Honest Book Review of Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West

Check out my full book review of Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West. With all the talk of Wicked happening because of the movie coming out, I finally decided to read the book about the infamous Wicked Witch of the West. 

Here’s a short synopsis of the book: 

“In this classic tale of good and evil, what if we weren”t told the whole story?

Long before Dorothy follows the yellow brick road and triumphs over the Wicked Witch of the West, a little girl with emerald-green skin is born in the land of Oz.

Elphaba grows up to be smart and prickly, a lonely outsider with an extraordinary talent for magic. Arriving at university, she dares to believe she might finally fit in.

But Oz isn”t the haven she”d dreamed of. Some of its citizens are in grave danger, and Elphaba is determined to protect them from the Wizard”s power.

And when the world declares her a wicked witch, Elphaba takes matters into her own hands…“

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Full Book Review Without Spoilers 

The Wicked novel was not at all what I was expecting. I was a fan of the original Wonderful Wizard of Oz and a fan of the musical, so naturally I wanted to read more about the world of Oz. But do not expect this book to be like either the musical or the original book of Wizard of Oz. 

The story of the wicked witch of the west seems like an interesting part of the overall story, but this book fell short. In the end, you’re still left with a lot of questions, especially how Elphaba escalates to be so ‘wicked’. The story did not seem convincing or even match up with what happens in the original story. 

I found that the pacing of the book made it difficult to finish the book along with the unenjoyable characters and downright odd events that don’t seem to add to the plot at all. The story happens over many years, a lot of which are skipped all together, and there’s much less action than you’d expect. In the end, I don’t think it’s worth the read just because you like the Wizard of Oz, the musical, or fantasy in general. 

Is there Questionable Content in Wicked? 

While the Wizard of Oz and even the Broadway musical is popular among young and old alike, this book is not meant for a younger audience. There’s sexual content throughout the book as well as mature themes and violence. This is definitely an adult book and not a children’s story. 

How is the Wicked Book Different From the Musical? 

The Broadway musical is a very generous adaption of the book. While we still get the story of Elphaba, the musical drops many of the minor characters, side stories, and dark content. Not only do the events of the story happen a lot faster in the musical, most of the serious violence and graphic scenes are left out of the musical

Characters

I found all of the characters in the book to be shallow, uninteresting, or just plain unenjoyable. It seemed like there wasn’t much character development outside of Elphaba because the other characters either disappeared from the story too quickly or were a small part of the story. 

As far as Elphaba goes, it was an interesting take on how she was raised and spent her early life. But I still don’t see how she ended up to be so wicked. She seems to take a sudden, inexplicable turn when Dorothy shows up in the last chapters of the book. 

Plot

The plot has the potential to give a new perspective on the classic tale, but it was hard to follow because of the pacing of the book. Much of the politic background going on in the book is kept secret from Elphaba and you as the reader. So it feels almost incomplete, besides that there’s a tyrannical wizard taking away animal rights. 

Writing

I found the writing style of the book to be a little hard to follow. The writing jumps around and breezes past certain details that seem important or interesting. There were times I felt so disengaged or off the main plot that I almost stopped reading the book. 

Full Book Review With Spoilers

You’ve been warned that from here on out there will be spoilers. 

While this was an interesting take on L. Frank Baum’s classic tale, I found the book seemed to fall short of that potential. To hear Elphaba’s side of the story is intriguing, but in the end it seemed unconvincing that she actually turned into the Wicked Witch of the West. She’s obviously a misunderstood creature, but, up until the very end, you don’t see any of the wickedness from the original story. 

The book also jumped in the timeline so much that some of it didn’t seem believable, like Elphaba just stumbling upon and starting a romantic relationship with Fiyero. Elphaba’s life rushes through some parts like her time at Shiz University, but other parts are really dragged out like her childhood. Other times the book just jumps past years of her life like when she may or may not have had a baby. 

I also didn’t like the ending of the book because it felt so rushed. Elphaba does not seem ‘wicked’ until very suddenly at the end of the book with Dorothy. The story line leads up to the events that overlap with Baum’s book that you already know, but it only happens in the last few chapters and the events don’t even line up. 

Pros of the Book 

The plot of the story held a lot of promise as to how the land of Oz got into the state it did in the first place. The ideas presented in the book you think as well. And you definitely get a different perspective and can see how someone with noble intentions turns into the villain. 

Cons of the Book 

I’ve touched on quite a few of the cons earlier in the review, but the two biggest cons for me were the pacing of the plot and the characters. As far as the plot, the story involving the politics, animal rights, and implications of skin color make for a good story in theory. But the way the book was paced, you lose the interest and by the end that all seems like the less important part of the story. 

I didn’t like any of the main characters. A lot of the characters weren’t in the book long enough or deep enough to get a good understanding, or they just weren’t likable at all. And minor characters showed up suddenly or disappeared suddenly without much explanation. 

Conclusion

I probably came in with the wrong expectations, but this book was not enjoyable to read. Not only was the book very dark, the characters weren’t enjoyable to read about and the pacing of the book made it hard to finish. I know there’s an audience out there for this book, but it just wasn’t my cup of tea.

You can find the book here if you’re interested. 

I have a full summary of the book here if you need a refresher on any of the main points. 

Rating-2.5 out of 5

Overall, I didn’t really enjoy the book even though I finished it. There were interesting sections of the book and parts of the story that made you think, but I thought about stopping the book multiple times. I didn’t like the characters enough, and while the idea of the plot was intriguing, the pacing of the plot was hard to follow. 

Here’s how I rate all my books: My Rating System

Who Would Enjoy Reading?

If you enjoy fantasy books with heavy political themes and plots, this may be the book for you. Additionally, if you enjoy contemplating the true nature of evil or a social commentary set in a unique fantasy world, you would probably get something out of this book. 

Is Wicked Part of a Series?

Yes, Wicked is the first book in the Wicked Years series with four books in it. If you liked this book, continue on with the rest of the series that continues with some of the other main characters.