Rating: 
Summary: a wonderful book
Review: I sincerely enjoyed this book. It was recommened to me by a friend, and I thought it looked rather odd, and was considering not even bothering. After the first part of the book I was still doubtful. But then, as the story started coming alive in my mind, I couldn't stop reading it. Elphaba became more than a character, she became a real person, in green flesh and blood. The story was complex and full of surprises. No one who has read this book will ever be able to look at the Wizard of Oz the same way. It is amazing.
Rating: 
Summary: Nearly brilliant
Review: Maguire's take on L. Frank Baum's _Wonderful Wizard of Oz_ aims to show a second view of Oz. History is told by the victors, _Wicked_ seems to say, and then goes about telling the story of the villainized witches. The impulse is ingenious, and Baum's novels, with their sketchy settings and poorly realized zeitgeist, offer an excellent field of play (although, at least one reference to the striped stockings of the Wicked Witch of the East suggests Maguire also relied on the movie a bit). As an alternate version, most of the novel offers spectacular interpretations: the Wizard of Oz is a megalomaniacal despot, talking Animals are an oppressed people, the Wicked Witch of the East is a religious fanatic, and Glinda the Good Witch is somewhere on the fringe between bourgoisie and elite class. Because his world is more richly detailed and thoroughly realized than its predecessor, Maguire's version becomes immediately more convincing than the Baum stories. Where Baum's characters are ciphers, Maguire's characters have human traits. Unfortunately, _Wicked_ loses its momentum near the end as the Maguire novel begins to interlace with the plot of Baum's _Wonderful Wizard of Oz_. I think Maguire's mistake here was in attempting to apply the Baum plot too literally. A bit freer interpretation would have made for a better read and would have fit the initial, alternate-version impulse better. The Wicked Witch of the West as portrayed in the final chapter is not the same character we have come to know so well in the foregoing chapters. Also unfortunate is Maguire's final interlocutory disquisition on the nature of good and evil. I found it distracting and in no way supportive of the tale. It read like a passage interjected to give the tome a sense of Importance.
Rating:
Summary: Just a great idea...
Review: All I can say, is Maguire had a great idea. I found his interest in the opposite side of an iconic tale to be highly creative. He drew me in, and I couldn't let it go. I am currently reading his next work, Confessions of An Ugly Stepsister. His use of classic fairytales is wonderful. And as an adult who grew up on these stories, and know them by heart, I think his ideas are thought-provoking, and I love the idea of "prequels". I am also happy to see that he utilizes the darker aspects of the fiction, for the basis, but not necessarily the final meaning. You should read this book, you won't be dissappointed.
Rating:
Summary: A must read
Review: Whether you read the Frank Baum book or just saw the movie (and who hasn't) you must read this book. The author's clever and unique retelling of the tale leaves no stone unturned in examining the life behind the child who would become the Wicked Witch of the West. Full of surprises and brilliant insight into what makes us do what we do and begin to question what is right and what is wrong. Few books can capture the imagination so quickly as this. Do yourself a favor - read this book. Also check out his retelling of Cinderella - Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister.
Rating:
Summary: I Don't Think It's For Children, Toto.
Review: This is an excellent novel, but definitely NOT a children's story. I enjoyed the moral questions raised by the novel, and the fact that the author left it up to the reader to provide their own answers for these. The Witch turns out to be someone with a wonderful wit, someone it would have been fun to know. You are also left thinking that Dorothy thought so, too, and would have liked the chance to know the witch in other circumstances. Sort of reminds me of the way that some people that may act "witchy" at times are probably wonderful people that you would like to count among your friends most of the time. A good, thought-provoking read.
