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5.0 out of 5 stars
When Knighthood Was In Flower, Jan 13 2003
The first of the 19 Oz titles she authored, Ruth Plumly Thompson's The Royal Book Of Oz (1921) has met with occasional opposition over the years, largely due to the bold steps Thompson took in addressing questions Oz creator L. Frank Baum's 13 original books left unanswered. Thompson was personally elected by Baum himself to become the next "Royal Historian of Oz," a fact that should carry more weight with sensitive fans. While Baum deserves enormous credit for creating and sustaining America's premier fantasy land, Thompson's books were almost always exceptional; her style was smooth, convincing, and full of the imagination necessary to further the series. Any author following Baum certainly had a difficult task ahead of them. As The Royal Book Of Oz opens, Professor Wooglebug has lighted on the idea of composing a book of his own, one that will trace the genealogy of all members of the Oz Royal Family. While Scraps the Patchwork Girl and several of the others are content with and honest about their humble origins, the aggressive Professor brazenly stresses the importance of legitimate family relationships, bluntly declaring to the assembled that outstanding Oz citizen the Scarecrow has none. Thompson's portrayal of the Wooglebug as an arrogant interloper and snob has offended some, but Thompson was only taking the Wooglebug's already established sense of elitism to its logical conclusion. His superior attitude does not go unnoticed by the others, especially the sensitive Dorothy; or by the Scarecrow himself, who first inexplicably came to life while strapped to a beanpole in the Munchkin country. Embarrassed and despondent, the Scarecrow sets out alone to discover if he has a legitimate "family tree." Thompson's ingenious solution to the cause of the Scarecrow's sentience was probably something even she thought a gamble. Returning to the Munchkin country and the exact site of his origin, the Scarecrow discovers that his former beanpole extends far into the earth, and while digging at its base, tumbles into a hole that inexplicably opens around it. He falls a great distance - Thompson suggests that the Silver Island kingdom into which he eventually emerges is one the opposite side of the earth. Greeted in a great royal palace by a throng of awed silver - skinned Asians, the Scarecrow discovers that he not only has 3 sons, 15 grandchildren, and thousands of loyal subjects, but a vast kingdom. For the Scarecrow is none other than the reincarnation of the country's former emperor, dead now some 50 years. Initially thrilled if a little dismayed, the Scarecrow comes to regret the enormous responsibility that his "family tree" and his subject's expectations bring. Meanwhile, a thankfully limited expedition composed of Dorothy and the Cowardly Lion has set out in search of their missing patriot, who Dorothy suspects has been wounded by the Professor's remarks. Thompson must have been an admirer of Lewis Carroll, for, as in later Thompson titles, many of the team's adventures have a Wonderland - like character. In one dazzlingly executed chapter, Dorothy and the Lion find themselves trapped in the strange city of Pokes ("Pocus"), where the residents contently live in perpetual drowse and move more slowly than their pet snails. There the journeyers discover Arthurian knight Sir Hocus, who has been held captive by the sleepwalking spell for centuries. The strange, very specific physical laws that govern Pokes are cleverly set into motion, and Dorothy and the Cowardly Lion are quickly ensnared. In a later adventure, they find themselves in the city of Fix, where the large-footed inhabitants never move from the spot on which they've chosen to settle; the anthropomorphic beds, dining tables, chairs, and even the trees and roads come to them instead. King Fix Sit's prim, short-tempered, and heretical dialogues with his three guests are particularly Alice - inspired. Sir Hocus's status as an Arthurian knight has ruffled the sensibilities of some Oz fans, but most readers will agree there is more than enough room in Oz for the introduction of a great variety of characters from myth, folklore, literature, and history. Baum himself used the earth - guarding gnomes of Paracelsus, and freely adapted Europe's fairy mythology for his own purposes. Sir Hocus's somewhat scatter - brained notions of courtly romance and valor are one of the highlights of The Royal Book Of Oz; in later books, Sir Hocus frequently reappears as a valued member of the Royal Family. Thompson's Dorothy is an independent spirit, and free of the precious quality with which she was often burdened. Most impressive of all Thompson's characterizations is the Cowardly Lion; anxious, nervous, and weary in the face of danger, he nonetheless sinks his teeth into the opposition and emerges victorious. Depicted as a real, three - dimensional, physically threatening lion, he is no longer the stock character he had become in several of the earlier books. As in Kabumpo In Oz and the books that followed, Thompson's characters frequently have depth and cast shadows. Wisely focusing on and exploiting the potential of a small cast, Thompson provides readers with a story that is both warm and interesting, though the first half of the book is stronger than the second. John R. Neill's drawings are particularly inventive, though his dated portrayal of Asians may offend some. Each chapter opens with an elaborate two - page illustration; there are numerous pictures in color. Opening with a message to readers in which widow Maude Baum passes the "Royal Historian" crown on to Thompson, The Royal Book Of Oz provides its audience with a wonderful stroll off the yellow-brick road and into unexplored and little - suspected hinterlands of Oz.
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