My Introduction to the Oz Books

I've been waiting for a long time to tell about my first experience with the Oz books. What's that? You have no idea what the Oz books are? Didn't you ever read "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz?" Well yes, it is also known as "The Wizard of Oz." Have you read it?

If you're like 99% of the people I've asked, the answer is "No, but I've seen the movie." Literally, I just can't stand that answer. It makes me feel like I'm the only Oz fan out there. Ugh.

Actually, there are quite a few Oz fans out there, I just haven't met any of them. What's really funny about this subject is that there are a ton of websites from millions of Oz fans, and yet I still get "No, but I've seen the movie," 99% of the time I ask if anybody's read the book. I just don't know what's up with life these days.

Anyway, yes, I am an Oz fan. And yes, I have seen the movie. But, unlike most people I've asked, I've actually read the book. And I can assure you, it is LOADS better than the movie.

I say that I read the book before I saw the movie, but I base that on a technicality. I did see clips of the movie before I read the book, but I wasn't interested in it, and I didn't even know what movie it was until I finally DID see it in it's entirety. And that didn't happen until I had read the book. So, I say that I read the book before I saw the movie.

Now, how did this come about? Well, to tell you, I need to start from the very beginning, and I will need to tell it as if I'm reliving it. Here we go.

_____________

It had to have been in 2002 some time, though I'll never remember exactly. It was night time, and, being your typical 5-year-old boy, I had not yet gone to bed. I came out to the living room, where Mom was watching a live action movie on TV that had a girl and some funny-looking people that were traveling. Mom turned to me, and asked, "Do you want to watch *******?"

No I'm not censoring a profanity there. I just put that there because I didn't remember the title of the movie at the time. Of course I know what it is now, but I didn't then.

In fact, I had no interest in watching the movie. Why didn't I? Because it was live action. Back in those days, I didn't particularly care for live action movies and shows. Why? Because the first movies I watched were animated. I thought it was natural to have animated characters on the screen, because it wasn't real. But, whenever I saw a live action show playing on the TV, I thought, "why are there real people inside the TV instead of fake ones?" I didn't like it much, and the annoying thing was, those were the kinds of shows my parents watched! I was horrible! Or at least it was back then.

So, not wanting to watch real people inside of a TV screen, I answered, "No."

Mom acted kind of disappointed. "But it's a kids' movie," she said.

I still wasn't interested. The movie was live action. But since Mom had told me it was a kids' movie, I decided I'd at least ACT like I liked the movie. So I sat down on the couch, but I only half payed attention to the movie.

I left the room for a few minutes to go to the bathroom, and when I came back, Mom pointed at the TV and said, "See the witch?"

I looked at the screen and saw a witch with green skin looking into a crystal ball at the main characters. I thought that maybe this movie would be a little bit interesting now that I knew it had an evil character in it. So I watched for a few more minutes, but I still wasn't interested. I saw the witch make flowers appear, and I thought it was dumb.

I went to eat supper, and when I came back, the witch was talking to the girl and threatening her. The girl's dog ran away, and the witch locked the girl in a room. The dog led the three funny people to the witch's castle, and the one with an axe chopped down the door of the room where the girl was trapped.

I said to myself, "Good. This movie will be done in a few minutes. The girl is rescued, and they will escape from the witch forever." But then the witch used her magic to close to door to the exit. She began threatening the characters.

I had no more patience for the movie anymore. I left the room and went to bed. A few weeks later, Mom asked if I wanted to watch another movie that I can't remember the title of. I said I didn't, and she said, "But it's a kids' movie."

I remembered her saying that when she showed me the "Witch Movie." (That's what I called it back then.) I thought this might be the same movie, but it wasn't, I realized after a few minutes. I felt kind of bad that I hadn't watched the Witch Movie that time (though I'm glad I didn't watch it now).

I noticed at some people's houses that we'd go to visit, they would have the Witch Movie sitting on the video shelf, but I never bothered to watch it. I could read back then, but, being only five, I didn't bother to read the title of the movie, though I could have if I had wanted to.

For about a year, I never saw the movie again. I lost interest in ever seeing the movie again, and figured that it wouldn't be worth it.

