Explore the wonder of Oz in this collection of books seven through nine in L. Frank Baum’s classic American fairy tale series.
The seventh, eighth, and ninth titles of the iconic Oz series, now in one collection!
In The Patchwork Girl of Oz, the Munchkins Unc Nunkie and Ojo the Unlucky call on the Crooked Magician, who introduces them to his latest creation: a living girl made out of patchwork quilts and cotton stuffing. But when an accident leaves beloved Unc Nunkie a motionless statue, it is up to Ojo to save him. Can the mighty Wizard of Oz help?
In Tik-Tok of Oz, Betsy Bobbin and her loyal mule, Hank, wash up on the shores of an unknown fairyland during a storm. There they meet the clockwork man Tik-Tok and find themselves trapped in a battle with the king of the Nomes.
In The Scarecrow of Oz, Cap’n Bill and Trot journey to Oz and, with the help of the Scarecrow, overthrow the cruel King Krewl of Jinxland, who has been busy gathering an army for an invasion of Oz. Will they be able to stop the invasion?
Lyman Frank Baum was an American author best known for his children's fantasy books, particularly The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, part of a series. In addition to the 14 Oz books, Baum penned 41 other novels (not including four lost, unpublished novels), 83 short stories, over 200 poems, and at least 42 scripts. He made numerous attempts to bring his works to the stage and screen; the 1939 adaptation of the first Oz book became a landmark of 20th-century cinema. Born and raised in Chittenango, New York, Baum moved west after an unsuccessful stint as a theater producer and playwright. He and his wife opened a store in South Dakota and he edited and published a newspaper. They then moved to Chicago, where he worked as a newspaper reporter and published children's literature, coming out with the first Oz book in 1900. While continuing his writing, among his final projects he sought to establish a film studio focused on children's films in Los Angeles, California. His works anticipated such later commonplaces as television, augmented reality, laptop computers (The Master Key), wireless telephones (Tik-Tok of Oz), women in high-risk and action-heavy occupations (Mary Louise in the Country), and the ubiquity of advertising on clothing (Aunt Jane's Nieces at Work).
These books aren't perfect, but they are magical. I hope that makes sense. I'm so glad to have spent my summer with them and hope to finish all of them before too long. Honestly, devoting my summer to the Oz books during the pandemic was the best choice I could have made.
Another wonderful volume of Oz stories, with crazy adventures and lots of colourful new characters.
Baum had the perfect mind and imagination for children and children at heart. Majority of the characters make repeat appearance which is nice, (except for Button Bright – I cannot stand the character, he should get lost somewhere of the page!). There is a good blend of old and new together. It’s surprising how ‘modern’ the author was in his time.
The Patchwork girl of oz is a light-hearted and kooky adventure just like it’s titled character. The glass cat is so sassy I love her! If they ever made a film, Sarah Millican would be the PERFECT voice for the character We get a tiny glimmer of a backstory to Toto in Tik-Tok of Oz, as well as a whole plethora of female main characters that transition throughout all the books I ship the scarecrow and patchwork girl so hard! And I love Trot and Cap’n Bill that join the dynamic host of characters.
The storylines remain the same, and everything is resolved with a happy ending, so it’s a nice, light, and comforting read in between books with lovable and familiar characters to fall back upon.
The Patchwork Girl of Oz Another new adventure in the land of Oz. It was good but not too exciting. More characters were introduced. How the patchwork girl was created was very creative. On to the next adventure.
Tik-Tok of Oz Each adventure is exciting to read with new and creative characters and places in the Land of Oz but this one was a bit boring for me. I'm still not sure why this was labeled after "Tik-Tok" because we barely got to see Tik-Tok and when we did, he didn't really do much but that's just my opinion. This review won't stop me from finishing the series because there are a lot of creative stories, characters, and places that I'm excited to see more of.
The Scarecrow of Oz I love the fact that two new characters appeared from another one of L. Frank Baum's book outside of the Oz collection. The book is titled after the Scarecrow but he doesn't appear until the last half of the book. This books was okay but not one of my favorites. It's important to note that one of the chapter's title has the "m" word when referring to little people so it may be triggering for some.
