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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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
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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.
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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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Summary: Combination of Tolkien,Orwell and Freud
Review: 237 Reviews and seems that everybody was either simply fascinated with the story,or Glinda's dress,or monkey wings - OK,I will be the first one to aplaud to Maguire's phenomenal knowledge of human spirit.Its all presented like an magic story,but the book goes much deeper than most of others - I dont remeber the last time when I was so thrilled reading a work of someone who understand FEELINGS so well.The moment when The Witch meets her old father and sudenly her voice is a voice of a small child again.The moment when she wipes out his tears althought they hurt her,as she can't stand the water."I am not afraid of people who claim to be wicked" says Boq "beware of the ones who claim to be good,better than the rest of us".The book is full of such a beautiful,deep and moving moments and I am so thankful to discover this wonderful writter - "Wicked" would be obligatory read (gift) for my friends.I also have to say that there are so many interesting characters here who could all be interesting subjects of more books - Wizard Of Oz in the first place.And no,The Witch Of West was not an evil character at all,I see her as a deeply unhappy,sad and lonely woman,outcast from the start - its a proof of Maguire's talent that one of the scarriest characters of our childhood suddenly became human and I understand her loneliness,anger,passion and motives."What would you ask Wizard for" a little boy asked her,and instead of "soldiers" she sudenly said - "soul".Isn't it bizzare that everybody in Oz saw Dorothy as a saviour with animal in her arms (like in a ancient painting of Godess) and feared "bad" Witch,while its obvious that Witch was the one,she was the one who was protecting Animals and she was THE saviour with an ancient name,but then,she was just a woman with freaky green skeen and nobody - absolutely nobody - was on her side...
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Summary: A thoughtful, complex view of a well-known character
Review: One of my favorite stories about the Wicked Witch of the West involves my dad. He was a child when the movie first came out, and the whole family--two adults and six kids--piled in the family station wagon and went to see it at the drive-in. When the Wicked Witch of the West put in her first appearance, she scared my father so badly he hid on the floorboards of the car and didn't watch the rest of the movie. Why am I telling you all this? Because it's all about perception, different perspectives. To my dad--and to most people watching the movie or reading the original L. Frank Baum books--the Wicked Witch is just that: a one-dimensional incarnation of evil, cackling over poor innocent Dorothy and her little dog, too. Gregory Maguire's novel Wicked, however, challenges our perception of not only the Witch, but of evil, theology, race, sex, friendship, love, forgiveness--the list goes on and on. Maguire's greatest achievement is presenting all those challenges in an entertaining, thought-provoking story that never sags or dwindles in energy. Elphaba (the Witch) is a rounded, complex character. Like all humans, she is both good and evil to some extent, always carrying the capacity for either--or both. Maguire doesn't diminish Glinda's character, either. It would have been easy to make her a caricature (and she does at times border one), but Maguire imbues her with saving graces, hints of humanity that remind us of why she and Elphie are friends and why their paths diverge so wildly over the course of their lives. The book's greatest flaw is it's ending. It feels a little hurried, although I do like the way Maguire rendered the famous parapet scene. I got the feeling, while reading, that Elphie was forgetting herself, that Maguire was feeling the pressure of the film version perhaps too much. Regardless of that criticism, the ending is not flawed enough to detract from the overall power of the novel; it does work within the confines of the story. Wicked is many things: an excursion into the nature of evil and forgiveness; a politically-minded cautionary tale; a revisionist history of a much-loved tale. And, remarkably, it succeeds. It succeeds in changing the reader's perceptions about the Wicked Witch of the West--and perhaps other issues as well. Highly recommended.
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