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Dorothy lives with her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry on the grey prairies of Kansas, until a cyclone carries her house, with Dorothy and her little dog Toto…
Dorothy lives with her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry on the grey prairies of Kansas, until a cyclone carries her house, with Dorothy and her little dog Toto inside, to the land of the Munchkins, where it lands on the Wicked Witch of the East. Wearing the witch's silver shoes, Dorothy follows the yellow brick road to the Emerald City to ask the great Wizard of Oz to send her home, joined by a Scarecrow who wants brains, a Tin Woodman who wants a heart and a Cowardly Lion who wants courage. The Wizard sets them a terrible task: to destroy the Wicked Witch of the West.
Context and significance
L. Frank Baum published the book in 1900 with W. W. Denslow's colourful pictures, meaning it as a modern American fairy tale without the 'heartaches and nightmares' of the old ones. The 1939 film, which changed the silver shoes to ruby slippers, made it known everywhere. Baum wrote many sequels, beginning with The Marvelous Land of Oz.
About the author
L. Frank Baum (1856–1919) tried many careers before he found his calling: actor, breeder of fancy chickens, shopkeeper and newspaper editor in South Dakota, and travelling salesman. In Chicago he began writing for children, and in 1900, with illustrations by W. W. Denslow, published The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
Its success led to thirteen more Oz books, written partly because children demanded them, and Baum moved to Hollywood, where he even founded a film company. He wanted to write American fairy tales that entertained without frightening children with moral lessons.