Son of a Witch by Gregory Maguire Reviewed

The Follow-Up to Novel and Broadway Musical Hit Wicked

Jan 8, 2009

The follow-up novel to the huge smash hit Wicked, Gregory Maguire's Son of a Witch takes us on a return trip to the land of Oz, but is it as thrilling as its predecessor?

The follow-up to the hit 1995 novel Wicked, a book that was later turned into a successful Broadway musical, Son of a Witch is the tale of Elphaba’s possible off-spring, Liir, and the huge changes bought about in the Land of Oz after the departure of the tyrannical wizard.

A Darker, More Thoughtful Plot from Gregory Maguire

To begin with, the main criticism levelled at Son of a Witch is that, for all the flying brooms and scraped-off, singing faces, the actual plot of the novel is brooding and dark, where Wicked was snippy and quick.

This is perhaps only partially true, because, in complete contrast to the character of Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, who was at nearly all times sure of herself, Liir is a character seemingly devoid of talent, orphaned and without a place in the world. Subsequently, his story is one of longing and searching, and where as Wicked had a central theme of fighting preconceptions, Son of a Witch focuses on the small battles endured in finding where a person’s heart and identity truly lie.

In writing Son of a Witch, Maguire was faced with the difficult task of tying-up a great deal of story lines from Wicked whilst laying the foundations for the third novel in the series, A Lion Among Men, and so, in order to cover the necessary ground, and to allow the reader to watch the Kingdom of Oz’s slow decline into anarchy, Maguire employed a dual narrative structure.

Maguire implements this by following on from the plot of Elphaba’s apparent death in the first novel, looking back at it in a retrospective way as Liir, Elphaba's possible off-spring, recalls his life whilst in a coma after being attacked by a group of marauding dragons. In doing so, Gregory Maguire shows his skills as a writer, and his ability to manoeuvre those characters necessary to the story arch with ease and finesse.

Some, however, have not warmed to this approach, complaining that Son of a Witch feels disjointed and lacks the power that its predecessor Wicked had. Others, however, have said that this style seems a direct reaction to Wicked’s somewhat lengthy start, allowing the reader to get immediately into the heart of the story, rather than slowly burrowing into the true core of the tale.

Reading through the 352 pages of Son of a Witch there is a clear distinction in Maguire’s writing when he is dealing with the history and implementing the law of Oz as laid down by the fictional world’s original creator, L. Frank Baum, and occasionally Maguire’s stylistic approach, which contains a fast paced, intelligent narrative, clunks in explaining away some of the more well known features of the Oz stories.

Gregory Maguire is, however, second to none when it comes to sparkling dialogue and delivering plot points in a barrage of punches, using his sophisticated palate of characters to offer arguments and yet more counter arguments to the various political, personal and social views this story ultimately represents. It is no wonder, then, that he is rather dismissive of the established canon of the Oz universe and is more comfortable in originating new material within its wide precepts.

Amongst the many interesting characters that Gregory Maguire manages to cultivate, the old hag that is Mother Yakal from the first book in the Wicked Cycle is still amongst the most interesting, as her motives, as yet, seem unclear and her true identity anything but certain, and yet her uncouth character is amongst the most entertaining.

Liir is also a welcome addition as a hero that is, at times, less than brave, sometimes even morose. But it is his quintessential goodness that redeems him, and when he is reunited with an old army acquaintance, Trism, and the pair briefly find solace in one another’s arms, there is a sense that Liir has become every bit as powerful as the Witch that went before him, all be it in a very different way.

Above all, and in conclusion, what is so fascinating about Gregory Maguire’s novel Son of a Witch and the whole Wicked Cycle series, is that Maguire’s brand of dark humour fits so well within the fantasy context, and that it is as though the original novels by L. Frank Baum were made to be paralleled in Wicked and this ultimately exquisite follow-up.

(Son of a Witch comes from the series: Wicked Years; Published by Regan Books; Publication date 2005; Pages 352; ISBN: 0-06-074722-6; Preceded by Wicked; Followed by A Lion Among Men)

The copyright of the article Son of a Witch by Gregory Maguire Reviewed in Utopian/Dystopian Fiction is owned by Steve Williams. Permission to republish Son of a Witch by Gregory Maguire Reviewed in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.