New Book: Wanted (The Storymakers) by Betsy Schow

Wanted (The Storymakers) by Betsy Schow was released earlier this year. This is a sequel to Spelled, which drew inspiration from Wizard of Oz while this one draws more from Robin Hood and Camelot. Not technically fairy tales, but they are so often lumped with them that they are considered so by the general public. Not going to quibble here since they are probably still of interest to readers here whether they are not fairy tales!

The third book in the series, Banished, will be released in early 2018.

Book description:

In the sequel to Spelled, can Robin Hood's daughter, Rexi, stop the Wicked Witch from finding Excalibur?

Fairy-Tale Survival Rule No. 52:
No matter how difficult the obstacles or all-powerful the evil villain, one can rest assured that the hero of the story never dies. The sidekicks though...they should be worried.

Rexi Hood is proud to be an outlaw. After all, she's the daughter of the infamous Robin Hood. But sidekick? Accomplice? Sorry, that wasn't in her story description. Yeah, she and Princess Dorthea of Emerald have been inseparable since they teamed up to fight the wickedest witch. But if Rexi doesn't figure out how to break the curse that binds them, forget being overshadowed by the spirited princess, Rexi's going to become a Forgotten, wiped from the pages of Story and reduced to a puddle of ink.

Not happening. No way in Spell.

Rexi's plan? Steal the sword Excalibur and use its magic to write her own tale. But Gwenevere has opened a new Academy of Villains in Camelot and danger lurks behind every plot twist. And you know how it goes in Story: keep your friends close and your enemies closer...

New Book: Spelled (The Storymakers) by Betsy Schow

Spelled (The Storymakers) by Betsy Schow was released earlier this year but I just discovered it over the weekend as I started generating book lists for the rest of this year and for 2016. Good news! There are LOTS of new fairy tale related books queued for publication in the next year.

Anyway, this one is a little more unsual--it's primary inspiration is Wizard of Oz but it throws in several fairy tale mash-ups beyond the Oz stuff. Even that cover invokes Cinderella more than Oz, but once you know the premise, it is a mash-up of both. Overall, the reviews average four out of five stars--the biggest criticism is that it gets confusing at times but that may be part of its quirky charm that other readers love about it.

Book description:

Fairy Tale Survival Rule #32: If you find yourself at the mercy of a wicked witch, sing a romantic ballad and wait for your Prince Charming to save the day.

Yeah, no thanks. Dorthea is completely princed out. Sure being the crown princess of Emerald has its perks―like Glenda Original ball gowns and Hans Christian Louboutin heels. But a forced marriage to the not-so-charming prince Kato is so not what Dorthea had in mind for her enchanted future.

Talk about unhappily ever after.

Trying to fix her prince problem by wishing on a (cursed) star royally backfires, leaving the kingdom in chaos and her parents stuck in some place called "Kansas." Now it's up to Dorthea and her pixed off prince to find the mysterious Wizard of Oz and undo the curse...before it releases the wickedest witch of all and spells The End for the world of Story.

Today Only: Bargain Ebook for $1.99: Oz Reimagined: New Tales from the Emerald City and Beyond

Oz Reimagined: New Tales from the Emerald City and Beyond by John Joseph Adams (Editor) and Douglas Cohen (Editor) is bargain priced in ebook format on Amazon today only for $1.99.

Book description:

FOREWORD BY GREGORY MAGUIRE, NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF WICKED.

When L. Frank Baum introduced Dorothy and friends to the American public in 1900, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz became an instant, bestselling hit. Today the whimsical tale remains a cultural phenomenon that continues to spawn wildly popular books, movies, and musicals. Now, editors John Joseph Adams and Douglas Cohen have brought together leading fantasy writers such as Orson Scott Card and Seanan McGuire to create the ultimate anthology for Oz fans – and, really, any reader with an appetite for richly imagined worlds. Stories include:

Frank Baum's son has the real experiences that his father later fictionalized in Orson Scott Card’s “Off to See the Emperor.”

Seanan McGuire’s “Emeralds to Emeralds, Dust to Dust” finds Dorothy grown up, bitter, and still living in Oz. And she has a murder to solve – assuming Ozma will stop interfering with her life long enough to let her do her job.

In “Blown Away,” Jane Yolen asks: What if Toto was dead and stuffed, Ozma was a circus freak, and everything you thought you knew as Oz was really right here in Kansas?