I am definitely seeing a bit of a pattern with the Oz stories, but it isn't really taking the joy I am getting out of reading the books. I still am enjoying reading them and will more than likely do an entire re-read at some point later down the road.
Although I do have one question. Does it seem that Dorothy and Ozma are kidnappers? Haha
Like the other books, this book was really great and I loved how it didn't just stick to the original story. There are other characters that aid Dorothy and her friends in their adventures.
The title of the book is The Patchwork Girl of Oz. It is written by L. Frank Baum. This story is about a boy named Ojo and a girl made of patchwork who go on a journey to save Ojo’s uncle. In the beginning, Ojo's uncle turns into a statue by accident. Then, Ojo and the patchwork girl look for five magic things to save him. Later, they find almost everything, but have trouble with the butterfly wing and the clover. At the end, Ojo is forgiven, and his uncle is saved. I think it was wrong for Dr. Pipt to use magic, because it was dangerous. My favorite part was when the Tin Woodman said no to hurting the butterfly, because he was kind. I learned that rules are important, and kindness matters. I think this book is exciting. I would recommend it to my friends because the adventure is fun. I give this book 9 out of 10 stars!
Tik-Tok of Oz The title of the story is Tik-Tok of Oz. It is written by L. Frank Baum. This story is about Betsy Bobbin and her loyal mule, Hank, [who] wash up on the shore of an unknown land during a storm and meet some new friends, including the Shaggy Man, who is on a quest to find his missing brother. But when they find themselves fighting the King of the Nomes and his army, will someone from Oz arrive in time to save them? In the beginning, Queen Ann of Oogaboo is gathering an army of sixteen officers and one private soldier. They march toward the center of Oz, trying to conquer it, [little knowing] that the power of Oz is much greater than the tiny army of Oogaboo. At that time, Betsy and Hank meet Shaggy Man, the Rose Princess, and Polychrome. Then, the two parties meet on the road. At first, the army wants to capture Betsy and her friends, but once Shaggy Man holds out his love magnet, the two parties become a team and try to go to Ruggedo’s underground cavern to retrieve Shaggy Man’s brother. Later, the Nome Ruggedo tries to stop the party from coming, even though the other nomes keep trying to convince him to just send the brother away. But Ruggedo still uses the rubber to send the party bouncing around. Once they finally stop, the king sends them falling down the hollow tube to another country, where the ruler has much more power than Ruggedo. The ruler warns him not to send anyone down the hollow tube again. When the party falls into the new country, the ruler sends a dragon to take them back and fight the nomes. In the end, they use help from the ruler and the dragon to defeat the bad Nome King and make a good and honest nome become the new king. The new king gladly frees the brother. I think trying to retrieve Shaggy Man’s brother is a good idea because the Nome King has so much treasure and is still holding people captive. I think the people should rebel against him. My favorite part is when the two parties become one, because that is the only way they can defeat the Nome King and his army. I was surprised when I discovered that the great Jinjin is much more powerful than the Nome King because I thought the Nome King was already very powerful. I learned that anyone should be satisfied with what they have and not do bad deeds just to get what they want — especially when they already have a ton of good stuff. I like Betsy Bobbin because she is very cool and confident when she meets any problems. I don’t like Ruggedo the Nome because he is too greedy and cruel. But finally, Ruggedo changes from greedy and cruel to humble and honest. I think this story is very interesting because the characters have a lot of exciting adventures with each other. I would recommend the story to my friends because it is entertaining and fun. Also, the reading level is about our level. I would gladly give this book ten out of ten stars!
The Scarecrow of Oz It is written by L. Frank Baum. This story is about Captain Bill and his friend Trot set off to find Emerald City, but their journey takes them through the land of King Krewl, who is afraid that they want to steal his throne. Can the Scarecrow help them escape from the King’s prison. In the beginning, Trot and Bill came to a cavern under the sea. Then an Ork came and joined them. They tried to find a way out, and they found a tunnel leading somewhere. They entered the tunnel and walked for a day, resting and having supper in the middle of the tunnel. The next day, they came to a well and the Ork carried Trot and Bill and flew out. They met an old man of the island, who was mean to them and wanted them to leave, so he told them that the purple berries make you grow small, and the oink ones make grow back again. So, Trot and Bill ate one and sat in a bag attached to the Ork, and they flew off to find another island. They finally landed on another island and came back to their own size. Then, they came to Jinx land. There, a princess named Gloria loved a gardener’s boy named Pon. The king wanted Googly-Goo to marry Gloria. When the king noticed the travelers coming, he thought they were wizards because they were so confident. So, the king called for the witch and changed Bill into a grasshopper. Glinda the Good read in her magic book of records that the witch wanted to freeze Gloria’s heart to stop her from loving Pon. Glinda sent the Scarecrow of Oz to help them. Later, Trot met the Scarecrow. The tiny party orders the king to surrender. The king refused, so the party attacked the king and conquered the witch. At the end, the people made Gloria their queen and Gloria’s heart is unfrozen and she can love Pon again. I like this story, and I give it then out of ten stars.
The Patchwork Girl of Oz 1913 A young boy named Ojo lives with his Uncle Nunkie in the Blue Forest. In a weird accident involving Dr. Pipt, a crooked magician; Dr. Pipt’s wife and Ojo’s Uncle have become petrified. Ojo and Scraps, a patchwork girl who has come to life because of a pair of red leather shoes, take off to find the items to cure his Uncle and the Dr.’s wife. They need to gather 3 feathers from a Woozy’s tail, the left wing of a yellow butterfly, a 6 leaf clover, a drop of oil from a man and water from a dark well. As the two travel to get the needed items, they meet the Shaggy Man who helps them on their journey. Baum does like to reference events of the time period. The dark water is a reference to radium (which at the time was considered safe and beneficial) and the Horners’ home in the book was made of radium because “no one can ever be sick because of radium”. There is also a mention of a phonograph that came to life, which was named Victor Columbia Edison. I am continually delighted with this series especially the references to events in the time period in which the books were written.
Tik-Tok of Oz 1914 Although you would think this book would center on Tik-Tok, the mechanical man of Oz, he is only it for a short time. The main story revolves around Shaggy Man, who is on a quest to find his brother who has been missing and was taken by the Nome King aka Ruggedo and aka the Metal Monarch. I find it interesting that some of Baum’s characters have multiple names (and some have none like Shaggy Man’s brother in this book) because it does make it a little hard to keep track of the characters. Though I love his creative characters, some are only in the book for a sentence or two. But I digress, there are also a couple of side stories, one of which involves the Rose Kingdom, where only male roses rule so when Shaggy and Betsy Bobbin picked the Rose Princess out of the ground, she was banished and followed them on their mission to find Shaggy’s brother. This book also has some interesting references like his other books. Edison is referred to as the “first mortal to discover electricity”, Ozma watched over her citizens through a radium frame, and Ozma and Shaggy talked through wireless telephones that could be put in their pockets! Did Baum conceive the idea of the cell phone???
The Scarecrow of Oz 1915 This story relates the tale of the one legged Captain Bill and Trot, a young girl with mystic symbols on her head that cannot be seen. They had been walking when from out of no-where a whirlpool takes them and they end up on a sandy beach where they meet Ork from Orkland, who has a tail that is like a propeller. So begins the 9th adventure of the Oz series. Along the way they meet the beautiful princess, Gloria; a lowly gardener, Pon; the Bumpy Man; Pessim, who is a pessimist and the Scarecrow and have a lot of adventures and of a course, a happy ending.
Oz, the Complete Collection, Volume 3 is a bind up of the next three books in Oz series (The Patchwork Girl of Oz, Tik-Tok of Oz, and The Scarecrow of Oz) written by L. Frank Baum and centered on ironically enough Ojo the Unlucky, Betsy Bobbin, and the team of Cap'n Bill and Trot respectively and their adventures in the Land of Oz.
The Patchwork Girl of Oz (★★★★☆) has Ojo the Unlucky and Unc Nunkie call on the Crooked Magician, who introduces them to his latest creation: a living girl made out of patchwork quilts and cotton stuffing. However, when an accident leaves Unc Nunkie in a motionless statute, it is up to Ojo to save him. However, Ojo has the moniker of the Unlucky for a rather good reason.
Tik-Tok of Oz (★★★★☆) has Betsy Bobbin and her loyal mule, Hank, wash up on the shores of an unknown fairyland during a storm. They meet Shaggy Man who is looking for his missing brother and eventually find the clockwork man Tik-Tok and Polychrome. They find themselves trapped in a battle with the Nome King and Queen Ann Soforth of Oogaboo.
The Scarecrow of Oz (★★★★☆) has Cap'n Bill and Trot journey to Oz and with the help of the Scarecrow, they overthrow the cruel King Krewl of Jinxland, who has been busy gathering an army for an invasion of Oz.
Oz, the Complete Collection, Volume 3 is written rather well. Baum has broadened his wonderful world of magic and awe in the Land of Oz and neighbors, which includes many characters and lands from Baum's non-Oz books particularly in The Scarecrow of Oz.
Oddly, the titles of the books are rather misleading as the titular characters are the central protagonist of their respective books. In The Patchwork Girl of Oz the main focus in on Ojo the Unlucky and his quest to save Unc Nunkie from being a motionless statue. Likewise, in Tik-Tok of Oz, the main focus is on the Shaggy Man who is looking for his missing brother who disappeared in a cave and suspects that the Nome King has him. Finally, The Scarecrow of Oz focus mainly on the team of Cap'n Bill and Trot and the Scarecrow only shows up in the end to save the day.
All in all, Oz, the Complete Collection, Volume 3 is written rather well and is a wonderful continuation of what would hopefully be a wonderful series, which I plan to continue in the very near future.
The Patchwork Girl of Oz, Tik-Tok of Oz, and The Scarecrow of Oz are stories seven through nine in this third volume of the Oz series.
Grouping these three stories together is a bit unfortunate because of their similarities. Individually, the stories still have the same fun, bright magic and wholesome simplicity that captivated me in the previous titles. But taken together, they are a repetitive and somewhat disappointing bunch.
As with volume two, new characters take the lead in this collection. The cast in The Patchwork Girl of Oz is the most well rounded, having strong and distinct personalities with backstories that are developed early on to motivate them.
On the other hand, the companions in Tik-Tok of Oz and The Scarecrow of Oz are less varied. Betsy and Trot, the little heroines, are so similar to each other and Dorothy that they’re interchangeable. Both are dropped into their stories with little background*, have a companion who looks over them, and bear a spirit of curiosity and bravery. They’re dear girls, but Oz needs only one Dorothy.
The core cast of Oz make brief appearances in all three tales, and they’re not as vibrant as before. Here they’re plot devices, used to push the new characters forward, get into trouble, or save the day. Glinda and Ozma in particular serve only as safety nets in Oz. It is these safety nets that are the real issue with this volume.
After the characters face many dangers and obstacles in all three stories, easy answers to their problems are revealed at the last minute, and all is well. The endings are anticlimactic not only because these resolutions are sudden and tidy, but because they were available all along.
With magic-wand resolutions at the ready, Baum proves that there are no real stakes left in Oz. Each tale is just an adventure for adventure’s sake. While still fun and enjoyable reads, these stories have less substance than the previous books in the collection, and travelling along the yellow brick road is becoming less meaningful and a tad monotonous.
*I’m learning now that Trot was pulled from Baum’s less successful novel The Sea Fairies, which was first intended to be unrelated to Oz. This explains Baum’s letter preceding The Scarecrow of Oz, which otherwise had no context.
