Wicked. Son of a Witch

The Wicked Years #1-2

by Gregory Maguire, Douglas Smith (Illustrator)

This unique volume combines two modern classics spun from the imagination of national bestselling author Gregory Maguire. Wicked, told from the perspective of Elphaba Thropp, the Wicked Witch of the West, gives the wildly entertaining prehistory of the Emerald City of Oz before the arrival of Dorothy, the Scarecrow, the Cowardly Lion, and the Tin Woodsman. The saga continues in Son of a Witch, the whimsical coming-of-age story of Liir, the Wicked Witch's secret son. Beautifully designed, this volume makes the perfect gift for lovers of modern fantasy literature.

Wicked/Son of a Witch is part of Barnes & Noble’s series of quality leatherbound Collectible Edition classics. Each title in the series presents a timeless work in an attractively designed edition bound in durable bonded leather. These books make elegant additions to any home library.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Classics, Magic, Retellings, Fairy Tales, Witches

743 pages, Leather Bound

First published October 3, 2008

About the author

Gregory Maguire is an American author, whose novels are revisionist retellings of children's stories (such as L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz into Wicked). He received his Ph.D. in English and American Literature from Tufts University, and his B.A. from the State University of New York at Albany. He was a professor and co-director at the Simmons College Center for the Study of Children's Literature from 1979-1985. In 1987 he co-founded Children's Literature New England (a non-profit educational charity).

Maguire has served as artist-in-residence at the Blue Mountain Center, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, and the Hambidge Center. He lives in Concord, Massachusetts.

Reviews

[Juliet Lyons · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the first half of Wicked. I was utterly addicted. Then it all fell apart. The writing was superb, don't get me wrong, but there were too many questions and almost NO answers. I read it because I love the West End show but it wasn't anything like it. I feel like it could have been a masterpiece, one of those laugh, cry marvellous books. Instead it just frustrated me. I AM glad I read it. I did like it. It just wasn't what I wanted it to be. I wanted so much more for Elphaba. SO much more and the author denied her.

[Javier Rivera · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wicked was all well and good, but Son of a Witch is where Maguire really kicks it into high gear. The exploration of Liir's character and the galloping sense of hope inherently present in each of our daily actions, no matter how small, is what really sealed it for me. 3 for Wicked, 5 for Son of a Witch, averages out to 4.

[Caroline · Rating 4 out of 5]

WICKED
Holy shit what a great book. I've never really looked into the whole Oz / Wicked thing, so thanks to my family for getting me this!

I love villain backstories. There's always two sides to a story! I like it way better this way. Elphaba is born with green skin and razorsharp teeth; the first thing she does is bite someone's finger off - and her first word (after refusing to speak but listening carefully) is "horrors". I felt with Nanny and loved her at once. She goes to college, runs away from everyone and has a love affair which leaves her with a son; Liir. They go to live with the wife, sisters-in-law and children of Liir's father - without them knowing the connection, of course.
The action picks up when Elphaba reunites with more people from her past, and Dorothy lands her house right onto Elphaba's sister. She meets up with Glinda, her old roommate from school, and they giggle like young schoolgirls again, but not for long.
Elphaba is almost 40, and her life is pretty messed up - but she does have a home at least. Now only with her son and old nanny, as the whole family has presumably been killed, except for the daughter. This is where Elphaba meets her tragic end, which made me slap my hand across my mouth.

Poor Elphaba. She was just different and had a lot of difficulties in life, mostly because of it. So I guess I'll see now how her son lives on, even though he so far seems kind of naive.

But yeah, I recommend this book for everyone that are teenagers and up! What surprised me is that there is no hiding sex in this book. But it is very well written, I quite enjoyed it and will read it many times more!


