The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

by L. Frank Baum Narrated by Paul Gibson

Overview

We invite you to make an amazing trip to the magical land of Oz, which was born as a result of the irrepressible imagination of the great American writer Lyman Frank Baum, whose books were beloved by more than one generation of children around the world. Having become acquainted with the kind and naive characters of the book - the girl Dorothy, the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, the Cowardly Lion and many others - you will surely love them and keep them in your heart for life.

Editorial Reviews

New York Times Book Review

A revelation. As rich in emotion as they are in detail.

Christian Science Monitor

A delightful volume illustrated with haunting but witty illustrations that provide a fresh, anti-Hollywood interpretation of the story.

Chicago Tribune

Combines substance with style. Ray Bradbury offers a poetic, reverential introduction, and Michael McCurdy contributes appropriately eerie drawings.

Washington Post Book World

Irresistible.

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Viennese illustrator and Hans Christian Andersen Medalist Lisbeth Zwerger takes a fresh look at L. Frank Baum's The Wizard of Oz in a large-format edition. Zwerger's fantastical, delicate, eccentric illustrations bear no resemblance to the vision of the movie; they make the classic tale new again. And readers can view the Emerald City through a pair of green-tinted glasses, provided in the back of the book.

School Library Journal

Gr 3-6-In a brief endnote, the Viennese illustrator writes of the challenge of bringing something new to this American classic. Indeed, for many, Dorothy and Judy are one and the same, and there are over 20 trade versions of the book in print (not to mention the various pop-ups and other spin-offs). Well, make room for this new edition anyway; it's a beauty. What strikes readers first is the glorious red and sophisticated design of the larger-than-life poppies on the cover. Then it's the sheen of the high-quality paper and the extravagant amount of white space. Zwerger's characters are completely original. Dorothy is diminutive and feminine with straight, cropped hair. The rotund Scarecrow is dressed in an enormous blue overcoat; his gentle visage resembles a snowman's. The Wicked Witch is depicted as a gray-blue "mountain," capped with a small head. She fills the space, and wolves stand at attention on her form. The pages are a tour de force of design, some with a single, small illustrative detail, others with figures racing across two pages. Yet, the artist's style remains subtle: there is much to learn from close inspection of posture, expression, and placement.-Wendy Lukehart, Dauphin County Library, Harrisburg, PA

Kirkus Reviews

Zwerger (illustrator of Theodor Storm's Little Hobbin, 1995, etc.) creates characters who may, if not erase the MGM cast from the collective conscious of US readers, make them share some space therein. These tinkling, wafty creatures are very comfortable in Baumland—the creator did, after all, want this to be a fairy tale where "the heart-aches and nightmares are left out"—particularly the Scarecrow, with his stuffed-pillow head, conical hat, and tremendous girth. Zwerger doesn't try to overwhelm the story, and many of the pieces are small expressive exercises of her vision. In an illustrator's note, she says, "Baum's precise details—his vivid descriptions of the Munchkins, for example—make an illustrator almost superfluous." Actually, her paintings lead readers gracefully into the pages, to be surprised and entertained by the story they only think they know from the movie.

Publishers Weekly - Audio

Baum’s classic comes to life in this winning audio edition. When a cyclone whisks Dorothy Gale to the Land of Oz, her only hope of returning to Kansas is to find the Wizard, who lives in the heart of the Emerald City. Following the Yellow Brick Road, Dorothy encounters friends and foes—e.g., the endearing Scarecrow and the malevolent Wicked Witch of the West—that help and hinder her journey. Tavia Gilbert’s whimsical narration will appeal to listeners young and old. Additionally, the distinct voices she creates for each character make for a delightful listening experience. Those only familiar with the film adaptation will be pleasantly surprised by the original story and Gilbert’s fantastic narration. Ages 10–up. (Oct.)