Then, one day, about a year later, in the summer of 2003, my parents took my brother and I to our grandparents' house to stay for a few nights, as they had some work to do on the house that would be hard to do with us around. My grandparents had some children that were still living with them at the time, and they would play board games and read books to us when we came over.

During this particular time of staying at my grandparents' house, I noticed that they had a man made out of tin cans hanging on the ceiling in the corner of the room. I asked what it was, because I thought it looked kind of funny.

My grandparents couldn't remember what it was called. They said, "It's from a book that's really famous."

My uncle immediately said, "It's the Tin Woodman." He ran into the living room and got out the book. He set it on the table and showed me the picture of the Tin Woodman on the cover. I was interested in the book immediately, but didn't read the title, as I was still too young to pay attention to what things said on them.

That night, my brother and I couldn't get to sleep. My uncle decided to stay up for a little while and read us a story. "What would you like me to read to you?"

I immediately said, "Can you read us 'Tin Woodman?'"

My uncle answered, "That book is really long."

But I said, "I just want to hear a little bit of the story."

I wanted to hear about the Tin Woodman in the story, because I liked the model of him that was on the wall in the kitchen. So my uncle got out the book and started reading it to us.

It started with a girl named Dorothy, who lived with her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry in Kansas. One day, a tornado came and carried away the house while Dorothy and her dog, Toto, we're inside it.

The house got taken to the Land of Oz, where it fell on top of the Wicked Witch of the East, the evil ruler of the Land of the Munchkins. The Munchkins were grateful to Dorothy for killing the witch who had kept them enslaved for years. The Good Witch of the North came to Dorothy and thanked her as well. She told her that there were for witches in the Land of Oz. The Wicked Witch of the East, the Good Witch of the North, the Wicked Witch of the West, and the Good Witch of the South.

Dorothy wanted to go back home to Kansas, but there was no way back. So the Good Witch decided to send Dorothy to the Wizard of Oz, who lived in the Emerald City in the center of the Land of Oz. She gave Dorothy a magic kiss on her forehead that would protect her from harm, and gave her the magic silver shoes that had belonged to the Wicked Witch of the East. Dorothy put them on and started off towards the Emerald City.

After going a long way, she found a Scarecrow on a pole. The Scarecrow wanted to have brains, so Dorothy took him off of the pole and traveled with him, hoping the Wizard would give him a brain.

That night, they stayed in a cabin in the woods. In the morning, they saw a man made of tin rusted next to the house.

I pointed to the picture and said, "Look, it's the Tin Woodman!"

My uncle said, "Yes, it is."

Dorothy and the Scarecrow oiled the Tin Woodman's joints so that he could move again, and he joined them in the hopes of getting a heart from the Wizard.

Next, they met a Lion, who threatened Toto, but Dorothy slapped him. The Lion revealed that he was a coward, and was afraid of nearly everything. So Dorothy invited him to come along with them to get courage from the Wizard.

Around this time, my uncle decided to stop reading. "Look," he said to me. "Your brother is already asleep."

But I couldn't bear to be left knowing if Dorothy would get back to Kansas or not. I said, "No, keep reading."

He went on reading, and I would not let him put it down. I made him finish the whole book in one night.

Dorothy and her companions had to cross through a poppy field. Dorothy, Toto, and the Lion fell asleep in the field. The Scarecrow and Tin Woodman were able to carry Dorothy and Toto out of the field to safety, but the Lion was too heavy to carry.

I thought to myself, "Oh, that's sad! The Lion will never get his courage."

But then something great happened. The Tin Woodman save the Queen of the Field Mice from a wild cat, and the mice were so greatful that they helped carry the Lion out of the field.

Soon after this, the travelers arrived at the Emerald City. The guard at the gate made them wear green sunglasses, stating that it would keep them from being blinded by the brightness of the city.

The travelers were admitted to see the wizard, but he would only see one of them at a time.

Dorothy went in first. She saw a great head in the throne room that talked to her.

I thought to myself, "That's funny! The Wizard is just a head!"

The Wizard told Dorothy that he would not grant her wish until she had defeated the Wicked Witch of the West. Dorothy sadly left the throne room.

