Tag Archives: gilbert and sullivan

Krewl to Be Kynd

Here are two more in my ongoing series of Oz rereads: The Gardener’s Boy of Oz, by Phyllis Ann Karr – This is one of the better received apocryphal Oz books, which I guess isn’t too surprising as it’s by a … Continue reading

Posted in Art, Book Reviews, Characters, Humor, John R. Neill, L. Frank Baum, Magic, Marcus Mebes, Melody Grandy, Monsters, Music, Names, Oz, Oz Authors, Phyllis Ann Karr, Places, Relationships, Ruth Plumly Thompson, Toys | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Mistress of Misdirection

In my Oziana reread, I thought I might say a bit more about the 2012 issue, made up of a round robin story based on the brief fragment known only as “An Oz Book.” Robert Stanton Baum credited it to … Continue reading

Posted in Animals, Art, Atticus Gannaway, Authors, Characters, Chris Dulabone, Dennis Anfuso, Dick Martin, Jared Davis, Jeff Rester, John R. Neill, L. Frank Baum, Magic, Magic Items, Maps, March Laumer, Marcus Mebes, Music, Names, Oz, Oz Authors, Phyllis Ann Karr, Places, Plays, Poetry, Rachel Cosgrove Payes, Ruth Plumly Thompson, Tom Holt | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The Sins of Silver Island

The Royal Book of Oz, by Ruth Plumly Thompson – I’d gotten into the habit a few years ago of starting to reread the hundredth-anniversary Oz book around L. Frank Baum’s birthday, 15 May. Since the last one was published … Continue reading

Posted in Animals, Book Reviews, Characters, Families, History, Humor, Japan, L. Frank Baum, Language, Magic, Magic Items, Oz, Oz Authors, Places, Prejudice, Ruth Plumly Thompson | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The Offbeat Officials of Oz

The Oz books have a lot of small royal courts with unusually-titled officials. This is something we see much more often in Ruth Plumly Thompson, but L. Frank Baum did have a few examples. In John Dough and the Cherub, … Continue reading

Posted in Authors, C.S. Lewis, Characters, Chronicles of Narnia, Humor, L. Frank Baum, Magic Items, Names, Oz, Oz Authors, Places, Ruth Plumly Thompson | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Oceans Rise, Empires Fall

I’ve seen several people mention on social media that they refuse to celebrate Independence Day, which is understandable in the light of all the crap that’s going on now, much of which has always been present in the United States. … Continue reading

Posted in american revolution, Corporations, Drugs, Food, Health, History, Holidays, Humor, Music, Plays, Politics, Prejudice, Television, They Might Be Giants, VoVat Goes to the Movies | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Etymology in Oz

I bought a few old Baum Bugle issues at OzCon in Portland, and they have some interesting content. There was apparently a sometime recurring feature called “Footnotes to Oz” that explained names in the Oz series, written by Jerry Tobias. … Continue reading

Posted in Authors, Characters, Etymology, Humor, J.R.R. Tolkien, Jack Snow, John R. Neill, L. Frank Baum, Language, Names, Oz, Oz Authors, Places, Ruth Plumly Thompson | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The Resident Jinn, Number Seventy St Mary Axe

I’ve now finished with Tom Holt’s series of books centered around J.W. Wells and Company, the magical firm from Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Sorcerer. I had previously read The Portable Door, In Your Dreams, and The Better Mousetrap. The first … Continue reading

Posted in Authors, Book Reviews, Humor, Magic, Mythology, Norse, Tom Holt | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

No Place in the Processional and No Seat in the Convention Hall

They Might Be Giants, Phone Power – TMBG have always been a prolific band, and not everything they do fits all that well onto their albums. Sometimes this doesn’t stop them from including these songs on the albums anyway, but … Continue reading

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Making a Killing

For someone who wanted to leave out the heartaches and nightmares from his fairy tales, L. Frank Baum included a fair number of executioners. I suspect this is partially due to the influence of Lewis Carroll, whose Queen of Hearts … Continue reading

Posted in Authors, Characters, Lewis Carroll, Oz, Oz Authors, Ruth Plumly Thompson | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Non-Traditional Travel

The Long Mars, by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter – The third book in the Long Earth series, and perhaps the last unless Baxter gets another co-author. It’s kind of melancholy reading this after Pratchett’s death. The earlier books established … Continue reading

Posted in Authors, Book Reviews, Magic, Terry Pratchett, Tom Holt | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments