Helpful Score: 2
This book was, for me, an extremely tedious read. The first half was okay but not great, I thought it was slow because we were being introduced to the characters and settings, etc. Unfortunately, it never picked up steam, it just got weird, then it got ridiculous. I have a pretty good suspension of disbelief, but I really did not believe the character's motivations for most of their actions. I think this is because I didn't really KNOW their personalities. Sure, Maguire went on about them for pages and pages, but it didn't grant us any insight into the characters. They would do things and I would find myself wondering why, why, why??
The plot... can't really pinpoint what it was exactly. I know it was supposed to be the life of the Wicked Witch, which it was, but there was so much extra stuff that just didn't need to be there. Her college years felt like just a bunch of spoiled rich kids whining about stuff. Maybe that's what it was supposed to be, I don't know, it just came off as annoying. Her life after that seemed, from what I can gather, out of character. She spends a lot of time just relying on a man. Up until that point she was just grumpy and only relied on herself, then she gets out of college, and starts relying on a guy and is still grumpy. Every major change just happened very suddenly.
I know Maguire was trying really hard to put in some kind of political agenda. The book is so thick with it I'm surprised it doesn't rub off on the readers hands when touching the book. Unfortunately I have no idea what that agenda is, from things I've read online it sounds like he's trying to criticize American Politics and Organized Religion, and that's really painfully obvious in his scene involving the "Philosophy Club." It's so forced though.
That's the biggest cause of tedium in this book, everything just seems forced and crammed in there. It's like he's trying to cram all his personal opinions into this world where it really doesn't belong, and it overpowers the story. Pile on top of that the fact that his language is so THICK. Don't get me wrong, I'm not against books with a good vocabulary, but this is really excessive. I don't know Maguire, and I don't know what's in his mind, but to me, it FELT like he was just throwing in "college words" to seem more intelligent. It made it frustrating to read, and a lot of the time I found my mind drifting away while I was reading. That seems to be the theme of this book though, unnecessary.
This really affects the method of storytelling and was frustrating. Whenever he'd bring up a new event or character or something that is seemingly important (like the introduction of a Lion which hints that it might just be the cowardly lion) he just grazes over it, or completely changes the subject or day or month and never returns to that idea. When there's an idea or point of view that he wants to express though, we get to read a discussion that goes on for pages and pages. He wants a discussion about the nature of good and evil and there it is, wedged into the story in a long discussion between a few characters. He wants an allegory for how bad organized religion is then we get the Philosophy Club. It doesn't feel like a natural progression of the story. It feels like he wrote the story, then went back and added in all these big ideas and discussions to beef it up. I know that probably ISN'T what happened, but that's certainly how it reads.
Another big thing is that her conflict with Dorthy seems like just an afterthought!! Dorthy is kind of mentioned a few times in the second half of the book, then at the end.... BOOM the confrontation which is just a huge letdown, and a little bit of wrap-up afterward. I know it's not ABOUT Dorthy, but I feel like she plays a pretty big role in the whole Wizard of Oz story.
I know a lot of people really, really LOVED Wicked, and that's great. I really don't understand WHY, but I'm glad that it reaches people. For me though, this was just a TERRIBLE book, and has permanently turned me off from his books.
The plot... can't really pinpoint what it was exactly. I know it was supposed to be the life of the Wicked Witch, which it was, but there was so much extra stuff that just didn't need to be there. Her college years felt like just a bunch of spoiled rich kids whining about stuff. Maybe that's what it was supposed to be, I don't know, it just came off as annoying. Her life after that seemed, from what I can gather, out of character. She spends a lot of time just relying on a man. Up until that point she was just grumpy and only relied on herself, then she gets out of college, and starts relying on a guy and is still grumpy. Every major change just happened very suddenly.
I know Maguire was trying really hard to put in some kind of political agenda. The book is so thick with it I'm surprised it doesn't rub off on the readers hands when touching the book. Unfortunately I have no idea what that agenda is, from things I've read online it sounds like he's trying to criticize American Politics and Organized Religion, and that's really painfully obvious in his scene involving the "Philosophy Club." It's so forced though.
That's the biggest cause of tedium in this book, everything just seems forced and crammed in there. It's like he's trying to cram all his personal opinions into this world where it really doesn't belong, and it overpowers the story. Pile on top of that the fact that his language is so THICK. Don't get me wrong, I'm not against books with a good vocabulary, but this is really excessive. I don't know Maguire, and I don't know what's in his mind, but to me, it FELT like he was just throwing in "college words" to seem more intelligent. It made it frustrating to read, and a lot of the time I found my mind drifting away while I was reading. That seems to be the theme of this book though, unnecessary.
This really affects the method of storytelling and was frustrating. Whenever he'd bring up a new event or character or something that is seemingly important (like the introduction of a Lion which hints that it might just be the cowardly lion) he just grazes over it, or completely changes the subject or day or month and never returns to that idea. When there's an idea or point of view that he wants to express though, we get to read a discussion that goes on for pages and pages. He wants a discussion about the nature of good and evil and there it is, wedged into the story in a long discussion between a few characters. He wants an allegory for how bad organized religion is then we get the Philosophy Club. It doesn't feel like a natural progression of the story. It feels like he wrote the story, then went back and added in all these big ideas and discussions to beef it up. I know that probably ISN'T what happened, but that's certainly how it reads.
Another big thing is that her conflict with Dorthy seems like just an afterthought!! Dorthy is kind of mentioned a few times in the second half of the book, then at the end.... BOOM the confrontation which is just a huge letdown, and a little bit of wrap-up afterward. I know it's not ABOUT Dorthy, but I feel like she plays a pretty big role in the whole Wizard of Oz story.
I know a lot of people really, really LOVED Wicked, and that's great. I really don't understand WHY, but I'm glad that it reaches people. For me though, this was just a TERRIBLE book, and has permanently turned me off from his books.
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