"The Cobbler of Oz" by Jonathan Maberry explores a Winged Monkey with wings too small to let her fly. Her only chance to change that rests with the Silver Slippers.

In Tad Williams’s futuristic “The Boy Detective of Oz," Orlando investigates the corrupt Oz simulation of the Otherland network.

And more…

Some stories are dystopian…Some are dreamlike…All are undeniably Oz.

Includes stories by these authors:

Dale Bailey, Orson Scott Card, Rae Carson, David Farland, C.C. Finlay, Jeffrey Ford, Theodora Goss, Simon R. Green, Kat Howard, Ken Liu, Seanan McGuire, Jonathan Maberry, Rachel Swirsky, Robin Wasserman, Tad Williams, Jane Yolen

A Note On Suggested Reading Age: L. Frank Baum’s original Oz books were works of children's fiction--albeit ones that have been known and loved by "children of all ages" throughout their existence. Though many of the stories contained in this anthology are also suitable for the aforementioned children of all ages, Oz Reimagined is intended for ages 13 and up, and as such, some of the stories deal with mature themes, so parental guidance is suggested.

Why ‘Oz the Great and Powerful’ Is A Major Step Back For Witches and Women by Elisabeth Rappe

I'm very grateful to Kate W. at Enchanted Conversation for linking to Why ‘Oz the Great and Powerful’ Is A Major Step Back For Witches and Women by Elisabeth Rappe last week. Just another example of why I prefer many TV shows over major Hollywood productions these days--overall, women have a stronger part in them! Give me Bones or Veronica Mars any day.

(And YAY! on the Veronica Mars movie. John the Hubby sat and watched it hit the 2 million mark live. Crowdfunding controversies are for discussing elsewhere--and overall I'm for crowdfunding if you must know--I thrilled since I want to see that movie very much! And if you have never seen Veronica, it's wonderful. Even Joss Whedon was/is a fan. And the DVDs are super cheap on Amazon right now thanks to the hype this week. Just be warned that you'll lose sleep for wanting to watch the next episode. And then you'll want a dog just so you can name it Backup.)

It's no secret that I'm not a huge Oz fan, primarily thanks to seeing the movies at the wrong ages, I think. Return to Oz was almost traumatic to me and accepted as being more faithful which kept me from picking up the books long ago. I also didn't learn about the extensive series until I was older, so I missed most of those books anyway.

But I have long admired Frank L. Baum and his oeuvre and accomplishments. And then there's the whole it's not really a "fairy tale" gambit that I deal with almost daily and need to prepare for even more as NINE Oz inspired films are currently in the works.

And, yes, I did enjoy Wicked: The Musical--probably because I expected to hate it--and hope for the movie version of that one. So I allow myself to be completely unpredictable when it comes to Oz.

From the article, to entice you to read it all:

Why is this sad and troubling? Well, as you go through the Oz series, one fact can’t help but jump out at you: The feisty, heroic characters of Oz are all young women. Dorothy returns, again and again, to have adventures in Oz. “Tik-Tok of Oz” features a Dorothy surrogate in Betsy Bobbin (no Toto for Betsy! Her animal companion is a mule named Hank.) Glinda often reappears to do battle. General Jinjur leads an all-female coup against the Scarecrow, and despite its failure, Baum lovingly stops in to see how she’s faring in the common Munchkin life.

But most intriguing and revolutionary of them all is Princess Ozma, who actually makes her first appearance in “The Marvelous Land of Oz” as a young boy named Tip. Tip is the “hero” of the book until it’s revealed an evil witch named Mombi did a magical gender reassignment, and Tip becomes Ozma, restored not only to her rightful throne, but to her own feminine self. It’s a strange and fascinating twist for both Tip and the audience alike, and one with very modern implications.

There are male characters in Oz, of course, but they’re rarely also lead characters. Occasionally one breaks out as a hero, like Ojo the Munchkin boy in “The Patchwork Girl of Oz” or Cap’n Bill and Trot, but they’re one-offs, never to return. The recurring male characters are always faithful and familiar sidekicks like the Wizard, Tin-Man, Tik-Tok, and Jack Pumpkinhead. Alternately, they’re enemies, like the Nome King.

The reason for this is simple: Baum was a feminist. He was an avid supporter of women’s suffrage, and was happily married to the outspoken, intelligent, and energetic Maud Gage Baum, who had gone to Cornell, and sacrificed dreams of degrees to marry him. Their marriage was an unusual one for the time, as Frank happily let her wear the pants, assert her authority, and rule the house.