SON OF A WITCH
A little heartbroken from Elphaba's death, I read on; this book.
I wondered how much I would like Liir as he tagged along with Dorothy and the others - but how this book was started with him being hurt and in a coma made me care about what had happened to him.
There are a lot of things happening in this book, things he has to do and such; like finding Nor, helping the Elephant princess, joining the guard, and after he goes back to Kiamo Ko, has to attend a bird conference (which is when he gets hurt).
After this we are in the present, and Candle, who has been taking care of Liir in his coma, is pregnant. I personally found their little love story adorable, but then he leaves for Emerald City and does some shit there, and when he comes back, the Elephant princess steals all his attention and he makes Candle play music for the dying princess - he then joins them and the body on their way. This is when we are told that the ''Elphaba lives'' graffiti in the city was written by Nor - but we have barely heard anything about her, except that she escaped and is alive, which is a shame.
The book ends with Liir coming back and finding his abandoned newborn daughter, who he thinks to be dead, but after a while turns out to be alive - he washes her, and her skin turns out to be green.

I liked this one a little bit less than the first book, but it was still good - well-written and all, good characters. It's just that it felt a little tiring reading about Liir going back and forth all the time, haha. But yeah, not bad at all! Worth a read if you like the world of Oz.

[Kristy Allison · Rating 1 out of 5]

Finished it...finally. This was one of those (few) books where the movie was better. I gave it 1 star because I can't give it zero and consider it a rating. This book could have been so much more, but it was pretty much a vehicle for political ramblings and b%bs. Not a section went by without b%bs being mentioned. I get that an occasional flesh flash is realistic if not desired to pique interest, but the author had a regular shuttle to t!tty city, and it became distractingly mundane. I am keeping the book because it has a pretty cover and gold edging. I may use it for book page art or a doorstop. Besides, I would hate for someone else to accidentally read it.

[Shannon Biddle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Going into the book I had a very open mind. I was excited to read it before I saw the movie, but that excitement turned to dust right away. I was not thinking it would be so vulgar and full of constant questions that were not clearly answered. The sheer idea of the book was truly imaginative and I am rarely at a loss of how things are going to spin in the book like I was in this one-which is a feat since I know The Wizard of OZ well. I love a good backstory, but I it definitely could have been a better experience for me for many reasons.

[SaraCat · Rating 3 out of 5]

This review is specifically about "Son of a Witch" since I read "Wicked" over 10 years ago.

Some of the world building aspects were hard to follow - though this may be due to the fact I have very vague memories of "Wicked" - so I don't really downgrade my rating of the book for that. One thing I did like was that often Macguire would just drop a comment about something that would be common and obvious to the characters and just leave it at that without explanation. But, it was always for things that didn't change the understanding of the story to not have the details written out about. However, since there were so many made-up words within the book, it sometimes hit the mark with me to use so many obscure words to describe things that probably had a more common similar word.

Also, for most of the book it was hard to see what the point of most actions were - and, that can be a good way to set up a story where at the end the seemingly unconnected things become connected. Though that never happened.

On the whole, it felt like Macquire had decided on the main action points and flow of the story and just made the characters act so as to advance that predetermined line, even if it didn't follow what we understood the character to be like.

It sometimes felt like the author was trying to make some grand statement about something universal, but either came shy of it or got so caught up in grandiose ideas and fancy language that it all became lost.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was going to be different than it was. Not Aweful, but not great.

[Rae · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book (these books, depending on the edition you're reading) will certainly change the way you look at Oz. More like the darker "Return to Oz" that, depending on your age and what sort of movies you liked growing up, may or may not have haunted many of our nightmares during our formative years, and less like the magical, sweet, (if sometimes somewhat dark), wonderful world of "The Wizard of Oz" that many more have experienced. I'd have to argue that these books made the movies make so much more sense to me. As for the musical? Even though that is based on the first book in this series, just because you've seen the musical doesn't mean you know the books. I'll leave it at that.

The world building is amazing, making Oz seem very much real and alive, a vital, moving, changing thing that is every bit as deep and intricate as our own world (depending where you're reading this from, I guess?) and also every bit as dark as ours can be at times. It does drag on in sections, especially during the second book, and some things did come off a little confusing or unnecessary, but overall it's well worth the long read. I'd also have to say that reading the first two books together, as a whole, is the preferable way to go. The first two books have made me hungry to see what happens in the final two books.

