Day One Hundred and Thirty-Eight

8/18

The Book: Wicked

ISBN: 978-0-06-135096-2

Suggested By: Sissy Vaughn

Where: Home

When:5:15-7P

Music: None

Company: The Family

Pages: 25- 233 (208)

The Lead In: Started with this book and really sunk my teeth in. I like these fresh takes on old stories. I’ve already done three for the 55pages project, I think (Sleepy Beauty, Snow White, and Oz).

The 411 on the 55: Elphaba is the daughter of a pastor and his bored wife. She is green-skinned and has a disposition closer to animal than human. The first section of the book deals with her father and his inability to convert anyone to his faith. Instead he watches them rush off to follow after the pleasure faith, governed by a prophesying clockwork.

The story skips and Elphaba is now in college, forced to bunk with Glinda and they couldn’t be more opposite in nature. Glinda is much more concerned with the social life of an up and coming college student while Elphaba is engrossed in the study of animal (talking) history and working at her studies. Of course, predictably, they begin to appreciate aspects of each other as the story progresses.

The professor under which Elphaba is studying is brutally murdered while researching the history of human/animal relations. Though the girls know the truth, the college decides that the professor actually killed himself. The dean of the college takes special precautions to insulate the girls from any knowledge that might be gleaned about the murder, so they decide to take their little bit of information to the government.

When they reach the Wizard of Oz, he blows off their claims and sends them packing.

Line of the Day: “The thing is, my green girlie, it is not for a girl, or a student, or a citizen to assess what is wrong. This is the job of leaders, and why we exist.” pg 224

Fact on the Fiction: “Elphaba: Little-known name of the Wicked Witch of the West. Given by Gregory Maguire (author of the novel "Wicked"), named after the intials of L. Frank Baum, author of "The Wondeful Wizard of Oz". (L-F-B, El-Pha-Ba). Originally played by Margaret Hamilton in the 1939 movie, The Wizard of Oz and Idina Menzel in the 2003 Broadway musical Wicked.” Urban Dictionary