Bargain Ebooks: Gregory Maguire Titles

Here are a few bargain ebooks by Gregory Maguire. I wish they were the fairy tale ones, but I know some readers here love Wicked with Bonus Material: Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (Wicked Years), which is $1.99 for a limited time, down from $9.99

Son of a Witch (The Wicked Years) is $3.99, down from $7.99, also for a limited time, I imagine.

What-the-Dickens: The Story of a Rogue Tooth Fairy is $1.99. This one fluctuates to lower prices while the others are usually higher, but I thought I would include it while I was here...

Bargain Ebook: The Universe of Oz: Essays on Baum's Series and Its Progeny

The Universe of Oz: Essays on Baum's Series and Its Progeny edited by Kevin K. Durand and Mary K. Leigh  is another bargain ebook currently discounted to $3.99, 89% off the $35.00 paper price. So for all you Wizard of Oz fans, this should be of interest. I own a review copy and have posted about it before. I'll share the description and table of contents again here.

Description from the publisher:

The Wizard of Oz has captured the imagination of the public since publication of L. Frank Baum’s first book of the series in 1900. Oz has shaped the way we read children’s literature, view motion pictures and experience musicals. Oz has captured the scholarly imagination as well. The seventeen essays in this book address numerous questions of the boundaries between literature, film, and stage--and these have become essential to Oz scholarship. Together the essays explore the ways in which Oz tells us much about ourselves, our society, and our journeys.

About the Author
Kevin K. Durand is Math and Physics Professor at the LISA Academy College Preparatory School in Little Rock, Arkansas. He has published broadly in philosophy, religion, and ethics. Mary K. Leigh is a Doctoral Academy Fellow at the University of Arkansas.

Table of Contents:

Preface; or, Scholars Walk the Yellow Brick Road 1

PART ONE: OZ AND LITERARY CRITICISM
1. The Emerald Canon: Where the Yellow Brick Road Forks
(Kevin K. Durand) 11
2. Dorothy and Cinderella: The Case of the Missing Prince and the Despair of the Fairy Tale
(Agnes B. Curry and Josef Velazquez) 24
3. Psychospiritual Wizdom: Dorothy’s Monomyth in The Wizard of Oz
( Jené Gutierrez) 54
4. “Come out, come out, wherever you are”: How Tina Landau’s 1969 Stages a Queer Reading of The Wizard of Oz
(Ronald Zank) 61
5. “Something between higgledy-piggledy and the eternal sphere”: Queering Age/Sex in Shelley Jackson’s Patchwork Girl
(Emily A. Mattingly) 77
6. No Place Like the O.Z.: Heroes and Hybridity in Sci-Fi’s Tin Man
(Kristin Noone) 94
7. The Wizard of Oz as a Modernist Work
(Charity Gibson) 107

PART TWO: OZ AND PHILOSOPHY
8. Ask the Clock of the Time Dragon: Oz in the Past and the Future
(Randall Auxier) 121
9. Down the Yellow Brick Road: Good and Evil, Freewill, and Generosity in The Wizard of Oz
(Gail Linsenbard) 136
10. The “Wonderful” Wizard of Oz and Other Lies: A Study of Inauthenticity in Wicked: A New Musical
(Mary K. Leigh) 147
11. Memories Cloaked in Magic: Memory and Identity in Tin Man
(Anne Collins Smith) 158
12. The Wicked Wizard of Oz
(Kevin K. Durand) 172
13. A Feminist Stroll Down the Yellow Brick Road: Dorothy’s Heroine’s Adventure
(Paula Kent) 179

PART THREE: OZ AND SOCIAL CRITIQUE
14. The Wiz: American Culture at Its Best
(Rhonda Williams) 191
15. The Wiz as the Seventies’ Version of The Wizard of Oz: An Analysis
(Claudia A. Beach) 200
16. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: Religious Populism and Spiritual Capitalism
(Kevin Tanner) 204
17. The Ethics and Epistemology of Emancipation in Oz
( Jason M. Bell and Jessica Bell) 225

About the Contributors 247
Index 251

Wicked by Gregory Maguire: Preorder Bargain Ebook

  

Wicked with Bonus Material: Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire is temporarily offered as a $2.99 preorder in ebook format at this link. There is no cover image yet so I used the paper versions above as well as the current ebook version which is $9.99. This book gets a lot of strong opinions so if you haven't read it, here's a chance to form your own. I'm finally going to see the loosely based musical in October out of curiosity because I am admittedly not an Oz enthusiast.

