The Marvelous Land of Oz

I didn't really like this book as much as the first one. I'm not sure if it was the premise, the characters, or just my mood, but this book didn't do much for me. It's a good thing it was such an easy read, or I may have abandoned it.

In The Marvelous Land of Oz, an army of young girls, led by General Jinjur, decide that they've had enough of men ruling things. So they conquer the Emerald City and kick the Scarecrow off his throne. Around the same time, a young boy has come to visit the Scarecrow with his own wooden man, Pumpkin Jack. They set off to collect the Tin Woodsman (now named Nick Chopper) and reclaim the scarecrow's throne.

I think the whole thing was just a little too silly for me. And everyone falls all over themselves to be so nice and accommodating that the stakes never really felt that high. I understand that most of this is probably because this is a children's book, but it still seemed a lot sillier than the first book. The main characters were surprisingly unlikeable, considering how hard they worked to minimize friction in their traveling group.

At least the next book brings back Dorothy. I'm hoping that she's the catalyst that will make this all better. Even though I vaguely suspect that the next book inspired a movie that gave me nightmares as a child. (The evil witch/queen had a room full of heads so she could change her head out as she pleased. It was really disturbing.)

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