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cspeet's review against another edition
3.0
This was a typical Oz novel. The premise of the novel is that all the charactrs are planning birthday surprises for Ozma, and the novel recounts their adventures while obtaining the best surprises. It suffers from the same malady of several other Oz novels, in that the plot is not a cohesive whole so much as a collected sequence of events, some of which are not directly related to the others. Still, it was entertaining, a fun read.
elvislove1234's review against another edition
2.0
I didnt like this book at all . It keeps going on and on
lejoy's review against another edition
3.0
Not the worst of the Oz books, because the individual scenes are entertaining, but certainly one of the weakest. Even the title is meaningless. There is hardly a plot and what there is has been done before and contains several continuity errors. It is Ozma's birthday (again). Dorothy tries to come up with a decent present (as usual she is inseparable from the Wizard). Meanwhile Trot, Cap'n Bill and the Glass Cat get into a bit of peril. Meanwhile meanwhile the ex-Nome King is up to no good (again) but his lacklustre plan peters out so easily everyone seems to forget about it. At the end we get the usual roll-call of favourite characters invited to the party but Baum forgets about the Woozy so now I am imagining the poor beast sitting all alone in the stables wondering where everyone is. There is now only one book left in the original Baum canon. I hope he puts more effort into it than this one.
thegreenknight3's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
sbsenpai's review against another edition
5.0
One of my favorites in this series.
I enjoyed the plan of the Nome King in turning people into animals and vice versa, what's even more hilarious is the fact the spell backfires and the king gets turned into an animal he's afraid of.
I also enjoy the fact that the Cowardly Lion is a main character again, something that hasn't been seen since book 1.
I enjoyed the plan of the Nome King in turning people into animals and vice versa, what's even more hilarious is the fact the spell backfires and the king gets turned into an animal he's afraid of.
I also enjoy the fact that the Cowardly Lion is a main character again, something that hasn't been seen since book 1.
j_ata's review against another edition
2.0
Definitely suffered a bit being read directly after The Emerald City of Oz, in my estimation one of the series' strongest, as this late installation—one of the few I'd never read before—felt particularly weak. Bonus points for the a generous helping of the prickly Glass Cat (as an adult I'm clearly drawn to the more cantankerous of Baum's creations), but substantial points detracted due to Kiki Aru, one of the most unlikable characters in the Oz universe—from early on I was rooting for the Gnome King to off that little sh*t once & for all.
bkwest's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
kelly_tyler's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
birdmanseven's review against another edition
4.0
I've enjoyed Baum's later Oz books much more than the earlier entries. This one was well-plotted and interesting. Trot & Cap'n Bill are two of my favorite Oz characters (thought in reality they were imports from one of Baum's less popular series), so it was nice to see them take center stage. Also, it was good to have the Nome King back as the villain.
We discussed this series and many more on our Fantasy spotlight for the All the Books Show: https://soundcloud.com/allthebooks/episode-252-fantasy-isthmus
We discussed this series and many more on our Fantasy spotlight for the All the Books Show: https://soundcloud.com/allthebooks/episode-252-fantasy-isthmus
ladybouse's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Welp, the Nome King is back....that's something...
Spoilers beyond this point 👉
Was it really necessary to defeat him with the exact same method again? I wish I didn't feel so fed up by the end of these...
More than anything I was just glad to see Bungle, the glass cat restored to her glorious self rather than remain altered by the Wizard.
Quotable Quotations 🗣 📢
"There's lots o' things folks don't 'preciate," replied the sailor-man. "If somethin' would 'most stop your breath, you'd think breathin' easy was the finest thing in life."
"Why, I'm not afraid to go anywhere, if the Cowardly Lion is with me," she said. "I know him pretty well, and so I can trust him. He's always afraid, when we get into trouble, and that's why he's cowardly; but he's a terrible fighter, and that's why he isn't a coward. He doesn't like to fight, you know, but when he HAS to, there isn't any beast living that can conquer him."
"I've never been 'specially proud of myself, but I'd rather be the way I was born than anything else in the whole world."
"Aren't you good for ANYthing?" asked Trot. "Yes, I'm pretty to look at, and that's more than can be said of you," retorted the creature.
Spoilers beyond this point 👉
Was it really necessary to defeat him with the exact same method again? I wish I didn't feel so fed up by the end of these...
More than anything I was just glad to see Bungle, the glass cat restored to her glorious self rather than remain altered by the Wizard.
Quotable Quotations 🗣 📢
"There's lots o' things folks don't 'preciate," replied the sailor-man. "If somethin' would 'most stop your breath, you'd think breathin' easy was the finest thing in life."
"Why, I'm not afraid to go anywhere, if the Cowardly Lion is with me," she said. "I know him pretty well, and so I can trust him. He's always afraid, when we get into trouble, and that's why he's cowardly; but he's a terrible fighter, and that's why he isn't a coward. He doesn't like to fight, you know, but when he HAS to, there isn't any beast living that can conquer him."
"I've never been 'specially proud of myself, but I'd rather be the way I was born than anything else in the whole world."
"Aren't you good for ANYthing?" asked Trot. "Yes, I'm pretty to look at, and that's more than can be said of you," retorted the creature.