The Universe of Oz: Essays on Baum's Series and Its Progeny by Kevin K. Durand and Mary K. Leigh

 

The Universe of Oz: Essays on Baum's Series and Its Progeny by Kevin K. Durand and Mary K. Leigh is the other book I received as a review copy from McFarland last week. Yesterday's post on Oz in Perspective by Richard Tuerk had the most reader comments of any post in weeks here on SurLaLune, so there are some Oz fans out there reading, even during the slower summer months. I'm showing two covers on this one because it is also available as an ebook for 42% less than the paper version, see The Universe of Oz: Essays on Baum's Series and Its Progeny.

Description from the publisher:

The Wizard of Oz has captured the imagination of the public since publication of L. Frank Baum’s first book of the series in 1900. Oz has shaped the way we read children’s literature, view motion pictures and experience musicals. Oz has captured the scholarly imagination as well. The seventeen essays in this book address numerous questions of the boundaries between literature, film, and stage--and these have become essential to Oz scholarship. Together the essays explore the ways in which Oz tells us much about ourselves, our society, and our journeys.

About the Author
Kevin K. Durand is Math and Physics Professor at the LISA Academy College Preparatory School in Little Rock, Arkansas. He has published broadly in philosophy, religion, and ethics. Mary K. Leigh is a Doctoral Academy Fellow at the University of Arkansas.

Table of Contents:

Preface; or, Scholars Walk the Yellow Brick Road 1

PART ONE: OZ AND LITERARY CRITICISM
1. The Emerald Canon: Where the Yellow Brick Road Forks
(Kevin K. Durand) 11
2. Dorothy and Cinderella: The Case of the Missing Prince and the Despair of the Fairy Tale
(Agnes B. Curry and Josef Velazquez) 24
3. Psychospiritual Wizdom: Dorothy’s Monomyth in The Wizard of Oz
( Jené Gutierrez) 54
4. “Come out, come out, wherever you are”: How Tina Landau’s 1969 Stages a Queer Reading of The Wizard of Oz
(Ronald Zank) 61
5. “Something between higgledy-piggledy and the eternal sphere”: Queering Age/Sex in Shelley Jackson’s Patchwork Girl
(Emily A. Mattingly) 77
6. No Place Like the O.Z.: Heroes and Hybridity in Sci-Fi’s Tin Man
(Kristin Noone) 94
7. The Wizard of Oz as a Modernist Work
(Charity Gibson) 107

PART TWO: OZ AND PHILOSOPHY
8. Ask the Clock of the Time Dragon: Oz in the Past and the Future
(Randall Auxier) 121
9. Down the Yellow Brick Road: Good and Evil, Freewill, and Generosity in The Wizard of Oz
(Gail Linsenbard) 136
10. The “Wonderful” Wizard of Oz and Other Lies: A Study of Inauthenticity in Wicked: A New Musical
(Mary K. Leigh) 147
11. Memories Cloaked in Magic: Memory and Identity in Tin Man
(Anne Collins Smith) 158
12. The Wicked Wizard of Oz
(Kevin K. Durand) 172
13. A Feminist Stroll Down the Yellow Brick Road: Dorothy’s Heroine’s Adventure
(Paula Kent) 179

PART THREE: OZ AND SOCIAL CRITIQUE
14. The Wiz: American Culture at Its Best
(Rhonda Williams) 191
15. The Wiz as the Seventies’ Version of The Wizard of Oz: An Analysis
(Claudia A. Beach) 200
16. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: Religious Populism and Spiritual Capitalism
(Kevin Tanner) 204
17. The Ethics and Epistemology of Emancipation in Oz
( Jason M. Bell and Jessica Bell) 225

About the Contributors 247
Index 251

Unlike yesterday's title, this book includes the movies and other materials outside the Baum canon much more extensively for comparisons and discussion.