What an amazing series!

[Kristen · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you loved or enjoyed this book GREAT, I am happy for you! But I DID NOT! It is perfectly fine to have a different opinion. Please be kind :). I just recently read the first book in the Wizard of Oz series by L. Frank Baum and really liked it. Now the book and 1939 classic movie are pretty different. I have to be honest, and say that its one of those rare instances where the movie is better than the book. Now I had never heard of (or if did never paid attention to) Wicked when it came out. I was in a bookstore and saw a beautiful edition on the shelf and loved the synopsis. The whole idea or concept was intriguing to me. I very rarely at all read retellings or fan fictions. This fan fiction changes the entire nature of the original book/story. What shocked me was that this book is very complex, political, religious, VERY ADULT, and etc... Maybe I shouldn't have read this book right after reading the original Wizard of Oz. This wasn't anything like what I was expecting, and I wanted to love it so much. But for me this was just so bizarre and it gave me a headache.

[Rossi · Rating 1 out of 5]

*REVIEW OF WICKED*

After having seen the musical adaptation about a million times, I thought it high-time I visited the original text in advance of the movie coming out. I’m shocked that I hadn’t already read it…

Well my intuition was correct in steering clear of this book for so long, because what on earth was this mess?!

Painfully dull, horribly sexist, and an absolute slog to get through, you can see why the musical only took loose inspiration from this. I wasn’t able to connect with anything - the characters, the setting, the story, the dialogue. Absolutely nothing.

I bought the double-feature edition (featuring the sequel, Son of a Witch) but it’s fair to say I don’t think I’ll be reading that any time soon.

[Tamra Hilton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book because it gave a different side to what was thought, a very one sided character. I believe nothing is as it appears on the surface and there are always two (or more) sides.

It made me think about people I see or get a glimpse of at a specific life event or season of their lives and come away with a certain opinion of them. But like it is always said, "You can never judge a book by it's cover."

[Eric · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read "Wicked", but not "Son of a Witch." Sadly, I saw the Wicked musical before I read the book. I thought the stage show had a much smoother narration and filled in more gaps than the book. Much of the book was unexplained, and it did not match with the events from "The Wizard of Oz." I get the idea that Maguire wanted to demonstrate how the story could have been communicated incorrectly in "Wizard," but I felt it was too different to be really enjoyable.

[Ella Holzhei · Rating 2 out of 5]

This took me forever. Always more questions than answers. I feel like we fly through the actual plot, sometimes not even describing important details, but really loiter in the in between scenes. Strange pacing. And not at all like the musical. Son of a Witch is much better, though

[Carlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

R rated just so you know!

[Bivisyani Questibrilia · Rating 4 out of 5]

After a long and hard struggle, I finally managed to finished this two-in-one volume. It has been quite a ride and not entirely what I expected, but I'm so glad to have finished it. So here's a thorough review of both books, enjoy!

REVIEW FOR WICKED:
First I found out about Wicked was through Glee the TV series. They performed one of its songs, Defying Gravity, and I was quickly entranced. It got me intrigued to want to read the book—since seeing the musical is simply out of the question. It took me over 10 years, I believe, but I was finally able to page through the story, thanks to my friend who let me borrow this volume.

I think it needs to be said, that I’ve never read the original The Wizard of Oz book—nor do I remember much of what the film was like. To be honest, it’s really not my favourite piece, as far as musical goes. That being said, I really, really enjoyed this rendition of their villain.

My first impression upon reading the book is that it uses language in such a peculiar way. It is a mix between old, fairy tale-like words and modern day humour. Done perfectly well, it is able to deliver a tale that is supposedly as old as time, yet at the same time add in a pinch of realism with today’s wit. Brilliantly done, I might add.