The Scarecrow went in next and saw that the Wizard had taken the form of a lovely lady. I laughed some more.

The Scarecrow was also told to defeat the Wicked Witch if he wanted his wish granted.

The Tin Woodman and the Lion saw a Great Beast and a Ball of Fire respectfully, and were both told to defeat the Witch.

I thought, "Oh, great, I thought the story was almost done."

The Witch is able to see the travelers in her kingdom. She sent wolves after them, but the Tin Woodman beheaded all of them. She sent crows, but the Scarecrow strangled them. She sent bees, and they broke their stingers against the Tin Woodman. She sent a band of her slaves, the Winkies, and the Lion scared them away.

Then the Witch got out her golden cap and summoned the Winged Monkeys. She told them to destroy all the travelers except the Lion, who she wanted brought to her so she could make him pull a cart.

The Winged Monkeys dented up the Tin Woodman, unstuffed the Scarecrow, and captured the Lion. They did not destroy Dorothy because of the mark of the Good Witch on her forehead. They brought her to the Witch's castle instead.

I thought, "Oh, no! The Tin Woodman was destroyed! He won't be in the story anymore! And how will Dorothy and the Lion ever escape from the Witch?"

The Lion scared the Witch every time she asked him to pull the cart. The Witch wanted the silver shoes, so that she could use their power. She put a bar on the floor and turned it invisible. Dorothy tripped over it and one of her shoes fell off. The Witch snatched it away.

Dorothy was angry at the Witch and threw a bucket of water at her. E water turned out to be the Witch's weakness, and she melted. I thought that this part of the story was so clever.

The Winkies were so grateful to Dorothy for destroying the Witch, that they repaired the two companions that were destroyed, and released the Lion. Dorothy called the Winged Monkeys with the Golden Cap, and had them take her and her friends to the Emerald City.

However, the Wizard refused to see them for days and days. At last, Dorothy threatened to send the Winged Monkeys to torture him, so he admitted them.

But when they entered his throne room, they discovered that the Wizard was just a regular guy from Omaha. He didn't have any power at all, and had just asked them to destroy the Witch because of his fear of her.

He told the friends that they had what they wanted the whole time, but they weren't convinced. So he made fake versions of what they wanted. He stuffed the Scarecrow's head with bran, cut a hole in the Tin Woodman in order to insert a silk heart, and gave the Lion a drink that he said would give him courage. He also attempted to take Dorothy back to Kansas in a hot air balloon.

At this point, I thought, "Yes! She'll finally go home!"

But then the ropes snapped before Dorothy could enter the balloon, and it floated away without her. I was so sad.

Dorothy attempted to have the Winged Monkeys bring her back to Kansas, but they couldn't leave the Land of Oz, as they belonged there. I was disappointed again.

Then the Soldier who worked in the city suggested consulting Glinda, the good witch who ruled the Quadling Country in the south. So another adventure started.

The companions first encountered trees that grabbed them, but the Tin Woodman chopped the branches off. I really liked that part.

Next, they encountered a country made entirely of china. I thought that part was silly.

Then, they encountered Hammer-head people who wouldn't let them pass, so they used the Winged Monkeys to fly over them.

At last, they arrived at Glinda's palace. She told Dorothy that her silver shoes would take her back to Kansas if she clicked them together three times and wished it. Dorothy did so, and was reunited with her Aunt Em.

After the story was finished, my uncle said, "Okay, now go to sleep."

And I fell asleep very quickly, because I had liked the story so much.

The next morning, I got out the book, and asked my uncle to read it again. He said, "I'm not reading it again. It's too long."

I said, "But I like 'Tin Woodman.'"

"That's not what it's called."

"What's it called then?"

"'The Wizard of Oz."

My grandmother entered the room during this conversation.

"You read that whole thing to him last night?" she asked him.

"Yes," he said. "He would not let me put it down."

"Well," said my grandmother, turning to me. "How did like it when Dorothy found out that her red shoes had the power to take her home?"

"Um," said my uncle, interrupting. "They were silver."

"Oh, really?" said my grandmother. "In the movie they were red. They must have changed them so that they would show up better."

So now I knew that there was a movie of the story. I imagined,in my head, and animated version of the story I had been read, where the shoes were red instead of silver.

