Son of a Witch: Volume Two in The Wicked Years (Wicked Years, 2) Mass Market Paperback – Illustrated, September 30, 2008

At the beginning of the book, Liir is found unconscious by stagecoach driver Oatsie Manglehand and is brought to the nunnery to recuperate. The head nun recognized Liir as being the same boy that had gone off with Elphaba many years before. While at the convent, Liir was cared for by Candle, who played a string instrument that caused memories of the past to surface. Thus, we find out much of what happened to Liir from the time he left the convent, as a boy, and the time he returned unconscious. From the first book, we know that Liir had remained with Elphaba at Kiamo Ko, the home of her lover, Fiyero, with Fiyero's family; they remain after the family is kidnapped. At the end of the first book, Elphaba has been killed inadvertently by Dorothy. This leaves Liir to fend for himself and to try and discover who he is, since Elphaba has not told him anything, because she, herself, is unaware of all the circumstances of Liir's birth. Interwoven with Liir's own story are the politics and religions of Oz. There has been much fighting among the different groups of Oz, because the Wizard has instigated suspicions between the groups, so he could go in and acquire the resources of those areas. The book is a page turner because you want to find out what has happened to Liir and how the politics of Oz affects the trajectory of Liir's life after he leaves the convent upon his recovery. Throughout his various wanderings and work situations, Liir looks for Nor, one of Fiyero's daughters, whom he bonded with at Kiamo Ko. If she were still alive, she could be in the Southstairs prison, a horrible place from which very few escaped, and many were never seen again. This creates suspense as to if Nor is still alive and where she is. Many characters come and go throughout the book, each filling in a part of Liir's background and leading him to his eventual path in life.

I cannot understand which book some of these naysayer reviewers read...I can only imagine that they got lost along the way to their refrigerators looking for bologna sandwiches and stumbled into a text wholly foreign to the brilliant book I read: SON OF A WITCH. Perhaps their attention spans have been befuddled by too much reality television, because if one got confused or bored by SON OF A WITCH then it is surely their own fault and not the author's. It's mesmerizing, it's clear, it's easy: LIIR IS THE WITCH'S SON. OK? AND SO ON. This book is a marvel and one need not have read WICKED to enjoy it thoroughly. So many parallels to the war of today are illuminated, so much delicious satire and sly dialogue, so much joy and pain and exquisite description and action in equal measure. Fly out of your own hell on a broomstick made of words, up the draft into Maguire's world of Oz. Just magnificent and compelling, every word and phrase a gem. I could stay in Oz forever, if it is this well written and intelligent and hilarious. Bravo!

"Son of a Witch" isn't perfect, and it probably isn't as good as its predecessor, "Wicked". So what? I get the distinct impression that Maguire isn't done with Oz yet, which would make "Son" the middle book of a trilogy - traditionally the weakest slot anyway. So I'm going easy on it.Most of the weaknesses in this book become much more explainable, if not excusable, if you look at it as the placeholder that second books usually are. Liir, the main and title character in "Son", was a minor character from "Wicked" who is suddenly thrust front and center, and he's not really up to it. Particularly compared to the amazingly complex Elphaba, Liir is frustratingly one- (occasionally two-) dimensional, opaque and even dull at times. (This is even overlooking the parts when he's in a coma.) Candle, the novice who saves his life and becomes his sort-of romantic interest, is, if possible, even duller. Only Trism, Liir's army buddy (in the Brokeback sense of "buddy") has any depth or personality, and he doesn't become a major character until the last 1/4 of the book.In addition, the story itself is somewhat vague and meandering. I finished the book not quite sure what the point was, except to fill in the gap of the ten years after Elphaba's death and set the stage for an anticipated third book. This is a typical middle-child problem in almost every series, so I'm used to it.Now, enough kvetching. I really did enjoy this novel, as I enjoy most of Maguire's work. (Except "Mirror Mirror" - and this book was miles ahead of that snooze fest.) His Oz is as imaginative as L. Frank Baum's, if not more so. It doesn't entirely mesh with the original, but they do overlap in places. I guess you might call Maguire's books an alternate history of Oz. (And for the record, I highly, *highly* recommend that you READ both "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" and "Wicked" before you read "Son". The movie and the musical are NOT the same as their source material! Reviewers who complain that they didn't "get" this book, but have only seen the Broadway play of "Wicked", have only themselves to blame.)Even in his blandness, Liir is a sympathetic character. He is torn between his desire for a normal existence and loyalty to his possible mother, Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West. Elphaba's followers keep turning to him, expecting him to pick up her causes and continue her legacy, but Liir is (at least at first) so markedly ordinary that it's easy to understand his frustration and the sense of hopelessness that occasionally threaten to paralyze him. Liir's journey from being moved along by outside events, to taking part in them, to shaping them and taking up Elphaba's torch (or at least her broom) make up the arc of this book, and the payoff at the end is both surprising and gratifying.A chance encounter with a certain old woman, her four-horned cow, and a young boy named Tip should give fans of Baum's original series a good clue as to what's in store for the next book. (A hint that has me, if possible, even more excited about this series.) For those of you who haven't read "The Marvelous Land of Oz" (which you should - it's available for free on Project Gutenberg), the last sentence of "Son" should still be enough to give you a delightful thrill of anticipation.No, "Son of a Witch" isn't Maguire's finest work. But it's still a darn good read, and it keeps the magic of Oz alive for one more go-around.

There was a particular section of this book which caused me to decide, at that particular time while reading, that it was not even in the same ballpark as "Wicked." I just finished this book - MAGNIFICENT! Gregory McGuire wrote these two books - but it very much seems like two distinct and different McGuires! The tone, tempo, pacing -- its a distinction which is maddening, beguiling, and finally cathartic brilliance. Like the saying goes, "it's worth the price of admission!"

I read this book and thought it was an excellent read.

Excelente libro, aunque no lo he acabado ya empieza a aclarar muchas de las dudas que quedaron pendientes en Wicked. Muy recomendable para los seguidores de la saga y también para los que están empezando a interesarse

I have read this more then once and it’s a page turner and I love the wicked series just wish there was more

Esperava pelo exemplar original, mas este parece ter sido uma cópia. Não é da editora oficial, não possui as ilustrações da maneira padrão desta série e se parece muito com o formato do ebook. Pra alguém que pagou 60 reais e recebeu a cópia, haja motivos de indignação. :/

Ayant lue le premier en version volume parut cet été et ayant reçut un mail de l'éditeur disant qu'il n'était pas prévu de traduire les suites, je me suis jeté sur l'édition originale avec appréhension (Étant en 2nde) et finalement pour les non anglophone c'est assez simple à lire (A condition d'avoir un dictionnaire pour certains passages) et avec une histoire toujours aussi intéressante que le premier, et comme le dit le commentaire précédent : Liir est le personnage qui manquait à la littérature. Je compte maintenant commandé les suites car c'est vraiment une bonne saga. Seul bémol de l'édition de poche (en dehors de la petitesse des caractère) la tranche se plie vraiment facilement mais a pars ça la mise en page est soignée tout comme les quelques dessins et une couverture vraiment belle et en relief (pour le titre) avec notamment une tranche des pages rouge. Voilà, donc un livre que je recommande à tous (même les non-anglophone).