If you perused the table of contents and know me a little, you can guess I jumped right to "Dorothy and Cinderella: The Case of the Missing Prince and the Despair of the Fairy Tale" by Agnes B. Curry and Josef Velazquez, which no surprise, posits Wizard of Oz as an American fairy tale. It's a rather short article for its scope of two parts, first comparing Wizard to Cinderella and then discussing it along with other modern "fairy tales" including Star Wars, A Wrinkle in Time, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Spiderman and some others. The Disney versions of Mulan and Little Mermaid are included. The length is too short to more than briefly touch on any of those other titles with any real depth, but it is intriguing and fosters more food for thought. And, yes, I still counterargue as always that Wizard of Oz and those above titles are fantasy novels/movies borrowing from folklore, not traditional fairy tales in the folkloric sense. The Cinderella comparison draws from both the Grimm and Perrault versions as well as some of Bettelheim's interpretation of the tale. Overall the essay makes some interesting points, but I don't find much need to compare Cinderella and Wizard of Oz. I find the comparisons to later fantasy constructions more interesting, such as the creation of a family out of a group of friends.

There's only one specific essay on the 21st century's Oz resurrection: Wicked by Gregory Maguire--"The 'Wonderful' Wizard of Oz and Other Lies: A Study of Inauthenticity in Wicked: A New Musical" by Mary K. Leigh. Discussions of both the book and the musical also appear in two essays by Durand, "The Emerald Canon: Where the Yellow Brick Road Forks" and "The Wicked Wizard of Oz." I know that is the work of most interest to current students due to popular culture as well as the scope for comparison and analysis. Leigh's essay is a fine resource for some discussion of the works.

Overall, the collection of essays is broad in topics and approaches. If the themes of the titles are of interest, the book is of merit for you. I particularly enjoyed the essays on The Wiz because it is so deliciously 70s and I am a child of that era.

Oz in Perspective by Richard Tuerk

I have been traveling this past week and thus the lower number of posts the past few days. When I returned home, I discovered an unexpected package of review books from McFarland Publishers. That is always fun! Some of the books were more pertinent to SurLaLune's usual topics, but I plan to post about all of them in the next few weeks.

Two of the books I received are about Frank L. Baum's Oz series. The first one I am featuring today is Oz in Perspective: Magic and Myth in the L. Frank Baum Books by Richard Tuerk.

This one was also a Finalist for the Mythopoeic Scholarship Award in Myth and Fantasy Studies by The Mythopoeic Society.

Book description from the publisher:

When moviegoers accompany Dorothy through the gates of the Emerald City, they may think they have discovered all there is to see of Oz--but as real friends of the Wizard know, more lies behind the curtain. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, on which the 1939 film was based, was only the first of 14 Oz books. Together these works constitute a series rich in allusions to a broad range of literary traditions, including fairy tale, myth, epic, the picaresque novel, and visions of utopia.

Reflecting on L. Frank Baum’s entire series of full-length Oz books, this study introduces readers to the great folklorist who created not only Dorothy and friends, but countless wonderful characters who still await discovery. Close analysis of each book invites readers to search Baum’s fascinating stories for meaning and mythical quality. Progressing chronologically through the canon, the author discusses literary devices and important thematic implications in each book, arguing that Baum wrote for the pleasure of both children and adults, both to provide entertainment and to teach moral lessons. Of particular significance is the argument, sustained over several chapters, that Baum modeled his Oz books on classic mythical patterns, rewriting Oz history in nearly every book to produce a different set of backgrounds and a different conception of utopia for his imaginary kingdom. This variety of backgrounds and archetypes gives Baum’s books a truly universal appeal. Examinations of his non-Oz books and his other Oz works, such as Little Wizard Stories of Oz and The Woggle-Bug Book, illuminate the discussion of the Oz novels.

About the Author
Richard Tuerk is a professor of Literature and Languages at Texas A&M University-Commerce. Formerly a president of the Society for the Study of Multi-Ethnic Literature of the United States (MELUS), the American Studies Association of Texas and the Southwest Regional Popular Culture Asociation, he has written numerous journal articles on literature.

The table of contents:

