The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: Wonderful Wizard of Oz

This book would have been nice if you had packaged it with more care.

Robert Sabuda is one of my favorite illustrators and certainly the most renowned pop-up book artist and paper engineer working today. Combine Sabuda's entrancing three dimensional illustrations with Frank Baum's glorious story about Dorothy, the Tin Woodman, the Scarecrow, Cowardly Lion, Toto and their amazing adventures in the Land of Oz and you have pure magic!The pop-up illustrations are quite intricate, with artwork that's faithful to W. W. Denslow's original illustrations. Sabuda works in a fresh, new style here using prints made from cut linoleum blocks. He brings the drawings to life in a way that will enchant children and adults alike. Each page contains a large pop-up and a small booklet which tells part of the story. And each mini-book contains small pop-ups too. There's a cyclone that really twists, a wizard's balloon that sails into the sky, holographic foil creates a true, sparkling Emerald City made even greener with the included green glasses for the readerThe text is slightly abridged so I would suggest that true "Wizard of Oz" fans include an unabridged copy in their library. I recently bought a copy for my cousin's little girl. She calls it her "magic book" and can't seem to put it down. This very special edition, published to commemorate the book's 100th Anniversary, is well worth the price and will surely find a place of honor on your bookshelf. It is spectacular!JANA

My parents bought this book for my 4.5 year old daughter, and believe me, we are keeping this one out of the hands of her book-destroying 1.5 year old brother. What a magnificent book! Every page has a beautiful pop-up, and not only the page itself, but the accompanying text pages attached to each page. Such creativity and technological wonders. Seriously! My daughter saw this in the store while we were on vacation, and spent about 10 minutes on the plane, quietly spinning the wizard's balloon. If that isn't worth the price, then what is? 10 minutes of quiet on an airplane? The man in the seat next to us couldn't keep his eyes off it... even he was fascinated.Newsweek just featured this book in their December 11, 2000 issue in their article about the best new kids' books (see p.72). They even show the Emerald City pop-up on their table of contents page.I am sure that as long as we can protect this book from our precious little one-man-wrecking crew, it will be a treasured heirloom for many years-to-come. Would make a fabulous gift for the holidays.

I just have to disagree with the folks who say this is not a book for children...this is THE book for children! If you are looking for a book to give this holiday season that rates 100% on the "oooh-ahhhh!" meter, this is the one. Any child, in particular a reluctant reader, will be dazzled and fascinated by the Emerald City jumping to life in the middle of the book, the whirling balloon and spinning tornado. The artwork warrants accolades even without the magnificent engineering, and there is enough text to make this pop-up perfect for older kids as well. This book does great honor to the Wonderful Wizard, and will be as treasured in your home as a pair of ruby slippers. Whether or not this book actually survives the twister of children's handling, you'd be a real wicked witch not to share it with your favorite munchkin.

Whether you collect pop-up books or have never opened one before, please check this one out! This is Robert Sabuda, getting better every year, at his best. The abridged text is true to Baum's original, meaning that if you only know the movie you'll find differences. There's more text than in a lot of pop-up books, which is fine with me, since pop-ups make such good "out-loud" reading. But what pop-ups! The first pages open with a twisting cyclone! There's a full layout of the Emerald City, and there's a scene depicting the launch of the hot-air balloon. He's even included a pair of emerald green "glasses." And there are mini-pop-ups throughout. Honestly, I think you will fall in love with this puppy. And think about all the people on your gift list who are kids at heart and would love to experience this book.

"The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: A Commemorative Pop-up" (story by L. Frank Baum and pop-up designs by Robert Sabuda) will delight Oz fans, collectors, artists, and the young at heart everywhere. Following Baum's story and illustrator W.W. Denslow's artistic style (rather than images from the beloved 1939 MGM film), the book chronicles Dorothy's ORIGINAL adventures in Oz with text and fantastically designed pop-ups. Each page is an aesthetic experience unto itself, including a whirling tornado, a stunning Emerald City centerfold, and Glinda's castle. Smaller pop-ups are imbedded in the text areas to further charm the reader, along with a pair of green glasses, a melting Wicked Witch, the Wizard's balloon, and Toto too!Collectors will want TWO copies of this book: one to keep unopened and one to view. It is an excellent introduction to the Oz phenomenon and will encourage readers to follow Dorothy's further adventures in sequel Oz books.