Reviews

The Tin Woodman of Oz by L. Frank Baum

cophoff's review

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5.0

I love all the Oz books, so loving this one wasn't a surprise. But this is a deeper, darker Oz than the earlier books. The reader is reminded of the Tin Woodman's somewhat gruesome past, and also meets his severed head, on the tinsmith's shelf, and many of his former body parts, now glued back together, to create a different being. And, if these anomolies are not enough, there is definitely a thinly veiled question here about the makeup of a soul, and the value of a body. Which, after all, is the real Tin Woodman, Nick Chopper? Is it the head with the brain, the body with the heart, or the new tin creation with the memories (or is it the soul?), the creature we have all become accustomed to? There is really a lot of symbolism and imagery in all of Baum's work, much of it being politically motivated by the situations of the early 20th century, but this is perhaps the most striking, and the most demanding, of them all.

paperrhino's review

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3.0

With the last couple of books Baum has come into his own when it comes to story, plot development, and character. Gone are the deus ex machinae and abrupt endings. The only real complaint I have is that as the series progresses and the rules and land of Oz matures there are a number of inconsistencies with previous books in the series. However, when looked at on its own, The Tin Woodman of Oz is a solid book of children's fantasy and I recommend it to anyone who like this genre.

jmbz38's review against another edition

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lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

1.25

aamccartan's review

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One of the better ones!

roshk99's review

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2.0

By the 12th book, it gets very repetitive

mjfmjfmjf's review

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3.0

Been awhile since I had read one of these. They are so much the same that reading them one after another is kind of a little annoying. And yet this one left me interested in reading the next one immediately. As usual it was a travelogue visiting odd new characters. But at least there was a relatively interesting and reasonable mission. Definitely worth reading aloud to children and one of the better books but still only bubblegum at best. 3.5 of 5.

chandranolynne's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

This one was really fun! In the way that I had wished the The Scarecrow of Oz or Tik-Tok of Oz had been origin stories, this one was more or less actually that for the Tin Woodman. Instead of a traditional origin story, though, this was the story of the present-day Tin Woodman revisiting his past and finding the people that he left behind before the first book takes place. It was, of course, full of adventure and silliness, but there was a sweet aspect, too, of past lives and how who we were once were matters to who we are now.

metalmakubex's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

sergei_ter_tumasov's review

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1.0

Единственное, чем примечателен этот бездарный, нудный автоплагиат - это тем, что тут сбывается мечта чудовища Франкенштейна!

booksenvogue's review

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2.0

Review to come...