Acknowledgments vii
L. Frank Baum’s Fourteen Full-Length Oz Books xi
Preface 1
Introduction 5
1. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
DOROTHY’S TIMELESS ADVENTURE 21
2. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
THE WIZARD HIMSELF 35
3. The Marvelous Land of Oz
TIP’S PROGRESS 45
4. Ozma of Oz
THE FIRST UNDERGROUND JOURNEY 59
5. Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz
BAUM’S INFERNO 76
6. The Road to Oz
BAUM’S PICARESQUE 91
7. The Emerald City of Oz
GOODBYE TO KANSAS, GOODBYE TO OZ 101
8. The Patchwork Girl of Oz
SAVING UNC NUNKIE 113
9. Tik-Tok of Oz, The Scarecrow of Oz, Rinkitink in Oz
“EXCITING ADVENTURES,” “UNEXPECTED
DIFFICULTIES,” “MARVELOUS ESCAPES” 121
10. The Lost Princess of Oz
RESCUING PERSEPHONE 137
11. The Tin Woodman of Oz
BAUM’S ODYSSEY 147
12. The Magic of Oz
MAGIC AND POLITICS IN OZ 156
13. Glinda of Oz
BAUM’S TALE OF DEMETER AND PERSEPHONE 171
14. Boundaries
OZ AS SACRED SPACE 179
15. Baum’s Oz
(DYS)(EU)(U)TOPIA? 191
Conclusion 204
Notes 209
Bibliography 219
Index 227

Despite Oz's continuing popularity--primarily thanks to the movie, of course--there aren't too many books devoted to literary criticism of the series. I have to admit to not being a big Oz fan myself and thus I am not well-versed in the series itself. (I thoroughly blame the movie actually which terrified me when I saw it at too young an age, I think, very young and very terrified of the witch and her flying monkeys. And then the continuing classification of Wizard of Oz as a fairy tale which in my world it isn't--it's a great fantasy novel that drew extensively from folklore, but not a traditional fairy tale despite all of the marketing otherwise.)

That said, Oz is important in the history of fantasy literature and is so very American, too. All of this makes it fascinating on many levels. And Tuerk's analysis of the Oz series is interesting and reminded me of just how much Baum drew on mythology and other sources to inspire his worlds. It also reminded me of the continuity issues of the series which have frustrated me personally over the years when I tried to embrace Oz myself.

And so, if you are interested in the Oz series--or Baum's body of work since some non Oz books are analyzed--this is a great book to bring some critical analysis to the series, especially for the mythological perspectives.

So how many readers here are Oz fans? In the real world, I have rarely met anyone who has read even Wizard of Oz let alone the entire series. Almost everyone knows the movie and nothing else--true for fairy tales, but to a much lesser degree when they are compared.

Alice and Dorothy: Makeup Releases

Okay, I admit it. I don't consider Alice in Wonderland or Wizard of Oz to be fairy tales, just popular classic novels that are suffused with fantasy and some fairy tale tropes. I equate them more to Lord of the Rings and Narnia than Charles Perrault or the Brothers Grimm. I'm not saying this to open debate. Just to state my own leanings.

However, popular culture--and a good many of you--disagree with me. And I admit I am drawn to the imagery as well as surveying both stories' influence on pop culture, thanks perhaps more to both stories repeated interpretation in film, too. (Once again, influence does not a fairy tale make. Star Trek and Star Wars have managed similar influences, too, IMHO.) I doubt Oz would be so popular today without Judy Garland's full color adventure on film. Experience backs me up on this. I have only met a handful of people in my lifetime who have ever read Baum's Oz series or even The Wizard of Oz alone, but rarely have I met someone who hasn't seen the film repeatedly.

That said, I will cover Alice in Wonderland and Wizard of Oz here when something catches my fancy. And here's some fun stuff recently released--all makeup themed today--in honor of releases of new films (Tim Burton's upcoming Alice especially), anniversaries of old films (70th of Oz film), etc.

First the nail polishes:


This was a rerelease of a very popular collection released several years ago by China Glaze. Fun names include Ruby Pumps (red), Dorothy Who? (blue), Good Witch? (pink), Ten Man (silver), Cowardly Lyn (gold), and C-C-Courage (purple). This is available in stores currently or online such as at Transdesign (not a SurLaLune affiliate).


This is a Spring 2010 release by OPI. Off with Her Red! and Thanks So Muchness! are the reds. Absolutely Alice is the blue. Mad as a Hatter is a glitter with a rainbow of colors despite its appearance in images.

And finally, this one was shared by Natalya. Her email is what convinced me to go ahead and post about the polishes, too, something I had been debating for a while.


This is clever. Very clever. Released this Friday by Urban Decay. I'm a sucker for pop-up books and this is tempting although I can't wear eye shadow due to several allergies, especially to nickel. But the box is so pretty...too bad there isn't chocolate inside instead!

And speaking of pop-ups, Robert Sabuda has OF COURSE interpreted both of these stories into pop-up books. See The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: A Commemorative Pop-up and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland: A Pop-up Adaptation. I really wish he would do some fairy tales....