CBR 10 BINGO Square: Alabama Pink
Best for: People who like fantasy. So, apparently, not me.
In a nutshell: It’s billed as the back story of the wicked witch of the west. Instead it’s a convoluted mess of a book that I could not follow.
Worth quoting:
“Galinda didn’t often stop to consider whether she believed in what she said or not; the whole point of conversation was flow.”
“I don’t dress for your approval, boys.”
Why I chose it: I initially tried to read the Audrey Hepburn book Alabama Pink reviewed, but after about 80 pages it still felt like homework. I thought this would be a fun read.
(Narrator: It was not.)
Review:
I think this solidifies my thought that Alabama Pink and I would not have belonged to the same book club. I absolutely hated the Cannon Book Club pick by Craig Ferguson (seriously, it’s so bad), and of the remaining dozen books to review for this square, none really caught my eye. I tried the Audrey Hepburn biography and it was as dry as a desert and just as monotonous. I realized that Wicked was an option, and given how popular the musical is, I assumed this would be a fun, interesting read.
Sadly, I assumed incorrectly.
I think part of this is because I just don’t enjoy fantasy that much. I don’t like having to learn a new vocabulary, or new worlds. Having to memorize the geopolitical landscape of a fictional world just isn’t generally my favorite thing to do. So clearly this isn’t the book for me.
I also think that it isn’t particularly strongly written. I mean, I’m sure my opinion is wrong, and someone out there could explain to me how it is factually a masterful book, but clearly I missed something. In fact, when I finished, I went back to read the Wikipedia entry about the book, and holy shit. Plotlines were discussed that I didn’t even recognize.
Books shouldn’t feel like chores. At least, I don’t think they should. And I don’t mean they shouldn’t be challenging, or tough, or interesting. I’ve read many books that are slow reads, that I need to concentrate on deeply, and that have many layers to explore. But those books don’t feel like things I’m trying to get through so I can get to something better. Sadly, this one did.
My husband and I read this book a long, long time ago, and when we heard that they were making a musical of it, we were stunned. My vague recollection of the novel is that it was dark and weird. The musical is an utter delight and in my opinion only tangentially related to the novel. I tried to read the sequel to this one and it was just as weird. But like I said, it was a long time ago — before we had kids, I think and I have a 16 year old.
I’m with you on the book. After I read it, I couldn’t really say what it was about or what went on.
I love fantasy and I didn’t like this book. The premise was certainly intriguing but Elphaba is still incredibly unlikable and everything is so dark. I tried another Maguire novel, which involved the Borgias and Snow White or Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty, and he just isn’t for me as an author.
The musical, on the other hand, is fun and sweet and has just enough darkness (animal rights etc.) to add gravity and keep it from being too frothy. I actually saw Wicked in London the first time I saw it (and have seen it twice since though London was definitely my favorite performance). It’s definitely worth checking out at least once.
I love fantasy, and more to the point I love Oz related fantasy. This book made me so angry, because it’s bad. It’s just bad and I hate that Maguire made a name for himself by shitting on Oz and writing a crappy book.
Did you read Dorothy Must Die? I mostly liked that one but completely forgot about getting the sequel once it came out/had recently read a few bad reimaginings of classics and was no longer in the mood at that point in time (it might have been after Splintered, a decent Wonderland take with horrible characters and an obnoxious love triangle). Curious if it would be worth going back to the Oz series, if you’ve read them, that is.
I haven’t. I’ve heard of it, and it’s on the list of books I would read if I can find a free copy of it. I’m a huge Oz fan (and I reread the books every so often, though they do decline in quality as Baum got more fed up with the series) but I’m more iffy on Oz adaptations.
I love fantasy and the musical adaptation of this book, but I hate this book. I read it back in 2003 at the height of my obsession with the musical. This probably primed me to hate it, anyway, but I like to think I would have hated it no matter what. I tried a bunch of Gregory Maguire’s books before I realized it was him, not me. His writing is so bleak and full of spite, it just pisses me off. He takes cool premises and makes them terrible.
Ah, thank you all – I was starting to think I just didn’t have the fantasy gene, when it sounds like this is just not a great book.