Originally published in 1908, while Baum was resident in Coronado, California, „Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz” is considered one of the „darker” of the Oz tales. However, it also is enlivened by Baum’s considerable wit, penchant for puns, and dry social commentary. This fourth „Oz” novel sees Kansas farm-girl Dorothy Gale once again transported to magical lands, this time thanks to a California earthquake, during which our heroine falls into the depths of the earth, together with a boy name Zeb, his carriage-horse Jim, and Dorothy’s mischievous kitten, Eureka. Deep beneath the earth, Dorothy is reunited with her old friend the Wizard of Oz and his troupe of nine tiny piglets. Together, they embark on an adventure through the earth dealing with angry vegetables, invisible people and bears, and wooden gargoyles. Eventually, after confronting a cave full of dragonettes, the travelers are rescued by Ozma of Oz, who transports them to the Emerald City. Here Dorothy and Wizard meet many old friends, while Eureka meets trouble...

As this last „Oz” story from L. Frank Baum opens, Dorothy Gale and Ozma have been dispatched by Glinda on a peacekeeping mission. Dorothy and Ozma discover that a war is brewing in a distant and unexplored part of Oz, between two mysterious races, the Flatheads and the Skeezers, both of whom have come under the power of cruel dictators. They have never heard of either of these people but they worry that people might be harmed in a war. The girls set out to try to prevent the fighting, not knowing what dangers await them. This begins a quick but grand adventure for the two friends, which will eventually involve all of her other friends, and quite an assortment of strange but wonderful beings they are; the Scarecrow, Tin Man and Cowardly Lion, but also Tik Tok, Jack Pumpkinhead, and so many others. A rousing tale of suspense, magic, and adventure, „Glinda of Oz” is the fourteenth and final „Oz” book and it’s a grand conclusion to Baum’s chronicles of America’s favorite fairyland.

Originally published in 1906, „John Dough and the Cherub” remains a whimsical fantasy tale for all ages, by the author of the classic „Oz” books. John Dough is a gingerbread man who has come alive because the baker who made him poured – quite unwittingly – a great quantity of the precious Essence of Vitality into the dough from which he was formed. John escapes from several people who want to eat him, and arrives on the Isle of Phreex. His new friend and constant companion is Chick, the Cherub, a very beautiful child of indeterminate sex. After a good deal of travel and many adventures, John becomes ruler of the Twin Kingdoms of Hiland and Loland, where a prophecy stated that the next king would not be „made of flesh and blood”. So come journey with John Dough the gingerbread man, his good friends Chick the Cherub and Para Bruin the Rubber Bear, and as Baker par excellence Jules Grogrande would say, „Bon appetite! „

None of us, whether children or adults, needs an introduction to „Mother Goose”. Those things which are earliest impressed upon our minds cling to them most tenaciously. Published three years before L. Frank Baum achieved fame with „The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”, this engaging volume added an exciting new dimension to old, much-loved verses. The book contains 22 prose fables based on famous nursery rhymes: „Old King Cole”, „Little Miss Muffet”, „The Cat and the Fiddle” and many others. Baum gives the stories English settings and ambience, with mentions of London, the Sussex downs, and the River Dee. His tactic in the book is to take the often-nonsensical nursery rhymes and weave coherent, or at least self-consistent, stories from them. This wonderful collection of short stories is another delightful addition to anyone who is a fan of Baum’s work. Based on famous „Mother Goose” rhymes, all stories are fascinating background tales of the various characters involved.