The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum (short books for teens .TXT) π
Description
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is the classic American childrenβs novel about the adventures of Dorothy, a young girl who along with her dog Toto is swept away by a cyclone to the magical Land of Oz. It was written by L. Frank Baum and published in May 1900.
Dorothy lives with her Aunt Em, Uncle Henry, and Toto on a farm in the Kansas prairie. One day, Dorothy and Toto are caught up in a cyclone that deposits her farmhouse into Munchkin Country in the magical Land of Oz. The falling house has killed the Wicked Witch of the East, the evil ruler of the Munchkins. The Good Witch of the North arrives with three grateful Munchkins and gives Dorothy the magical Silver Shoes that once belonged to the Wicked Witch. The Good Witch tells Dorothy that the only way she can return home is to go to the Emerald City and ask the great and powerful Wizard of Oz to help her.
The Library of Congress has declared it βAmericaβs greatest and best-loved homegrown fairy-tale.β Its groundbreaking success and the success of the Broadway musical adaptation led Baum to write thirteen additional Oz books which serve as sequels to the first story. The 1939 film musical adaptation starring Judy Garland is considered by many to be one of the greatest films in cinema history.
Read free book Β«The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum (short books for teens .TXT) πΒ» - read online or download for free at americanlibrarybooks.com
- Author: L. Frank Baum
Read book online Β«The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum (short books for teens .TXT) πΒ». Author - L. Frank Baum
For three days Dorothy heard nothing from Oz. These were sad days for the little girl, although her friends were all quite happy and contented. The Scarecrow told them there were wonderful thoughts in his head; but he would not say what they were because he knew no one could understand them but himself. When the Tin Woodman walked about he felt his heart rattling around in his breast; and he told Dorothy he had discovered it to be a kinder and more tender heart than the one he had owned when he was made of flesh. The Lion declared he was afraid of nothing on earth, and would gladly face an army or a dozen of the fierce Kalidahs.
Thus each of the little party was satisfied except Dorothy, who longed more than ever to get back to Kansas.
On the fourth day, to her great joy, Oz sent for her, and when she entered the Throne Room he greeted her pleasantly:
βSit down, my dear; I think I have found the way to get you out of this country.β
βAnd back to Kansas?β she asked eagerly.
βWell, Iβm not sure about Kansas,β said Oz, βfor I havenβt the faintest notion which way it lies. But the first thing to do is to cross the desert, and then it should be easy to find your way home.β
βHow can I cross the desert?β she inquired.
βWell, Iβll tell you what I think,β said the little man. βYou see, when I came to this country it was in a balloon. You also came through the air, being carried by a cyclone. So I believe the best way to get across the desert will be through the air. Now, it is quite beyond my powers to make a cyclone; but Iβve been thinking the matter over, and I believe I can make a balloon.β
βHow?β asked Dorothy.
βA balloon,β said Oz, βis made of silk, which is coated with glue to keep the gas in it. I have plenty of silk in the Palace, so it will be no trouble to make the balloon. But in all this country there is no gas to fill the balloon with, to make it float.β
βIf it wonβt float,β remarked Dorothy, βit will be of no use to us.β
βTrue,β answered Oz. βBut there is another way to make it float, which is to fill it with hot air. Hot air isnβt as good as gas, for if the air should get cold the balloon would come down in the desert, and we should be lost.β
βWe!β exclaimed the girl. βAre you going with me?β
βYes, of course,β replied Oz. βI am tired of being such a humbug. If I should go out of this Palace my people would soon discover I am not a Wizard, and then they would be vexed with me for having deceived them. So I have to stay shut up in these rooms all day, and it gets tiresome. Iβd much rather go back to Kansas with you and be in a circus again.β
βI shall be glad to have your company,β said Dorothy.
βThank you,β he answered. βNow, if you will help me sew the silk together, we will begin to work on our balloon.β
So Dorothy took a needle and thread, and as fast as Oz cut the strips of silk into proper shape the girl sewed them neatly together. First there was a strip of light green silk, then a strip of dark green and then a strip of emerald green; for Oz had a fancy to make the balloon in different shades of the color about them. It took three days to sew all the strips together, but when it was finished they had a big bag of green silk more than twenty feet long.
Then Oz painted it on the inside with a coat of thin glue, to make it airtight, after which he announced that the balloon was ready.
βBut we must have a basket to ride in,β he said. So he sent the soldier with the green whiskers for a big clothes basket, which he fastened with many ropes to the bottom of the balloon.
When it was all ready, Oz sent word to his people that he was going to make a visit to a great brother Wizard who lived in the clouds. The news spread rapidly throughout the city and everyone came to see the wonderful sight.
Oz ordered the balloon carried out in front of the Palace, and the people gazed upon it with much curiosity. The Tin Woodman had chopped a big pile of wood, and now he made a fire of it, and Oz held the bottom of the balloon over the fire so that the hot air that arose from it would be caught in the silken bag. Gradually the balloon swelled out and rose into the air, until finally the basket just touched the ground.
Then Oz got into the basket and said to all the people in a loud voice:
βI am now going away to make a visit. While I am gone the Scarecrow will rule over you. I command you to obey him as you would me.β
The balloon was by this time tugging hard at the rope that held it to the ground, for the air within it was hot, and this made it so much lighter in weight than the air without that it pulled hard to rise into the sky.
βCome, Dorothy!β cried the Wizard. βHurry up, or the balloon will fly away.β
βI canβt find Toto anywhere,β replied Dorothy, who did not wish to leave her little dog behind. Toto had run into the crowd to bark at a kitten, and Dorothy at last found him. She picked him up and ran towards the balloon.
She was within a few steps of it, and Oz was holding out his hands to help her into the basket, when, crack! went the ropes, and the balloon rose into the air without her.
βCome back!β she
Comments (0)