Rating:
Summary: The Adult Story of Oz
Review: Never did I expect such a colorfully visual picture to be painted of the everlasting land of Oz. Getting into the mind of the wicked witch of the west was ingenious. From the moment she is born, to the bewitching finale of her green body melting away, you are treated to an entirely different creature from the one your childhood memories conjured up. I especially enjoyed how the author weaved the religious and political ideoligies of Oz into the story. These play an important part in the motivations of the wicked witch, and helps you to look at her actions with more understanding. I admire the Author, Gregory Maguire for having the courage to rewrite such timeless stories so as to get the so called villian's point of view. His handling of Cinderella, in "Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister," was good too, however lacked the depth and vastness found in Wicked. If you are going to read both novels, I would suggest starting with "Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister" first and then read "Wicked." I look forward to Mr Maguires next book.
Rating:
Summary: The Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch
Review: The Wicked was an amazing book. The book made you think about good and evil making one think how an evil person becomes evil or if the evil person is just warped. The book also showed addiction to religion can make you apear as a Tyrant if you force it upon your people
Rating:
Summary: Don't Hate Me Because I'm Wicked ...
Review: It is amazing how powerful the myth of the the Wizard of Oz is, particulary the movie version of the story. It makes for many pre-conceived notions about all of the characters, especially Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West. Maguire's book raises many questions that you'll think about long after you're done reading: Nature or nurture? Independent or a pawn? Wicked or misunderstood? Maguire is successful im making Elphaba sympathetic, even dare I say "human", particularly as a sullen teenager and then as an idealistic 20-something. I did feel the last section of the book was a bit rushed (hence the 4 rating), but up until then, you'll be transported to Oz and its environs. Like me, you may find it hard to get the motion picture characters out of your mind. they are deep in our sub-conscious.
Rating:
Summary: You are certanly not in Kansas with this book
Review: This book is told from the perspective of the wicked witch up to the point of her melting. IT is truely is amazing! It switches the charicters around, making the wizard evil, Elphabala(The Withch) if not good, than at least with good intentions, and Galinda, a slightly ditzy upperclass noblewoman. IT has romance, danger adventure, politics, human rights and more all wrapped up in it. Don't let the topic dissuade you, this is no fairy tale, it is truely and amazing book, just set in a imaginary setting.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing and weakly plotted
Review: For a book subtitled "The life and times of the Wicked Witch of the West", you might expect that it would be about the Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz. But while wicked is about *a* Wicked Witch of the West, the main character of Elphaba bears little resemblance to the one from the Baum classic. Indeed, it's a bit of a stretch to say that she's wicked, or even much of a witch. The basic idea behind the book is fine: Everyone is a hero in their own story, so what's the witch's story that she behaved the way she did? But Wicked goes a step too far and actually claims that Baum's story is a misrepresentation of the facts. At that point, a reader has to ask what the point of telling such a story is; if Maguire is going to tell a new story then why not use a new character and milieu? The book's biggest problem besides that is its plotting: Elphaba is portrayed as - if not exactly loved, then at least liked or tolerated, but not really a figure of great evil from the perspective of anyone except maybe the Wizard. And even then, she's so ineffectual that his occasional actions against her lack believable motivation. Also, the story tries to portray Elphaba as an outcast in a world which is undergoing very difficult times, but her behavior often seems to be random or at least without clear motivation. Her background - and even her immediate environment, as in the Emerald City chapter - are often sketched in lightly and it's not clear exactly where she stands or why she stands there. But Elphaba is at least a likable character who stands up for things (even if sometimes in peculiar ways). Most of the other characters are half-formed, and drift in and out of the story haphazardly, their stories half-told, if that. The background of the Wizard, for instance, is shrouded in mystery, and it seems clear that he didn't come from *our* world. Glinda appears in about a third of the book, but her character goes south (so to speak) after that for reasons that are never examined. There's a lot of story here which is just shunted aside, including the implication that Elphaba has been manipulated since birth by several outside forces for reasons that are never satisfactorily explained. The book is at its best in its wordplay and its interactions between the main characters during Elphaba's college years, when Glinda and some other characters are given some emphasis. The moral issues surrounding the magical elements of Oz are explored in an intriguing way, although that thread, too, is never really finished. And the dialogue is often quite witty. But ultimately the book peters out with the well-known fate of the Witch, its lingering message seeming to be that sometimes life just sucks. But we knew that; did we really need another 400-page novel about it?
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