Thoughts 
Wicked by Gregory Maguire, Regan Books 1995, 409 pages
FOR RIP X.
“and this is why you shouldn’t fall in love, it blinds you. Love is wicked distraction.”
WHY I read this: I was listening to my Pandora All-Broadway-Hits channel when that Gravity song came on from the show Wicked and after a Les Miz song and one by Rent or maybe Shampoo, a finale or some medley with Gravity lyrics came on and I went ahead and decided the universe wants me to read Wicked the book.
I had long ago and often decided that I really didn’t need to read Wicked. I know plenty of readers I admire who were not enamored by the series. But then my friend brought me her daughter’s copy (didn’t I explain this all already? did I already do a post on this, I’m feeling de ja vu.)
“I find it a great effort to believe in this one, “said Sarima, “yet it seems to be here, so why should I trust my skepticism about other worlds? Don’t you believe?”
If you click on the book cover above, you will be taken to my list of status updates in goodreads. I seem to have enjoyed the process of reading though I did mention that I had problems with it. I am finding I like it less and less upon reflection and time away from it.
SO, moral of the story, if this book title for you has been an undecided one to add or not to Mt TBR, I say skip it.
It’s just got holes and unfinished unexplained oddities and lack of real understanding to the motivations of the main character, I think. My opinion. I didn’t ‘get’ Elphaba, our lovely green protagonist and I didn’t ‘get’ her turn to wickedness, if that was indeed what it was. Her acts were certainly evil, in my book of definitions, and…
Well, really, the whole book SEEMS to be some (trying to be) weighty but fun treatise on what IS evil ?
but it fell flat for me.
I did enjoy seeing my home town of Wichita KS mentioned.
I was super glad there was a map so I could see and get a sense for Oz and where the travelers traveled.
I was delighted that the Fairy Queen was named Lurline which is what I named my car! Although I spell it Lurlene and now I’m not even sure if these names are pronounced the same. Opinion?
But I am neither glad nor sorry I read this book.
“… She sold out all her students who believed that a liberal education meant learning to think for themselves.” (And so she deserved to die)”
RATING: I gave it 3 slices of pie in goodreads with a note that it might be a 3 1/2. Now I might be tempted to change it to 2 or 2 1/2. Whatevs.
Thank you to the lovely BA for loaning me this book. I chuckled that all the bad words were crossed out in pencil. Her daughter is adorable.
Care's Books and Pie 