New reads:

Now that I'm not on any self-imposed deadlines when it comes to reading books, I can really dig into the ones that have been sitting on the bookshelf, eagerly awaiting my attention. I scored an insane amount of books on the cheap at the last library book sale and have yet to read them all. So, this week I picked up Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West and got to it. I didn't really know what this novel was about except, duh, that it's about the Wicked Witch from the Wizard of Oz (which I love, although she scared the pants off me as a kid).

In college, an ex-boyfriend picked it up, attempted to read it, said it was crap, and I believed him. That was that. How stupid of me, really, to let a boy decide my opinion on anything, much less a book. So, I've decided to give it a real chance. I mean, really. There are so many positive reviews of this book out there and it has done extremely well, so it can't be total crap, right? Well, I take that back. Twilight and 50 Shades of Grey are both proof that crappy books can sell. But is it fair to put this book in the same category as those poorly-written examples? I couldn't say. I had never read it. So I decided to change that and once and for all see where I stand. I am a lover and frequent visitor of the Land of Oz, after all. Have been all my life. I should be one of the harshest critics, right?

So, here's the basic plot summary, if you're interested:

"When Dorothy triumphed over the Wicked Witch of the West in L. Frank Baum's classic tale, we heard only her side of the story. But what about her arch-nemesis, the mysterious Witch? Where did she come from? How did she become so wicked? And what is the true nature of evil?

Gregory Maguire creates a fantasy world so rich and vivid that we will never look at Oz the same way again. Wicked is about a land where animals talk and strive to be treated like first-class citizens, Munchkinlanders seek the comfort of middle-class stability, and the Tin Man becomes a victim of domestic violence. And then there is the little green-skinned girl named Elphaba, who will grow up to become the infamous Wicked Witch of the West, a smart, prickly, and misunderstood creature who challenges all our preconceived notions about the nature of good and evil."

Sounds intriguing, doesn't it? I've only just started. The story is still getting set up for me. But I'm enjoying the opportunity to see this story, one that I know so well, from a completely new perspective.