Review: Dorothy's return to Oz
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 27, 2014
I love the Oz books, and I love when there are retellings of things that happen in Oz. I think it's one of my favorite classics to read new and interesting spins on, because the world is so vast and there are so many ways it can be changed into something new and exciting. This novella was no different, and might even be one of my favorites!Dorothy is always portrayed as being the hero - she killed the Witches and restored peace to Oz, and all of the residents of Oz love her for that. In this novella though, she's not the sweet little girl from Kansas that everyone remembers. She's actually kind of a jerk for most of the book, and I actually liked that about her. Especially since the next book is called Dorothy Must Die.... I'm pretty glad that I'm not sure whether or not I should actually like Dorothy.One of my favorite parts about this novella was all of the references to the originial book series. Ozma is really important in the books, and it makes sense that she's the ruler at the time that this novella is taking place. Other fans of the series may notice that the Saw-Horse, Polychrome, and the porcelain dolls (among other inhabitants of Oz) make appearance or are mentioned, which is pretty neat. And Dorothy's slippers stick to the original story in terms of their color, although she does receive a special gift on her sixteenth birthday that will make bring back memories of the original movie.I really enjoyed this novella, and I'm excited to see what will happen to Oz as the story continues in the rest of the Dorothy Must Die series! I think I want to read a few more Oz books before I read Dorothy Must Die though so that I can pick up on all of the subtle references and know who the characters and places are from the original books. I would definitely recommend this novella to anyone who is thinking about reading Dorothy Must Die and to any fans of The Wizard of Oz, be it the movie or the books. A 5/5!