-Childhood Classics-
'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'- was written in 1899 by L. Frank Baum.
Upon landing, Dorothy finds that the house has set down in the eastern region of Oz, populated by the Munchkin people.
Surprisingly, the Wizard agrees to meet with them and agrees to grant their requests, but only on the condition that they first defeat the Wicked Witch of the West, who rules the Country of the Winkies.
They also discover the real reason for the required glasses: the City isn't actually emerald- the lenses of the glasses are tinted green to make everything appear that way.
Repentant, the Wizard does his best to keep his promises to the companions: he mixes together a concoction of bran, pins, and needles for the Scarecrow's "bran-new brains" which the Wizard says will make him sharp. He provides the Tin Woodsman with a stuffed heart made of silk, and gives the Cowardly Lion a potion to provide him with 'liquid courage,' so to speak. Curiously, even though they know the Wizard is a fraud, they accept his claims and, convinced that they now possess all they wished for, begin to behave accordingly. The placebo effect, I guess.
Then, as the Wizard climbs into the gondola, Toto runs off in pursuit of a cat and Dorothy goes to get him. Before she can get back, the ties to the balloon break and the Wizard helplessly floats away without her. Devastated, Dorothy summons the Winged Monkeys and asks them to carry her and Toto back to Kansas. Unfortunately, the monkeys cannot cross the desert which surrounds Oz, so her second use of the cap is wasted.
After exchanging fond farewells with her friends, Dorothy clicks the heels of the shoes and wishes to go home, and she and Toto are whisked away over the desert, back to Kansas. Unfortunately, the silver shoes fall off Dorothy's feet during the trip and are lost in the desert. She is home, however, to her joy, and that of her Aunt Em, who had given her up for dead. As her aunt embraces her, Dorothy tells her, "I'm so happy to be home again." |