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Ruth Plumly Thompson

Born

in Philadelphia, The United States

July 27, 1891

Died

April 06, 1976

Genre

Children's Books

Influences

L. Frank Baum ...more

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An avid reader of Baum's books and a lifelong children's writer, Thompson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and began her writing career in 1914 when she took a job with the Philadelphia Public Ledger; she wrote a weekly children's column for the newspaper. She had already published her first children's book, The Perhappsy Chaps, and her second, The Princess of Cozytown, was pending publication when William Lee, vice president of Baum's publisher Reilly & Lee, solicited Thompson to continue the Oz series. (Rumors among fans that Thompson was Baum's niece were untrue.) Between 1921 and 1939, she wrote one Oz book a year. (Thompson was the primary supporter of her widowed mother and invalid sister, so that the annual income from the Oz b An avid reader of Baum's books and a lifelong children's writer, Thompson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and began her writing career in 1914 when she took a job with the Philadelphia Public Ledger; she wrote a weekly children's column for the newspaper. She had already published her first children's book, The Perhappsy Chaps, and her second, The Princess of Cozytown, was pending publication when William Lee, vice president of Baum's publisher Reilly & Lee, solicited Thompson to continue the Oz series. (Rumors among fans that Thompson was Baum's niece were untrue.) Between 1921 and 1939, she wrote one Oz book a year. (Thompson was the primary supporter of her widowed mother and invalid sister, so that the annual income from the Oz books was important for her financial circumstances.)

Thompson's contributions to the Oz series are lively and imaginative, featuring a wide range of colorful and unusual characters. However, one particular theme repeats over and over throughout her novels, with little variation. Typically in each of Thompson's Oz novels, a child (usually from America) and a supernatural companion (usually a talking animal), while traveling through Oz or one of the neighboring regions, find themselves in an obscure community where the inhabitants engage in a single activity. The inhabitants of this community then capture the travelers, and force them to participate in this same activity.

Another major theme has elderly characters, most controversially, the Good Witch of the North, being restored to "marriageable" age, possibly because Thompson herself never married. She had a greater tendency toward the use of romantic love stories (which Baum usually avoided in his fairy tales, with about 4 exceptions). While Baum's child protagonists tended to be little girls, Thompson's were boys. She emphasized humor to a greater extent than Baum did, and always considered her work for children, whereas Baum, while first and foremost considering his child audience, knew that his readership comprised all ages.

Thompson's last Oz story, The Enchanted Island of Oz(1976), was not originally written as an Oz book. ...more

Combine Editions
Ruth Plumly Thompson’s books

Average rating: 3.94 · 11,728 ratings · 411 reviews · 163 distinct works • Similar authors

	The Royal Book of Oz (Oz, #15) by Ruth Plumly Thompson, L. Frank Baum 4.01 avg rating — 7,154 ratings — published 1921	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Kabumpo in Oz 4.01 avg rating — 983 ratings — published 1922 — 64 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Cowardly Lion of Oz (Oz Continued #17) by Ruth Plumly Thompson, John R. Neill (Illustrator), L. Frank Baum (Creator) 3.69 avg rating — 327 ratings — published 1923 — 46 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Lost King of Oz (Oz (Thompson and others), #19) 3.84 avg rating — 249 ratings — published 1925 — 43 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Hungry Tiger of Oz (Book 20) by Ruth Plumly Thompson, John R. Neill (Illustrator) 3.79 avg rating — 232 ratings — published 1926 — 38 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Grampa in Oz (Book 18) by Ruth Plumly Thompson, L. Frank Baum, John R. Neill (Illustrator) 3.59 avg rating — 232 ratings — published 1924 — 35 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Jack Pumpkinhead of Oz (Book 23) 3.84 avg rating — 209 ratings — published 1929 — 22 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Gnome King of Oz (Book 21) by Ruth Plumly Thompson, John R. Neill (Illustrator), Michael Herring (Painter) 3.83 avg rating — 193 ratings — published 1927 — 25 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Giant Horse of Oz (Book 22) 3.74 avg rating — 182 ratings — published 1928 — 22 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Yellow Knight of Oz (Book 24) by Ruth Plumly Thompson, L. Frank Baum, John R. Neill 3.78 avg rating — 169 ratings — published 1930 — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Ruth Plumly Thompson…

Series by Ruth Plumly Thompson

Oz Continued (36 books)
by

Ruth Plumly Thompson,

John R. Neill (Illustrator),

Michael Herring (Painter)

3.93 avg rating — 12,858 ratings

Quotes by Ruth Plumly Thompson (?)

“Making people laugh is the hardest work in the world. Look how easy it is to make them cry?”
― Ruth Plumly Thompson, The Cowardly Lion of Oz

tags: crying, crying-quotes, laughter, laughter-quotes, sadness, sadness-quotes

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