Though I really enjoyed The Patchwork Girl of Oz and The Scarecrow of Oz (except for the fact that they kept saying that a gardener was not a good match for a princess, and Button-Bright seems to have a different character than he did in The Road to Oz), Tik-Tok of Oz was terrible. Not because of the way it was written, but because it was completely inconsistent. The first thing that bothers me is that the Nome King was supposed to be good now. Because when he drank from the fountain in the Emerald City, he had forgotten all his evil and all the things that had happened 'til then. Also, he had no magic powers without the magic belt, but in this story, he remembered everything, now all of the sudden the eggs actually cause them to die, which in The Emerald City of Oz it was proven that it didn't do anything to them when the Scarecrow threw a bunch of eggs at the Nomes. Besides that, there's the fact that Polychrome appears again, and even though she had already met Shaggy Man in The Road to Oz, in this story, is as if they had never met before. Those things are a bit annoying, so this story kinda didn't make a whole lot of sense in the narrative of all these stories put together. Also, if I remember correctly, Kalico was destroyed by the Nome King in The Emerald City of Oz, and Guph had taken his place as the confidant to the King of Nomes. So, all in all, this for me was the weakest of the ones I've read so far. On to volume 4.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Quotes One who is Master of himself is always a King, if only to himself. (Tik-Tok of Oz, 365)
If the earth were pushed in a mile, it would be a great calamity, wouldn't it?...Well, here it is pushed in a full inch! That's a twelfth of a foot, or a little more than a millionth part of a mile. Therefore it is one-millionth part of a calamity--Oh, dear! How dreadful! (The Scarecrow of Oz,, 538)
"Oh! are you alive?" asked the grasshopper. "That is a question I have never been able to decide," said the Scarecrow's head..."But whether that is being alive, or not, I cannot prove to you; for one who lives is liable to death, while I am only liable to destruction." (The Scarecrow of Oz,, 636)
I borrowed this from the library. ISBN13: 978-1-4424-8892-2
Oz Volume 3 comprises books 7 to 9 - The Patchwork Girl of Oz, Tik-Tok of Oz, and The Scarecrow of Oz.
Once again I completely fell in love with these stories. The writing and world building is truly magical. There are even more new and interesting characters added and each one is unforgettable.
As soon as I finished this book I picked up the next volume. I just wanted the adventure to keep on going.
I'm not sure if I can write another review for these books, considering that they are all fairly similar and any critique I have is also going to be similar to previous books. Sugary-sweet with the typical journey through Oz and a happy ever after wrapped in a bow, there's only so much a girl can take!
Here we have the first three books of the Oz Series that are not focussed on Dorothy. We have visitors coming to the land of Oz by various means, BUT, we learn more about Oz, the different lands and peoples that inhabit the world.
Personally, I find these later stories rather fun and interesting, much more so than the Dorothy centred works.
If it were judged by my enjoyment as I read it - 3.5*. However it must be judged for what it is: short stories for children. If I were reading them as a child, or to a child, then they are fantastic as children's books go.
Two of the three books were pretty good though Tik Tok Of Oz was pretty horrible of a book. The adventures were very fun but it seems they are more about bringing in his other books to Oz than making a real connection to the original Oz characters.
Beautiful collection of three stories with endearing characters and a great pacing. Would recommend as good night story for children, but also very enjoyable for adults.
Another collection of 3 fun stories by L. Frank Baum. The Patchwork Girl of Oz introduces some new characters and tosses in some of the familiar ones for a cool story. From the Woozy, Glass Cat, Ojo, and of course the Patchwork Girl, all the characters are great here. Tik-Tok of Oz, along with The Emerald City of Oz, & The Marvelous Land of Oz, are my 3 favorite of the 9 books so far. Queen Ann, Tik-Tok, and Roquat all make returns, with Betsy Bobbins, and Polychrome, and meeting up with The Shaggy Man for a great little adventure story. Roquat being one of my favorite Oz characters gets an interesting transformation, and I like the close of his story in this one; would be interesting to see what comes of Kaliko. The Scarecrow of Oz, again throwing some new characters into the mix with some usual ones, makes for very interesting adventuring. Cap'n Bill and Trot were new to me, and great fun. I love the Ork. So many interesting characters are met along the way. For those that may have read through the series in order thus far there are some surprise character appearances that seem like spoilers to reveal, so I'll leave it for the fun of reading the adventure yourself. Still, I'd say, I'm a fan of the whole 9 books of this series. There are times it feels a bit repetitive, but the stories are always fun, and I always like the sense of wonder and adventure throughout, being not so much about the results so much as the ride to get there.
The Patchwork Girl of Oz ★★★☆☆ War schön mal wieder nach Oz abzutauchen, da ist einfach alles immer so herrlich bunt und verquer. Ich mochte vor allem die arrogante Glaskatze ("Have you noticed my pink brains? You can see 'em work." xD), das Patchwork Girl aus dem Titel hätte aber irgendwie mehr in den Vordergrund treten können. Das Quest hat Spaß gemacht, war aber auch ziemlich leicht zu lösen und am Ende ratzfatz vorbei.
