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The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

by L. Frank Baum

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is L. Frank Baum's 1900 children's fantasy about Dorothy Gale, a Kansas farm girl who is carried by a cyclone, along with her dog Toto, into the magical Land of Oz. Her house lands on and kills the… more

First published 1900 · 263 pages · English

30 quotes ★ 4.00 (521,458) Children's

Quotes from the Book

There is no place like home.
I think you are wrong to want a heart. It makes most people unhappy. If you only knew it, you are in luck not to have a heart.
A heart is not judged by how much you love; but by how much you are loved by others
Some people without brains do an awful lot of talking, don't you think?
Hearts will never be practical until they can be made unbreakable. - Wizard
You have plenty of courage, I am sure," answered Oz. "All you need is confidence in yourself. There is no living thing that is not afraid when it faces danger. The true courage is in facing danger when you are afraid, and that kind of courage you have in plenty.
If I ever go looking for my heart's desire again, I won't look any further than my own back yard. Because if it isn't there, I never really lost it to begin with.
Now I know I've got a heart because it is breaking. - Tin Man
I shall take the heart. For brains do not make one happy, and happiness is the best thing in the world.
Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!
If we walk far enough," says Dorothy, "we shall sometime come to someplace.
How can you talk if you haven't got a brain? I don't know, but some people without brains do an awful lot of talking.
A baby has brains, but it doesn't know much. Experience is the only thing that brings knowledge, and the longer you are on earth the more experience you are sure to get.
Oh - You're a very bad man!" Oh, no my dear. I'm a very good man. I'm just a very bad Wizard.
No matter how dreary and gray our homes are, we people of flesh and blood would rather live there than in any other country, be it ever so beautiful. There is no place like home.
Oh, I see;" said the Tin Woodman. "But, after all, brains are not the best things in the world." Have you any?" enquired the Scarecrow. No, my head is quite empty," answered the Woodman; "but once I had brains, and a heart also; so, having tried them both, I should much rather have a heart.
Toto did not really care whether he was in Kansas or the Land of Oz so long as Dorothy was with him; but he knew the little girl was unhappy, and that made him unhappy too.
True courage is in facing danger when you are afraid...
You people with hearts,' he said once, 'have something to guide you, and need never do wrong; but I have no heart, and so I must be very careful.
My world, my world... How can such a good little girl like you destroy all of my beautiful wickedness. - Wicket Witch of the North
For I consider brains far superior to money in every way. You may have noticed that if one has money without brains, he cannot use it to his advantage; but if one has brains without money, they will enable him to live comfortably to the end of his days.
It is such an uncomfortable feeling to know one is a fool.
Can't you give me brains?" asked the Scarecrow. "You don't need them. You are learning something every day. A baby has brains, but it doesn't know much. Experience is the only thing that brings knowledge, and the longer you are on earth the more experience you are sure to get.
People would rather live in homes regardless of its grayness. There is no place like home.
...and remember my sentimental friend that a heart is not judged by how much you love, but by how much you are loved by others.
During the year I stood there I had known was the loss of my heart. While I was in love I was the happiest man on earth.
Going so soon? I wouldn't hear of it. Why my little party's just beginning. ~ Wicked Witch of the West Wizard of Oz
He is my dog, Toto," answered Dorothy. "Is he made of tin, or stuffed?" asked the Lion. "Neither. He's a-- a-- a meat dog," said the girl.
If your heads were stuffed with straw, like mine, you would probably all live in the beautiful places, and then Kansas would have no people at all. It is fortunate for Kansas that you have brains.
I am Oz, the Great and Terrible," spoke the Beast, in a voice that was one great roar. Who are you, and why do you seek me?

Did you know?

  • The book was originally illustrated by W. W. Denslow, whose pictures were an integral part of the first edition.
  • In the original novel Dorothy's magic slippers are silver, not the ruby slippers introduced by the 1939 film.
  • Baum wrote thirteen official Oz sequels, beginning with The Marvelous Land of Oz in 1904.
  • The Wizard is revealed to be an ordinary man from Omaha who reached Oz by balloon.
  • The Library of Congress has called it America's greatest and best-loved homegrown fairytale.

About L. Frank Baum

Lyman Frank Baum (1856-1919) was an American author of children's books best known for creating the Land of Oz. He wrote The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and thirteen sequels, becoming one of the most popular children's writers of his era.

More about the author →

About the book

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is L. Frank Baum's 1900 children's fantasy about Dorothy Gale, a Kansas farm girl who is carried by a cyclone, along with her dog Toto, into the magical Land of Oz. Her house lands on and kills the Wicked Witch of the East, and the Good Witch of the North sends her toward the Emerald City to ask the Wizard how to get home. Along the yellow brick road she is joined by a Scarecrow who wants a brain, a Tin Woodman who wants a heart, and a Cowardly Lion who wants courage.

The Wizard agrees to help only if the companions destroy the Wicked Witch of the West; Dorothy melts the witch with a bucket of water and the travelers then discover that the great Wizard is really an ordinary man from Omaha working humbug behind a curtain. He gives each companion a symbolic token of the quality they already possessed, and Dorothy eventually learns that the silver shoes she has worn all along can carry her back to Kansas. The story blends the shape of a traditional fairy tale with plainly American settings and figures.

Baum set out to write a modernized American fairy tale that kept the wonder while leaving out the frightening elements of older European tales. The book was a commercial and cultural success, spawning thirteen sequels by Baum and further Oz books by later authors, and it has become foundational to American children's literature. Its enduring fame was amplified by the celebrated 1939 Technicolor film adaptation starring Judy Garland.

Key characters

  • Dorothy GaleKansas farm girl swept to Oz who wants to return home
  • TotoDorothy's small pet dog and companion
  • ScarecrowStraw-stuffed companion who longs for a brain
  • Tin WoodmanCompanion made of tin who wishes for a heart
  • Cowardly LionFearful lion who seeks courage
  • The Wizard of OzRuler of the Emerald City revealed to be an ordinary man
  • Wicked Witch of the WestAntagonist the companions are sent to destroy

Book details

First published
1900
Length
263 pages
Reading time
4 hours
Goodreads rating
4.00 (521k ratings)
First line
“Dorothy lived in the midst of the great Kansas prairies, with Uncle Henry, who was a farmer, and Aunt Em, who was the farmer's wife.”

Series & reading order

  1. 1 The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
  2. 2 The Marvelous Land of Oz
  3. 3 Ozma of Oz
  4. 4 Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz
  5. 5 The Road to Oz
  6. 6 The Emerald City of Oz
  7. 7 The Patchwork Girl of Oz
  8. 8 Tik-Tok of Oz
  9. 9 The Scarecrow of Oz
  10. 10 Rinkitink in Oz
  11. 11 The Lost Princess of Oz
  12. 12 The Tin Woodman of Oz
  13. 13 The Magic of Oz
  14. 14 Glinda of Oz

Movie & TV adaptations

  • IMDb
    The Wizard of Oz (Broadway musical) 1902

    First major stage adaptation of the story

  • IMDb
    The Wizard of Oz 1939

    Celebrated Technicolor film starring Judy Garland

  • IMDb
    The Wiz 1975

    Tony Award-winning Broadway musical reimagining with an all-Black cast

If you liked this, read…

  1. 1
    Alice's Adventures in WonderlandA child journeys through a fantastical dream-logic world
  2. 2
    Peter PanClassic children's fantasy about escape into a magical land
  3. 3
    The Marvelous Land of OzBaum's direct sequel continuing the Oz saga

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