Paperback, 352 pages
English language
Published Sept. 26, 2006 by Harper Paperbacks.
The long-anticipated sequel to the million-copy bestselling novel WickedTen years after the publication of Wicked, beloved novelist Gregory Maguire returns at last to the land of Oz. There he introduces us to Liir, an adolescent boy last seen hiding in the shadows of the castle after Dorothy did in the Witch. Bruised, comatose, and left for dead in a gully, Liir is shattered in spirit as well as in form. But he is tended at the Cloister of Saint Glinda by the silent novice called Candle, who wills him back to life with her musical gifts.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 that, since …
The long-anticipated sequel to the million-copy bestselling novel WickedTen years after the publication of Wicked, beloved novelist Gregory Maguire returns at last to the land of Oz. There he introduces us to Liir, an adolescent boy last seen hiding in the shadows of the castle after Dorothy did in the Witch. Bruised, comatose, and left for dead in a gully, Liir is shattered in spirit as well as in form. But he is tended at the Cloister of Saint Glinda by the silent novice called Candle, who wills him back to life with her musical gifts.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 that, since the Wizard's departure, is under new and dangerous management, can Liir keep his head down long enough to grow up?For the countless fans who have been dazzled and entranced by Maguire's Oz, Son of a Witch is the rich reward they have awaited so long.
Gregory Maguire has done a fantastic job of carrying on the legend of Oz, in Son of a Witch the main players that you know so well are gone. Instead we get to enjoy the story of the witch's son and the impact he has on the land of Oz.
The book is well written and if you can adapt to the new characters then you will be able to enjoy this book.
Drat!
I did not realise this was a sequel. No wonder I'm not really getting into it. Got to find a copy of "Wicked" and give that a try.
I only read this because I'm a sucker for sequels. Maguire does a nice job creating an interesting world, but I just didn't care about the characters or plot. I won't follow this series any further.
I really loved this book. My experience with the book preceding it, Wicked, was more complicated: I found its prose to be dense and lush yet often off-putting, plot points at times inscrutable, and ultimately left the completed book with mixed emotions. I knew I'd read something vital, lively, intelligent, but oh so gloomy and needlessly convoluted. Much of that carries over to its sequel, but oddly relieved of much of the baggage of Wicked, Maguire is able here to tell a story about a new character, one unfamiliar to those of us with Oz experience, and somehow that makes all the difference. Yes, the book is still dense, gloomy, and often needlessly convoluted. But I found this one to pack quite an emotional wallop. Its final pages had me weeping, a rarity. Those who loved Wicked may or may not feel the same about its sequel, but for me …
I really loved this book. My experience with the book preceding it, Wicked, was more complicated: I found its prose to be dense and lush yet often off-putting, plot points at times inscrutable, and ultimately left the completed book with mixed emotions. I knew I'd read something vital, lively, intelligent, but oh so gloomy and needlessly convoluted. Much of that carries over to its sequel, but oddly relieved of much of the baggage of Wicked, Maguire is able here to tell a story about a new character, one unfamiliar to those of us with Oz experience, and somehow that makes all the difference. Yes, the book is still dense, gloomy, and often needlessly convoluted. But I found this one to pack quite an emotional wallop. Its final pages had me weeping, a rarity. Those who loved Wicked may or may not feel the same about its sequel, but for me it is the better book hands-down.