Tik-Tok of Oz ★★☆☆☆ Diese Geschichte fand ich eher unspektakulär, was wahrscheinlich an der Zusammenstellung der Gefährten lag, v.a. Shaggy Man kann ich einfach nichts abgewinnen (und dann auch noch mit seinem Love Magnet, der bewirkt, dass jeder ihn toll findet, urgh) und ich wünschte, es wäre mehr um Titelfigur Tik-Tok gegangen, den mag ich nämlich viel lieber. Insgesamt scheint sich das Oz-Universum jetzt langsam zu erschöpfen... ich hoffe, das ändert sich in Zukunft auch wieder.
The Scarecrow of Oz ★★★☆☆ Dieses Abenteuer fand ich wieder besser, weil es viele Elemente beinhaltet, die mich ansprechen, so was wie die unterirdische Welt vom Anfang, das Land of Mo mit seinem Popcornschnee und Limonaderegen, das Herz aus Eis und die Höhle hinterm Wasserfall am Ende. Die Lösung des Konflikts ist wieder hochgradig konstruiert, aber da erwarte ich von den Büchern auch nicht viel mehr.
I really enjoyed the first story, up until they reached the Emerald City. The second story was very enjoyable, and it would have been my favorite if it hadn't so many inconsistencies with things that were mentioned earlier. It also seemed very familiar in some parts, such as the way Betsy got to Oz. The third story was okay, but I don't like how they changed Button-Bright's character so much. If he hadn't already been to Oz before, I would never have guessed that it was the same Button-Bright. One inconsistency that really bothered me was that the Shaggy Man didn't seem to know Polychrome anymore. Another was that at one point Glinda was said to live north of Emerald City, and apparently there is also no more Good Witch of the North. The Glass Cat was one of my favorite new characters, but she was left behind at the Emerald City and then her personality was changed completely. I also like how there is finally a dragon. I still think that the characters are accomplishing everything too easily, especially in the first story but less so in the other two. And last but definitely not least:they blocked off Oz from the rest of the world but somehow two stories in a row, characters from outside of Oz have come to live there now. Also, I finally got my answer for why Toto didn't talk.
The Patchwork Girl of Oz: 2.5 stars. I wish I could get into this series, but I just can't. I can see the appeal and how it would be great for kids, but unfortunately that's not me. In the Patchwork Girl of Oz we journey throughout the land of Oz in search for item to complete a potion, only to fail and find out the Wizard could've fixed the problem straight away. At the beginning, I was quite into this story, but towards the end my interest dropped. It's such as shame 'cause I really want to like this series.
Tik-Tok of Oz: 2.7 stars. I felt this story was an improvement of the previous one, as I enjoyed it a bit more. I think the new and different characters are what helped move the story along for me. Still only 2.7 stars though because, though I liked it I progressed slowly through.
The Scarecrow of Oz: 2.9 stars. I know I could just make it 3 stars, but though I liked this story better than the Patchwork Girl of Oz, it was a bit hard to get into. But after the first few chapters, I flew through it. I can still only give it 2.9 stars though because it didn't really do anything for me.
Overall, this book was okay. There were times that I liked it but mostly it seemed a chore to get through.
This is a omnibus of three novels which I have reviewed separately below.
The Patchwork Girl of Oz Rating; 3.75 stars A charming and ridiculous tale of the haphazard adventures of the Patchwork Girl - Scraps - and munchkin boy Ojo the Unlucky, to provide a remedy for Ojo's uncle. It is (spoilers) one of those stories where, the solution could have been reached much earlier but then the adventuring wouldn't have continued. I found it an amusing conclusion to the story, but fair (albeit vague) warning.
Tik-Tok of Oz Rating; 3.5 stars Despite having very little to do with Tik-Tok himself, this is another charming tale. To be honest, it's nice to just read some easy conflict-resolution right now while everything is feeling very unsolvable.
The Scarecrow of Oz Rating; 3.75 stars Alike to Tik-Tok of Oz, the title misleads you into thinking the Scarecrow will be around in this tale, whereas he only appears in the last quarter or so - if even that - to provide a final resolution and rescue for the true protagonists of the story.