A few days later, I returned home, and nearly forgot about the book that had been read to me. But a few months later, I was sitting in the bathroom, when Mom called me.

"There's a movie on that I think you'll really like!"

Of course, being as young as I was, I couldn't get out of the bathroom at that point. I was in there for about fifteen more minutes, and I was curious what movie might be on (I had no clue what it might be).

I finally came out to the living room, and sat down on the couch. And, much to my surprise, it was the "Witch Movie!"

But this time, I noticed something about it. The two funny people standing next to the girl were the Tin Woodman and the Scarecrow! And the girl was Dorothy!

At first I thought it was a sequel to the book of the Wizard of Oz, as I thought the movie would be animated. But then I thought, "Wait, why is the Witch still alive in this movie? Did she come back to life, or did I just imagine a witch in this movie?"

Then the Witch appeared on top of the house nearby. I couldn't put two and two together, so I just decided to suspend my disbelief.

Then the Lion appeared, and Dorothy slapped him. "Oh!" I finally thought to myself, figuring it out. "This is the 'Wizard of Oz movie my grandmother was talking about! I'm finally getting to see it!"

I had no idea that my mother had even known that the I had been read at my grandparents even existed. I was so glad.

I saw the Witch make the poppy field, and recognized it as one of the first scenes I had seen about a year ago. I was too young and stupid to know better, so I said to myself, "Oh, it was the Witch who created the poppy field the whole time! I didn't know that!"

The poppy scene went too quick for me. I wanted to see the field mice. Instead it snowed in the poppy field.

When the companions arrived at the gate of the Emerald City, Mom came back in from working outside.

She asked me, "How are liking this movie?"

I answered,"Oh, I like it! By the way, is this movie called, 'The Wizard of Oz?'"

My Mom seemed surprised. "Yes, it is. How did you know?"

"Because," I answered, "My grandparents have the book of this at their house, and my uncle read it to me."

I watched the entire rest of the movie. I was disappointed that the Wizard didn't appear in different forms like he did in the book, as well as the Witch not sending lots of enemies after the companions, though I was relieved that the journey to Glinda was cut out. All in all, it was great.

At the end, I said, "Oh, it was just a dream!"

A few minutes after it ended, the power went out, and Mom thought I had missed the end of the movie. But I hadn't.

A few months later, I had again mostly forgotten about the movie. It was Autumn, and I was very sick. Mom said to me, "Do you know what's on tonight?"

I said no, and she said, "'The Wizard of Oz!'"

I was excited. But a little while later, Mom said, "You know, maybe we shouldn't watch the movie tonight. It has a scary Witch in it."

She didn't know that she had shown me the movie before. She had completely forgotten.

I said, "Isn't Dorothy just having a dream, though?"

Mom said, "Yeah it's just a dream. How did you know that?"

I said that I had seen the movie twice before. The first time, I had only seen parts of it, and the second time, I had seen the whole thing. Of course it wasn't true that I had seen the whole thing, but with my limited vocabulary it was the best I could explain it back then.

Mom said, "All I remember is the power going out."

We taped the movie that night, and my grandmother actually came over to watch the movie with us.

Mom got her copy of the book out of storage about a week later. I was disappointed that it had no pictures, but I read it and enjoyed it. There were quite a few things that I didn't remember from the first time, but I assumed it was just because it had been awhile.

A few years later, we went to Walgreens. They had a bunch of small, paperback books. Mom said, "I think that these are the same as the 'Great Illustrated Classics' that we get from Goodwill sometimes, only they're paperback instead of hardcover, and have different pictures on the covers."

I knew at once that these were the same series books that the first Wizard of Oz book read to me were from. I said to myself, "I'm gonna look for 'The Wizard of Oz.'"

I found it and picked it out, and Mom bought it for me. I realized that it was an abridged version of the story and that's why I didn't remember so much stuff that was in the unabridged version.

Over the next few years, I came to realize that the Witch wasn't the main villain of the book version, and that Dorothy wasn't dreaming. And it wouldn't be long before I would begin reading the sequels.

But that's how I was introduced to Oz, and now you know why I love the series so much. It will always have a special place in my heart.