While I am very familiar with the Wizard of Oz and many of its world expansions and re-tellings, this book never really hooked me.

Dorothy (Dee) was flat and didn’t really have a lot of growth or internal reflection. Much of the book was her complaining about Gray, which, he was awful, manipulative and terrible (Stephanie and I think he’s supposed to be the Wizard of Oz in this story?). However, I would expect that since she had the gumption to leave Kansas for Ireland that she would take more opportunity to reflect and figure out the red flags that she missed. It was really frustrating to see her basically fall into a similar parasitic relationship with Glenda, even if it wasn’t sexual.

When Stephanie and I were discussing this over lunch, she made a really good point about how **SPOILER** Dee got fired for not going on Christmas break as a nanny. We both would have liked to see her be stronger and after Glenda’s husband intimated he was interested in her that she would quit. Or make him even more creepy to have that be the last straw for her that would push her personal growth. Everything that changed for Dee was stuff that other characters told her. **END SPOILER**

I did like the changes to the Wicked Witch of the West, as often strong women are portrayed as witches, and having Dr. Ward be hard and unflinching, but ultimately looking out for her students was a really nice touch. So often tough women are labeled negative things because they take no shit, which makes me even happier to see the Wicked Witch trope flipped on its head.

I also liked Reeti’s growth and that even though her corollary was the Cowardly Lion, she encouraged everyone to step up for themselves instead of encouraging timidity, and that was a trait she only put on herself. I really enjoyed how her story line wrapped up as well.

Found family was a big theme in this book, and I really like how that was formed, even if Dee didn’t grow as much as she could have to her happy ending. We will probably read more from Virginia Kantra in the future, in part because Stephanie wants to read her Little Women books, and I think this was some of the best discussion we’ve had around the books we’ve read together even if I didn’t enjoy it as much as some of the others we’ve read.