Winkie Trip Reading, Part 3

And the final books read on the home stretch!

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A Million Miles From Here is Oz by Chris Dulabone, illustrated by Arthur Clip and Marcus Mebes.

Something disastrous is happening, and no one knows what it is! The fairy magic of Oz and the surrounding countries is disappearing! Animals are reverting to natural forms, some of the Immortals are dying! What happened, who can stop it? It's up to Queen Zixi of Ix (gorgeously depicted by Marcus) and a few animals from Oz to find out and do what they can before it's too late!

A very enthralling tale about imagination, possibly one of Dulabone's best! I was almost moved to tears, and Oz books don't do that to me often!

Buy your copy here.

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The Roots of Wonder in Oz by Gil S. Joel, illustrated by Chris Dulabone.

We go back to the earliest days of Oz, before humans (and humanoids) ruled the land and look at how some of the magic of Oz was set into motion.

This one was kind of a slow read. Because it's set in such an early part of Oz history, there are no classic Oz characters for readers to already know. Also, it's more of history than story, often going through prose rather than dialogue and getting to know the characters as they develop.

Well, it's an interesting non-traditional Oz prequel.

Buy your copy here.

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Kaliko in Oz by K. Kline and illustrated by Michael Goldman.

First off, thanks to Eric Gjovaag for making sure I noticed this one at the Swap Meet Table at the Winkie Convention!

Kaliko's Nomes are bored, so he decides to declare a little war so they can blow off steam. But when his entire army are turned into diamonds, he can only sheepishly go to Ozma for help, but he gets a new friend who he wishes would go away: Eggy McShell, a giant walking, talking EGG.

But Ozma has her own problem! A woman named Bel-Sor-T claims she rented the Magic Belt to the old Nome King and now it's time for it to be returned. Ozma refuses, so Bel-Sor-T captures Ozma and most of the palace citizens!

Can Ozma get free from Bel-Sor-T? Can Kaliko get his Nomes back? And how can Kaliko tell Eggy "HANDS OFF"?

A very enjoyable story!

Buy your copy here.

More Oz books

Here are some reviews of two Oz books I've read recently. Again, they are both published by Chris Dulabone, though the first one is a later one by Tails of the Cowardly Lion and Friends, while the second is an earlier book from Buckethead Enterprises of Oz.

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Dr. Angelina Bean in Oz is by Ruth Morris, and is a follow up to her earlier Oz book, The Flying Bus in Oz. I haven't read that one, but the back cover of this book advertises that one with enough information to fill you in on anything that goes on in it that this story doesn't.

A little girl named Joy has her two dolls Angelina and Mellie. Angelina is considered to be the smarter of the two dolls, and even claims she has fourteen Ph.Ds, meaning she's Dr. Dr. Dr. Dr. Dr. Dr. Dr. Dr. Dr. Dr. Dr. Dr. Dr. Dr. Angelina Bean. Joy has all the Oz books and visited in Flying Bus. Angelina reads the Oz books and feels Ruggedo was woefully mistreated in them, and wants to go to Oz to help Ruggedo finally get the justice he deserves. Through a surprise gift, Joy, Angelina, and Mellie soon find themselves in Oz, where Angelina starts looking for Ruggedo, much to Joy's disappointment.

Surprisingly, Ruggedo is looking for Angelina. He has his own plans in mind and asked a magic lake to show him his perfect ally: Dr. Bean. What does Ruggedo plan to do? Is Angelina thinking properly? Will everything turn out all right?

The story is rather fun, even though it branches off into some very... well... girly stops. (A place where they have tea parties over and over, and time even stops outside so they can have as many as they want without losing any time. ... Seriously?) There's some other really interesting stops, including some rather elitist communities.

The book is illustrated by Dr. Corrine Morris, who uses one of the simpler art styles seen in these books. It's charming nonetheless.

You can get a copy here.

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The Healing Power of Oz by Gil S. Joel finds four convicts (and a dog) escaping down a tunnel into Oz, where Ozma and the Wizard use their magic and kindness to try to reform them. Most are successful: McKinley Ronald Nixon and Break Inman simply needed a fresh start, which the Wizard uses connections to the FBI to ensure they get.

A more intimate reformation likes in the story of Coke Kane, a drug addict who is transformed into a giant playing card, specifically, the King of Spades. He manages to enjoy his new life, and the companionship of Ozma's confidant Jennifer.

However, one Willie Lie proves a tough one to reform as he doesn't care to be reformed and flatly lies to Ozma. In fact, he even tricks Spades to take him to Ev where he meets with Kaliko who has some rather nasty plans for Oz.

So, can Willie be reformed? Will Ozma stop Kaliko's evil scheme in time?

The book is rather good story, though I must admit I didn't care for how the Nomes were handled.

Marcus Mebes illustrated, and I think this is one of his best illustration jobs, from the few I've seen.

You can get a copy here.

Another Bucketheadful

Here's three more books from Buckethead Enterprises of Oz!

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Dagmar in Oz by Chris Dulabone

This short Oz book is partly meant to reconcile the events of Dorothy and the Magic Belt with the Famous Forty. It explains that Nikidik left the youthened Mombi and young Nikidik with a couple who emigrated to Oz so they could have a family while he could leave Oz and work on his magic. Young Nik and Mombi bathe in the Truth Pond, restoring Nik's memory and Mombi's true age and form. Mombi leaves, but young Nik (going by Putnam) decides he'll reform.

Meanwhile, Dagmar, Queen of the Scoodlers, wants revenge on the Shaggy Man for tossing the Scoodlers' heads into the gulf back in The Road to Oz. Developing a paste that makes people do her bidding, she heads to Oz! Can she be stopped before she reaches the Emerald City?

The book is pretty short and ends rather abruptly, but it's also a rather fun read. You can get it here.

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And The Case of the Framed Fairy of Oz by Gil S. Joel brings us a crossover story. Perry Mason and his friends go to Oz to deal with a nasty rumor that Ozma is practicing witchcraft.

I am not familiar with Perry Mason, but the story didn't really suffer from that. The Oz characters stay in character, though I was surprised by the character Allidap, who is said to be the Wicked Witch of the West. I wasn't aware she'd been resurrected! Guess I missed that one...

The book isn't illustrated, and ends with a little surprise and lesson for the people in Oz. It was a very enjoyable story.

You can get a copy here.

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Finally, here's The Magic Ruby of Oz by Julia Inglis. A wicked Sorcerer and a Sorceress named Krinkle make a magic metal mockingbird to steal the magic treasures of Oz, turn Glinda and her entire palace into glass, and then set their sights on conquering the Emerald City!

Dorothy, Betsy, the Sawhorse and the Scarecrow set out to find help, and meet Miss Dickshon, a lady who deals in words, and eventually meet Ozmella, Ozma's aunt.

The story is quite a full-blown Oz adventure and wraps up rather nicely. However, I felt the writer did a little too much name-dropping where not needed. Quite surprisingly, a number of characters from still-copyrighted books appear, including Notta Bit More and Jenny Jump. Overall though, it was a lot of fun!

You can order a copy here.