Customer Reviews

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book, which was old when I was a child, is still a great children's book. In some ways, I like it better than the famous movie made from it and starring Judy Garland. The movie was great, but time constraints caused them to leave out quite a lot. As a child, I whiled away many an hour reading this particular book. Still, if your child is an indifferent reader, you might have to think about it, since it's not written in today's style.

I remember reading this book in middle school, and not liking it very much. But as I have been re-reading may old books I read years ago, I thought I would give it another go.
I was very surprised at how much I liked it. I came into the reading prepared to dislike the book, I do the movie but this book is way better. The movie is (was... haven't seen it in years) not as in depth, as in any book to movie story.
You get more depth and filling from the lion, tin man and dorthy. I felt I got to know there past and troubles more, in this book.
I plan on reading the other books that take place in Oz.

Im reviewing the Kindle version of this viewed on my kindle PC as I wait for my Kindle. I respect Mr. Baums hard work on this title, in a foreword he mentions wanting to create truely new myths. That's always a tall order for any writer but he does just that. It's a well known tale thats charming, humble and unpretentious in its execution.

It also has staying power, why else do adults still purchase it, line up to see the Anniversary version of the movie-- quality. You could do far worse for a snuggle up read for yourself or your children

"The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" is one of the best well known and beloved modern fairy tales. However, most people have only come to know it thanks to the wonderful film adaptation of the same name. To be sure, the film version is probably one of the best movies of all time, but there is something to be said for reading the book in its own right. The book turns out to be as wonderful and endearing as I had expected, with all the main characters portrayed in greater depth and with even more attention to their human distinctiveness. There are also a few scenes in the book that had not made it to the movie, and it was interesting to read these for the first time. The book is charming and well written, although some people today might have an issue with a few violent scenes that tend to be more graphic than what acceptable in children's books these days. Personally I was not bothered by this one bit, and view the book as good, clean fun.

I can't believe I am on the downhill slide to 40 and I had never read this book. If not for the Kindle I likely still would not be able to say I've read this classic. It really is amazing (yes, amazing) that the movie was tranformed from this book. I love the movie and I now love the book. It is wonderfully descriptive and yet my mind kept combining the scenery in the movie with the scenery described in the book - almost as if a third image was being created in my mind. Very perplexing, yet very enjoyable. It was a wonderful journey to the Emerald City-one that plan on taking again one day.

I love The Wizard of Oz!I read it for the 5th time on my kindle today.It is a trill everytime.The kids who only watch the movie are really missing out on a lot of adventure and fun.I think it is the best book ever!

omg! i cant believe that in the book the slippers are silver but in the movie they are well known to be red! L. Frank Baum did a great job writing this book!

I was completely surprised that this story was different from the classic movie we are used to watching annually on TV. I grew up knowing that Dorothy's Ruby slippers got her back to Kansas by clicking her heals and saying, "There's no place like home". This book gets Dorothy back home, but not with Ruby slippers. Interesting.

An amazing read. No matter how many times I have seen the movie, I still love the book more. I put this on my son's kindle for Christmas--fingers crossed he reads it.

Somehow as a kid I never got around to reading this classic novel, although I did read the first sequel ("The Marvelous Land of Oz"), which seemed rather dark to me at the time. As other reviewers have noted, there are quite a few differences between the book and the beloved 1939 film version. Most of these differences are insignificant, and the majority of the scenes and lines that make the film so enjoyable are also in the book (although sometimes altered a bit). However, I would have loved to see the land made of China (porcelain) depicted in the film! Fortunately, "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" more than stands on its own, even to this adult reader. The novel is charming and contains some great messages for children that could also serve the typical adult quite well. Recommended for readers of all ages.

This version is formatted for the Kindle. I wish that it included some of the pictures from the original printings, but the formatting is nicely done.