Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Son of a Witch

Son of a Witch by Gregory Maguire is the second book in The Wicked Years. After the Wicked Witch of the West was killed by Dorothy's accident at her castle, Liir is left behind wondering if Elphaba was truly his mother of if he is destined to never know who his parents were.  Several years later he is found alone, practically dead by a traveling party and is returned to the Mauntery where he was born. Unconscious and unaware of his surroundings, Liir is put into the care of a young novice who barely speaks but beautifully plays a strange instrument. As she plays for him, he relives the memories of his life from the day of the witch's fateful death to his injury that led him to this point. As more of Liir's life is revealed, the politics and religious tensions of Oz are brought forward. This wonderful second book in the series brings up more questions for the reader. Is fate a real force? Does our upbringing or our parentage matter in who we will become? What is identity and what decides it? Is there really a purpose in trying? This book was a fantastic follow up to Wicked and made me want to pick up the third, A Lion Among Men. Read this book if you read Wicked, if you love retold stories, or if you love a book that makes you think and leaves you wanting more. I give it a 9 out of 10.

2 comments:

Sig. said...

Wow...I didn't know there was a sequel.

Little Bird said...

I am so using my Titlewave gift cert to buy this book. I really do like how Maguire makes the themes obvious, yet ephemeral too. I also went shopping in your other reviews. This blog is a service to bookreaders and buyers everywhere. It was good to see you today. I wanted to find a fork to share dessert with your end of the table.