From the Publisher

"[A] beautiful new collection from Hesperus. . . these beloved stories by Frank L. Baum receive the star treatment with simple and stunning cover art."  —The Daily BLAM!


"A joy to read. . . highly recommended." —The Fandom Post

Library Journal - Audio

Baum's classic is an eye-opener for those who know it only through countless viewings of the 1939 movie. While the basic plots are identical—Dorothy, Kansas, twister, Oz, Scarecrow, Tin Woodsman, Cowardly Lion, melted witch, clicking heels, return home—the novel is vastly simpler and waaayyy slower. The biggest disappointment is the Wicked Witch of the West. Deliciously evil on screen, the worst thing she does here is swat Dorothy with an umbrella. After receiving their brains, courage, etc., Dorothy and company have more strange adventures here, but they're entirely forgettable. VERDICT Narrator Tara Sands does an accomplished job of channeling each character according to Baum's descriptions, and this production will charm small children, but older kids and curious adults should stick to the film. Buy appropriately.—Mike Rogers, Babylon, NY

School Library Journal - Audio

Gr all levels—Dorothy and her little dog Toto are at home in their farmhouse when a cyclone suddenly lifts the house and deposits it in the fantastic land of the Munchkins. So begins Baum's timeless classic tale of magic and adventure in which Dorothy, along with three traveling companions she meets along the way—the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman and the Cowardly Lion—are involved in one adventure after another. Good and bad witches, friendly and unfriendly creatures, deadly poppies, and a dangerous river are just some of the challenges they encounter in their search for The Wizard of Oz, who they believe can grant each one of them their greatest wish: a return home for Dorothy, brains for the Scarecrow, a heart for the Tin Woodman, and courage for the Cowardly Lion. The audio quality of this offering is crisp and clear and Tavia Gilbert's narration is engaging, giving each character a distinct voice. Dorothy's voice is tremulous and has a lilting sing-song quality to it that is at times credulous, bewildered, confident, and consistently believable. The portrayal of the other characters is equally wonderful, with seamless transitions between them. A bonus companion ebook is included on the first CD. An enjoyable listening experience for all ages.—Mary Oluonye, Shaker Heights Public Library, OH

APRIL 2013 - AudioFile

This isn't the best production of THE WIZARD OF OZ. Tara Sands’s narration has an interesting texture, a mixture of stressed consonants and clipped pacing, but the emotional register is off. The Tin Woodman, for example, sounds so dispassionate that it’s hard to believe he wants a heart. The performance flattens the irony that is important in the underlying text. Instead Sands focuses on the surface of the story, pushing emotion into the words, making happy sound overly happy and funny sound like it’s inflated with a laugh. It’s an antiquated style that might serve the retelling of a classic tale, but in this case doesn't. A.M.P. © AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940192373965
Publisher:	Strelbytskyy Multimedia Publishing
Publication date:	05/02/2024
Edition description:	Unabridged

Read an Excerpt

Chapter One

The Cyclone

Dorothy lived in the midst of the great Kansas prairies, with Uncle Henry, who was a farmer, and Aunt Em, who was the farmer's wife. Their house was small, for the lumber to build it had to be carried by wagon many miles. There are four walls, a floor and a roof, which made one room; and this room contained a rusty looking cooking stove, a cupboard for the dishes, a table, three or four chairs, and the beds. Uncle Henry and Aunt Em had a big bed in one corner, and Dorothy a little bed in another corner. There was no garret at all, and no cellar-except a small hole, dug in the ground, called a cyclone cellar, where the family could go in case one of those great whirlwinds arose, mighty enough to crush any building in its path. It was reached by a trap-door in the middle of the floor, from which a ladder led down into the small, dark hole.

When Dorothy stood in the doorway and looked around, she could see nothing but the great gray prairie on every side. Not a tree nor a house broke the broad sweep of flat country that reached the edge of the sky in all directions. The sun had baked the plowed land into a gray mass, with little cracks running through it. Even the grass was not green, for the sun had burned the tops of the long blades until they were the same gray color to be seen everywhere. Once the house had been painted, but the sun blistered the paint and the rains washed it away, and now the house was as dull and gray as everything else.