The story also didn’t start where I thought it would. Having pretty much no prior knowledge of what the story would be like, I assumed a whole other plot for it. I thought Elphie would be much, much closer to Galinda/Glinda—judging from the song I mentioned earlier. Now, though, I can’t even imagine a scene, in which that song would be performed. That being said, I do adore the friendship they have with one another, although it feels almost bittersweet by now. Aside from those two, I also adore Boq very much, especially in regards to the way Elphie interacts with him. It’s very endearing in a way.

What I didn’t expect from this book is how deeply political it actually is—so different from The Wizard of Oz that I remember. Various scenes and storylines require a deeper understanding of the way the world works—in other words, not at all fit for children. It is, I would argue, a much more suitable retelling for adults. Especially those who believe that there’s more to the story of the Witch.

The ending, in particular, feels a bit abrupt to me. We all know how the Witch's story ends—we've all seen it in the Wizard of Oz—but the events leading up to it isn't much of a buildup to actually make it worth our while. Or perhaps I'm hoping for a bit more theatrics than was warranted.

REVIEW FOR SON OF A WITCH:
Never have I actually planned on reading this book, but since it's bundled together I don't see why I shouldn't. After reading Wicked, I was more excited about reading this sequel, though. The story follows the boy Liir who may or may not have been Elphaba's descendant.

This story doesn't really make room for chemistry among the characters, as loneliness and the feeling of never belonging are the essence of what makes Liir such a peculiar character. It doesn't follow the chronological storyline—moving back and forth between time—but I find that makes the story all the more interesting. If you're looking for a lot of nostalgia from this sequel, I'm afraid you will be disappointed, though, as there really aren't a lot of old characters involved in this one.

All in all, I find the stories quite interesting although very tedious to read. There were a lot of parts that don't seem to go anywhere and the story doesn't necessarily come full circle—which, to me, is very disappointing. It has that adult fairy-tale vibe, of course, which I find very pleasing to read. However, if you're easily bored and not really one for fantasies, I wouldn't recommend this book.

[Maria Watkins · Rating 3 out of 5]

** For Wicked review, go to the first Wicked book on my page **

Son of a Witch
329 pages
⭐️⭐️⭐️

Liir hid in the shadows of the castle after Dorothy did in the Witch. Left for dead in a gully, the teen is shattered in spirit and body. But silent novice Candle tends him at the Cloister of Saint Glinda, and wills him back to life with her music. What dark force left Liir in this condition? Is he really Elphaba's son? He has her broom and her cape - but what of her powers? Can he find his supposed half-sister, Nor, last seen in the forbidding prison Southstairs? Can he fulfill the last wishes of a dying princess? In an Oz under new and dangerous management, can Liir keep his head down long enough to grow up?

“Not everyone is born a witch or a saint. Not everyone is born talented or crooked or blessed; some are born definite in no particular at all. We are a fountain of shimmering contradictions, most of us. Beautiful in the concept, if we’re lucky, but frequently tedious or regrettable as we flesh ourselves out.”

I was so glad I read this and was glad to be back in Oz!

I enjoyed the beginning and the end, but the middle was so dry. The pacing was the only issue I had with this book but it was quite a struggle to get through the middle chunk. I knew I wanted to keep reading it though, to find out what happens in the end and I’m glad I did.

I seem to struggle with some of Maguire’s books feeling dry in some parts. The only book so far that I didn’t feel that was was Wicked, but I do know that some people thing it’s dry too.

I loved Liir and how he was written, and being inside his head. Traveling to Oz with Liir was great, and I loved slipping into his world. I also LOVED the end, and I hope that in the third wicked years book, the ending is addressed.

