Orphaned as a child in the 1870s, Dorothy goes to live in Kansas with her Aunty Em and Uncle Henry. They face drought and poverty. They face each other. Alone, abused, Dorothy meets an itinerant actor called Frank and inspires a masterpiece. From the settling of the West and the heyday of the Hollywood studios to the glittering megalopolis of modern Los Angeles, WAS is the story of all our childhoods.
Was: a novel
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Review
"A startling, stimulating book filled with angels and scarecrows, gargoyles and garlands, vaudeville and violence. Pynchon goes Munchkin, you might say."
--"Washington Post Book World"
"The Scarecrow of Oz dying of AIDS in Santa Monica? Uncle Henry a child abuser? Dorothy, grown old and crazy, wearing out her last days in a Kansas nursing home? It's all here, in this magically revisionist fantasy on the themes from "The Wizard of Oz"."
--"Kirkus Reviews"
"Ryman's darkly imaginative, almost surreal improvisation on L. Frank Baum's Oz books combines a stunning portrayal of child abuse, Wizard of Oz film lore and a polyphonic meditation on the psychological burden of the past."
--"Publishers Weekly"
"A mediation on art, lies and human pain. None of Ryman's books is quite like any of the others--this is one of his most straightforward and best"
--Roz Kaveneny, "Time Out" --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Book Description
WAS is a classic fantasy by an inspired writer
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
By J. A. Eyers
VINE™ VOICE
Format:Paperback
What if Dorothy from “The Wizard Of Oz” really existed, Uncle Henry was a predatory paedophile, and Aunty Em and the dreadful Miss Gulch were the same person? That’s basically the main plot of this superficially bizarre, but very heartfelt post-modern take on the Oz legend.
But if it sounds like one of those dreary comical rewrites where everything is subverted just for laughs, then I’ve done it an injustice. “Was” purports to be the story of the real Dorothy, who meets L Frank Baum, who goes on to write the story of the life she should have had – the Oz books themselves.
It’s also the story of the making of “The Wizard Of Oz” movie, Judy Garland’s family strife mirroring the real Dorothy’s, and dying AIDS patient Jonathan’s obsession with them both. Everything is linked across the hundred-year span of the novel, and the end is also the beginning. But the result, a swirling mass of parallel lives across the centuries, comes across like a literary cyclone itself.
That said, this isn’t a particularly literary novel. I found it very easy to read, but to really appreciate it you need to appreciate either the film or the Oz books themselves. This isn’t a happy book, and there is little let-up from the misery. There are certainly no happy endings in the conventional sense. In a way, the characters are just swept away at the end of the novel, but when you get that far, this kind of seems fitting.
Unfortunately, this book seems to go in and out of print regularly, so snap it up whilst you still can!
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By Martha W
Format:Paperback
Geoff Ryman has weaved a wonderful web of fact and fiction to produce a seductive take on L. Frank Baum's classic 'The Wizard of Oz'. The novel contains vivid descriptions of nineteenth century American life; snippets of Judy Garland's biography, and a colorful psychological drama involving a terminally ill young man. The story skips back and forth over eras and characters, echoing the relationships between the main characters. This is one of the best examples of this form of story telling I have come across - the web, though complex at times, is clearly developed for the reader and does not become confusing. A knowledge of Baum's characters is helpful preparation for reading this book. Finally, whilst 'Was' is steeped in fact and some solid true to modern life fiction, I felt that its more fanciful elements will thrill some readers but may be too resonant of the Oz story for others.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
It is rare to encounter a book that so successfully combines so many themes into such a thought-provoking whole. The Wizard of Oz provides a framework for many lives, separated by time and space, yet entangled by their connections to the magical story of Oz. From an unhappy childhood in the Wild West of Kansas, to a early death by AIDS in contemporary USA, by way of a showbusiness upbringing in an early Hollywood, this story has no simple, happy lives, yet provides a breath-taking and stimulating vision of life.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
2.0 out of 5 stars
Promising, but so disappointed me.
I actually feel very indecisive about the rating I've decided to give this book, but seeing as I couldn't even bring myself to finish it, one star was all I could justifiably give... Read more
Published 5 months ago by finalguy
3.0 out of 5 stars
First venture into fantasy - I liked it
I think it is safe to say this is the first book I have read like this. We all (or most of us) know the story of the wizard of Oz and this is a tale with some of the characters and... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Lainy
4.0 out of 5 stars
We're off to see the wizard...
Orphaned Dorothy Gael is raised by her Aunt and Uncle in a bleak Kansas farmhouse of the 1870s. Her unhappy life is filled with thankless chores, society visits with Aunty Em, the... Read more
Published 12 months ago by neverendings
4.0 out of 5 stars
Dorothy put on those Red shoes and dance the blues ...
I've taken a few days to mull this book over. I loved the premise for the book as it takes you on a journey of discovery and at times the fiction and factual side of the story... Read more
Published 12 months ago by B. Robinson
4.0 out of 5 stars
Loved it
First of all, don't be deterred by the science fiction tag on this novel. I personally hate SF and fantasy as genres, but this book isn't remotely SF. Read more
Published on 8 Sep 2009 by Peter Lee
5.0 out of 5 stars
Was
As someone who aspires to write, this book is something I could readily die with as my greatest work. Read more
Published on 10 Mar 2006 by G. R. Fullam
3.0 out of 5 stars
Engrossing, but overlong and over elaborate
I don't usually like novels that try to tell several stories at once, but I did enjoy this. However, it was unnecessarily padded out - there are whole swathes of the book that... Read more
Published on 13 Sep 2005 by Archy
3.0 out of 5 stars
Dorothy ain't in Kansas any more
This novel combines several threads at once: the cruel and harsh real life story of Dorothy, whose only friend is uncovered in a chance meeting with L.Frank Baum. Read more
Published on 12 July 1999
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