When Aunt Em came there to live she was a young, pretty wife. The sun and wind had changed her, too. They had taken the sparkle from her eyes and left them a sober gray; theyhad taken the red from her checks and lips, and they were gray also. She was thin and gaunt, and never smiled, now. When Dorothy, who was an orphan, first came to her, Aunt Em had been so startled by the child's laughter that she would scream and press her hand upon her heart whenever Dorothy's merry voice reached her ears; and she still looked at the little girl with wonder that she could find anything to laugh at.

Uncle Henry never laughed. He worked hard from morning till night and did not know what joy was. He was gray also, from his long beard to his rough boots, and he looked stern and solemn, and rarely spoke.

It was Toto that made Dorothy laugh, and saved her from growing as gray as her other surroundings. Toto was not gray; he was a little black dog, with long, silky hair and small black eyes that twinkled merrily on either side of his funny, wee nose. Toto played all day long, and Dorothy played with him, and loved him dearly.

Today, however, they were not playing. Uncle Henry sat upon the door-step and looked anxiously at the sky, which was even grayer than usual. Dorothy stood in the door with Toto in her arms, and looked at the sky too. Aunt Em was washing the dishes.

From the far north they heard a low wail of the wind, and Uncle Henry and Dorothy could see where the long grass bowed in waves before the coming storm. There now came a sharp whistling in the air from the south, and as they turned their eyes that way they saw ripples in the grass coming from that direction also.

Suddenly Uncle Henry stood up.

"There's a cyclone coming, Em," he called to his wife; " I'll go look after the stock." Then he ran toward the sheds where the cows and horses were kept.

Aunt Em dropped her work and came to the door. One glance told her of the danger close at hand.

Quick, Dorothy! " she screamed; "run for the cellar!

Toto jumped out of Dorothy's arms and hid under the bed, and the girl started to get him. Aunt Em, badly frightened, threw open the trap-door in the floor and climbed down the ladder into the small, dark hole. Dorothy caught Toto at last, and started to follow her aunt. When she was half way across the room there came a great shriek from the wind, and the house shook so hard that she lost her footing and sat down suddenly upon the floor.

A strange thing then happened.

The house whirled around two or three times and rose slowly through the air. Dorothy felt as if she were going up in a balloon.

The north and south winds met where the house stood, and made it the exact center of the cyclone. In the middle of a cyclone the air is generally still, but the great pressure of the wind on every side of the house raised it up higher and higher, until it was at the very top of the cyclone; and there it remained and was carried miles and miles ay as easily as you could carry a feather.

It was very dark, and the wind howled horribly around her, but Dorothy found she was riding quite easily. After the first few whirls around, and one other time when the house tipped badly, she felt as if she were being rocked gently, like a baby in a cradle.

Toto did not like it. He ran about the room, now here, barking loudly; but Dorothy sat quit still on the floor and waited to see what would happen.

Once Toto got too near the open trap-door, and fell in; first the little girl thought she had lost him. But saw one of his ears sticking up through the hole, for the strong pressure of the air was keeping him up so that he could not fall. She crept to the hole, caught Toto by the ear, and dragged him into the room again; afterward closing the trap-door so that no more accidents could happen.

Hour after hour passed away, and slowly Dorothy got over her fright; but she felt quite lonely, and the wind shrieked so loudly all about her that she nearly became deaf. At first she had wondered if she would be dashed pieces when the house fell again; but as the hours passed and nothing terrible happened, she stopped worrying and resolved to wait calmly and see what the future would bring. At last she crawled over the swaying floor to her bed, and lay down upon it; and Toto followed and lay down beside her.

In spite of the swaying of the house and the wailing of the wind, Dorothy soon closed her eyes and fell fast asleep.

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