Wizard of Oz.

And I am off...off for a year of Oz.

Lory at Entering the Enchanted Castle will start a readalong of the Oz books by L. Frank Baum. The Book Stop, home of a fellow Oz fan, will be joining Lory as co-host.

There are 14 books, and the plan is to start in December and read in published order through January of 2025.

If you're not up for such a commitment, though, there will be a stopping point at the end of the first six books. Baum actually tried to end the series here — he wanted to write other things — but his fans wouldn't let him, so he reluctantly went back to writing an Oz book a year till the end of his life. The later books have some good parts, but the first six are probably the strongest. You'll get a good taste of Oz that way, even if you don't go further.

It's not necessary to read all of them, or read them in order. Feel free to dip in as you wish.
There will be a monthly post on each book, at The Enchanted Castle or at The Book Stop or both, and a roundup of any posts that are shared with us. #Ozathon24 is the hashtag for sharing.

Part I: Essential Oz Adventures

December, 2023: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
January, 2024: The Marvelous Land of Oz
February, 2024: Ozma of Oz
March, 2024: Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz
April, 2024: The Road to Oz
May, 2024: The Emerald City of Oz

Part II: Further Journeys in Oz

June, 2024: The Patchwork Girl of Oz
July, 2024: Tik-Tok of Oz
August, 2024: The Scarecrow of Oz
September, 2024: Rinkitink in Oz
October, 2024: The Lost Princess of Oz
November, 2024: The Tin Woodman of Oz
December, 2024: The Magic of Oz
January, 2025: Glinda of Oz


An online book club chose Finding Dor0thy. Then our film club picked Wizard of Oz. It seemed like a good time to reread The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

If you are a fan of the movie, you will find little to disturb you. Some scenes in the movie have been condensed from the book (the witch makes four attempts to secure the four wanderers before succeeding in the book, rather than the one in the movie) and the trip to visit the good witch after the departure of the wizard is omitted completely in the movie, and, of course, the beginning and ending scenes in Kansas are a completely fabrication in the movie, but the movie has generally stayed true to the book.

I think children will still find the book captivating.