[Josue Rodriguez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wicked - 5/5

Gregory Maguire's genius idea to expand, revitalize, and retell a villain's story in such a politically charged way changed the game for how modernity would tackle FABLES and FAIRY TALES in decades that followed it's release. It's, in the best way possible, quite a dry and serious book with a sardonic sense of humor and a dark sensibility that ties into it's cynical views of class, race, and politics.
When Wicked hits, it hits hard, and since a lot of it's dry sense of humor and politicking was lost during it's adaptation into the popular musical, Wicked as it exists in its novel form is exclusive to this book making it (for me) that much more special and worth revisiting from time to time.
I love the way Maguire works with iconography, tropes, and uses the space between the lines of the original book, the WB film, and other visuals that surround THE WIZARD OF OZ to tell his re-envisioned tale. Elphaba is a worthy character for the trope of the WICKED WITCH as is Galinda. Fantastic.

Son of a Witch - 3/5

The sequel to big hit, Son of a Witch has a lot of the stuff that makes Wicked work just without any of the strong parallels that Wicked had. Frankly, Son of a Witch is kind of boring. It's action rises slowly and any politicking present unfolds slowly and unsatisfyingly. It just unfortunately, isn't a great follow up, let alone an entertaining one. Where Wicked had me turning the pages quite quickly, Son of Witch was a bit of a slog.

[Franziska Beck · Rating 3 out of 5]

I want to explain my rating, because it’s the result of combining individual ratings for each novel.

I loved Wicked. I read it twice, the first time in german, the second time in the original version. I would give Wicked 4/5 stars.
I’ve been wanting to read Son Of A Witch for a decade. The ending of Wicked left me excited for the next chapter in the story. But I just did not enjoy SOAW. I almost stopped reading it and I’m glad that I didn’t because there are gems hidden in the mess that is this story. I can’t even really explain what exactly annoyed me about the novel, but I just feel like the story and characters deserved more. I’d give this novel 2/5 stars wishing I had enjoyed it more.

[Anne Eston · Rating 3 out of 5]

The 3 stars is for Son of a Witch… received this dual novel as a gift 3 years ago. Had a hard time getting into it, put it down, picked it up again. I enjoyed Wicked for the most part. Son of a Witch, not so much. It dragged for me. I wasn’t invested in Liir as a character. Too much droning about the not knowing if he was really Elphaba’s son. Too much introspection about who he wanted to be in his life. I was far more interested in Candle.

[Judith Kovacs · Rating 1 out of 5]

FINALLY finished it. This was one of the most painful books to read that I’ve ever pushed through. Definitely won’t read the others. It didn’t even get remotely interesting until about two- thirds of the way through. So much boring, detailed descriptions about everything unimportant. And it’s just so dark, uninspiring, and doesn’t make you feel anything for any of the characters. Not to mention sexist.

[Tamara Van dishoeck · Rating 3 out of 5]

ik denk dat iedereen wel het verhaal van Dorothy kent het meisje wat door een tornado naar Oz reist en daar op reis gaat om weer thuis te komen maar dit is het verhaal van Elphaba  de slechte heks van het westen. en het vervolgdeel gaat over haar zoon en zijn leven. gekocht vanwege de mooie uitgave maar ook wel van genoten, ook al had ik in het begin er even moeite mee om in te komen.

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wicked was entertaining, more of a deep political drama than I was expecting. Son of a witch was disappointing, I felt that him only accomplishing one thing was strange and the play out of the power vacuum in Oz wasn’t satisfying.

[Evelyn Torres · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love what Gregory Maguire has done to the fairy tales we grew up with. Wicked got me hooked on his writing.

[Judith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Follows the story of Elphaba's son. If you enjoyed "Wicked" you will enjoy this book too.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wicked is great for understanding the Witch of the West in Oz. Son of a Witch is even better for humanizing her.

[Rhonda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed Wicked. Son of a Witch, however, was tiresome.

[Tamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. I have yet to complete the series, but this actually made me want to read the original Wizard of Oz series.

[Jennifer Grochowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book better than the 1st. I think I became used to the author's writing style

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars - Wicked is a 4 star but its sequel Son of a Witch wasn't to the same caliber of storytelling. I did enjoy reading the next part of the story but unsure if I will continue the series.

[Suzanne Estrella · Rating 5 out of 5]

This did not get good reviews but I enjoyed it.
I do believe that Liir was Elphaba’s son.