Witch has green skin and flys on a broom. Oddly enough, Maguire mentions the color of the famous shoes only once, and hints that they are both silver AND red at the same time. This book is definitely written on an adult level and is not for the kiddies. That's unusual in an Oz book, but need not rule it out, in my opinion. The only real problem that I have with the story is the reaction of the critics, all of whom apparantly know Oz only through the MGM movie. When the book came out, in 1995, nearly every review I read of the book seemed to state that Oz was nothing more than an old MGM movie until Maguire came and finally gave us a real oz in writing. I was concerned that Maguires Oz would come to be accepted and that the "real" Oz would fade even further into the mists of antiquity. That has not happened, though, and in any case is irrelevant for the purposes of this review. The book stands very well on its own, and I give it four stars.
Rating:
Summary: GREAT READ!
Review: VERY ENJOYABLE, ALSO TRY HER OTHER BOOKS.
AND BUY HANNAH FURY'S CD- "THE THING THAT FEELS",-WHICH INCLUDES A 5 SONG MINI EPIC INSPIRED BY THIS NOVEL. 5. Let It Show
6. I Can't Let You In
7. And Your Little Dog Too
8. All Is Not Well
9. It Was Her House That Killed Nessarose THERE ARE 13 TRACKS IN THE ALBUM, BUT THE TOP 5 ARE BASED ON THIS NOVEL. THE MUSIC IS PIANO BASED,AND EERIE, HER VOICE IS VERY HAUNTING AND ETHEREAL,OBSCURE AND ALMOST DEPRESSING....
Rating:
Summary: Things aren't always what they seem to be
Review: And people aren't always how they seem to be, either! I am not a political whiz, and there is a good serving of politics in this book, but even those who aren't politics-proficent can enjoy this book. Some of the weightier politics-related topics slowed me down, but Maguire writes with clarity and intrigue; it was worth the extra time spent reading the book to experience this different perspective on the lives of the "Wizard of Oz" cast. "Wicked" inspires some thought into the idea that sometimes people are NOT all bad even though one can get a glimpse of what appears to be atrocious behavior and make assumptions from there; there is always more than one side to the story; people can be used without their knowledge to accomplish an opponent's hidden agenda. It's not difficult to find Elphaba, the "wicked witch of the west" actually likable: her love of reading and her intelligence, her independent search for answers to satisfy her curiosities, her sense of humor, her need and desire for love and forgiveness, her love for someone other than herself, her passionate cause to help Animals - all these things made Elphie someone for whom I would have been glad to trade places with Glinda so I could have experienced her friendship. There is no way to prepare a reader in advance for what to expect from Maguire's book: Just as the Wizard of Oz is a fantasy full of surprises and twists, Wicked is nothing ordinary or common: Maybe it could be viewed as a Paul Harvey's "the rest of the story."
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