75 pages • 2 hours read
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
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Summary and Study Guide
Overview
Published in 1900, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a beloved children’s classic by L. Frank Baum. It was adapted in 1939 into an iconic film starring Judy Garland. L. Frank Baum went on to write 13 further books set in the Land of Oz. This guide refers to the 2008 Puffin Books edition of The Wizard of Oz.
Plot Summary
Dorothy is a young girl living with her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry on a farm on the Kansas prairie. Dorothy’s best friend and playmate is her loyal dog, Toto.
When a cyclone strikes, Aunt Em yells for Dorothy to join her in the storm shelter (located under the house and accessed via a trapdoor), but Dorothy delays because her beloved Toto is under her bed and she runs across the room to save him. Suddenly, the entire house is lifted into the air. It is carried for miles by the cyclone, with Dorothy and Toto inside. The frightened and exhausted Dorothy falls asleep.
Dorothy wakes up in the beautiful, colorful Land of Oz. A group of three very short men dressed completely in blue—who Dorothy discovers are called Munchkins—approach her. They are joined by the Witch of the North, who thanks Dorothy for killing the Witch of the East, the evil ruler of Munchkin Territory.
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