Over the sem break I was able to nourish my mind and read a book. Wicked by Gregory Maguire is one book I have always wanted to read but haven’t really had the time to do so.
The spinoff of L. Frank Baum’s Wizard of Oz story is a riveting tale of forgiveness and the search for the true source of evil by the Wicked Witch of the West, Elphaba (named after L.Frank Baum’s initials).
I was actually expecting a deep story of hate and retribution, but was disappointed to read about the mundane search of a lost girl for forgiveness for an act that isn’t really that big a deal. Elphaba’s search for forgiveness is nothing more than a futile attempt to stitch together her failures as an individual and her longing for her father’s love and society’s acceptance.
Quite different from the Broadway musical, Wicked the book is a longer account of how the Wicked Witch of the West came to be. Unfortunately the book’s rendition of her encounter with Dorothy was a failure of diabolical proportions. Don’t even get me started on how she died. It was so anticlimactic.
For the person looking for a deep introspective read that will guide you towards the attainment of temporary Zen, do not read Wicked. But if you want to have a good laugh every now and then, make up theories of infusing religion to the world of Oz ala C.S. Lewis in Narnia, then go ahead and read Wicked. You might even catch temporary childhood memories and contemplate on why being an adult is so shitty.
