I read Wicked back when the musical first came out, so it only makes sense I come back to the books now that the movie is out. This reminded me why I liked Gregory Maguire so much in high school, but it took a while to get into the story. Elphie covers Elphaba's life from her youth up to preparing to enter Shiz. I felt like the story became a lot more engaging once Elphie was old enough to truly have her own opinions and thoughts. You see her introduction to Animals, to education, and to magic; as well as more backstory of her family and how she became the woman she is in the musical. I'd say it's worth reading if you're wanting to go deep into the lore, but like everyone else said this is not like the musical.

For those of us who read Wicked way back before it was a musical and then a movie, we know it's dark. And visceral. No amount of tulips will every be able to take that away. Now me? I love all of the mediums of the story bc they resonate differently. And this is no exception. Right back into Oz we go.

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I have enjoyed other books by Gregory Maguire, including Wicked. I am also a big fan of the musical. I had high hopes for this book. And I have to say it was a bit of a struggle.

It has been well documented that the Wicked book series is much darker than the musical, that is so "popular" right now, and this does not change with Elphie. But it does not connect you to the characters. I have to say that I did not really find any of the characters likeable. The writing is awkward and somewhat hard to follow. And this being said that I knew what to expect from Maguire's writing previously.

I have to say that this was just an average book for me.
3 stars, being generous.

Elphie is the story of Elphaba's Childhood.
This book is much easier to read than Wicked (I do suggest reading that though). I just felt like Wicked can be challenging. This was ann amusing read for fans of Wicked. This doesn't change anything about the story; it just gives you insight into Elphaba as a child. I partially feel this was unnecessary to publish, but I still enjoyed it.

Thank you, Gregory Maguire, William Morrow, and Netgalley for the ARC of this.

I am truly surprised that I received this book, especially considering my rating of "Wicked". I'm also not at all surprised that I didn't enjoy this book either. In my opinion, "Wicked" didn't need a prequel, and I believe neither it nor this awful book should have been published.

If you've read Gregory Maguire's previous Oz books you are in for a treat!
Please note that this book is NOT for children, and contains very adult themes.

Another delightful trip to Oz that I will be thinking about for a long time to come!

It has been ages since I read Wicked, but immediately when I started this one I was right back in that world! I love an origin story, so this was right up my alley. I did forget that Gregory Maguire has a particular writing style that is so much more descriptive and observational rather than focusing on conversations and interactions, and after reading so many thrillers and romances lately, this one felt a little slower to me. Overall, the story was spectacular and I enjoyed a more thorough look into the childhoods of Elphaba and Nessa!

For fans of the “Wicked” musical and movie, this book will not be what they are expecting, because it is nothing like either of them. It is also definitely a book for adults, not younger readers. Parts of it are quite dark, and there is some vulgar language. My description of it would be, in a word, weird.

*I received a digital copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are strictly my own.*

I really enjoyed this book! I really like how it gave us the childhood of Elphaba and I really liked learning more about this version of Oz and appreciate Gregory Maguire’s world building!

This was a nice read to fill in the gaps from the original Wicked book. It starts basically right where the “past” in Wicked ends. Nessa is born and they are all headed to Quadling Country.
In the same way that Wicked makes so many things make sense for the Wizard of Oz, Elphie makes things make sense for Wicked.
Maguire has such an interesting writing style that I feel like I should be reading this in a High School English class.
Definitely read Wicked first.
Thank you to Net Galley for this ARC!

This is absolutely what I've been wishing for in the Wicked universe. So rich in detail, the characters fly off the page. This took me back to my phase in high school where all I could think about was Oz.

I read it all, but honestly I wanted to DNF about 50 pages in. I wanted to give it the full opportunity to turn it around but it feels so painfully slow and choppily put together.

I was so disappointed in this book. I was so excited for it and then the writing it’s kind of choppy and hard to follow and I really tried to get into this book but couldn’t and I don’t quite underStand why

I don't particularly like this book (author?)'s writing style - it got better over the course of the story, but it was a bit confusing, especially in the beginning, and I think it uses too many words to say too little, so to speak. That brings me to my next point: I don't feel like much happened in this prequel. I haven't read the books (though I'm familiar with the Wicked storyline), so maybe I missed a bunch of references, but it wasn't a particularly enticing story. It did get better as the plot went on, and I ended up enticed on Elphie's story (<spoiler>she should be richly compensated for having to put up with her family tbh</spoiler>). I will probably read the rest of the series, but I hope the writing style will not be the same or I'll likely end up insane.

"No, love has little to do with what Elphie grasps of family life. A different term is needed for that household dynamic. Not love but- obligatory accomodation?"

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for an ARC of Elphie in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts that follow are my own.

Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, had a somewhat tumultuous childhood and suffered many of the same events that a typical child would- jealousy when younger siblings suddenly come along, moving from place to place because of her father's occupation and trying to make friends while she couldn't look more different from other children. She also has some different experiences- discovering the first instances of Animal mistreatment and receiving bits and pieces of education until she arrives at the doors of Shiz University, about to meet the famous character, Galinda.

I was very surprised by this book because I wasn't too sure what to expect. I read Wicked not too long ago and I still wondered about some things in Elphaba's childhood that was never fully addressed in the original story. So when the opportunity came to read Elphie, I jumped at it and was pleasantly surprised. I was interested from the very first page and enjoyed every minute of this book. The writing of this book was interesting because across the four parts of this book, the writing style changed a bit as Elphaba grew older. The first part of the book is written like little vignettes of Elphaba's childhood, almost as if you're being told the story in the living room of one of the other characters. Then the second, third, and fourth parts are written like a true novel and start to move the story along.

I found this book a lot easier to follow than Wicked because it seemed to me that Mr. Maguire employed a simpler writing style and just wrote what he wanted to say rather than using extra words to sound eloquent. One of my favorite parts of this book was that I got to see much more of the relationship between Elphaba, Nessarose, and Shell and why Elphaba was frustrated in Wicked when Nessarose came to Shiz. I also liked that more of Elphie's relationship with her father was explained as well and that even when she was a child/teenager she was not afraid to question adults and the world around her. There were also great callbacks not only to the original Wicked story but also to The Wizard of Oz, which was fun to see.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it to any Wicked fan. I'm looking forward to rereading Wicked now after having read this novel. 4/5 stars!

I don't know where to start. I thought I would love this book, as I have all the others in the series. Instead, I was confused by the writing style. There was a stark difference in the feel and tone. I have never picked up a Maguire book and almost immediately wanted to put it back down.

I wanted more of Elphaba's Story, Which I got, but it was buried in droning text. Yes, past books had politics; sometimes, there were unneeded slowdowns. Even Elphie could not keep my interest, and I had to take breaks. I finished it if only to know I'd read them all.

There were some lovely Easter Eggs, and I loved the Dedication. I know there will be plenty of others who love this story. I hope there will be more visits to these Characters.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an Honest Review.

Really loved this installment of the “wicked” books. I fell in love with the stories a long time ago and continue to absolutely be super excited for more. It is hard to not get immersed in the world and feel all the feels for the characters! So good!

3.5 - I was really excited for this book because its the year of Wicked and as someone who grew up loving theater, Wicked the musical, and having read the books, I was excited to get Elphaba's backstory with this prequel. I think that Elphie is such a complex character with so many nuances and I really thought it was be interesting to have her backstory, personality, and challenges growing up fleshed out to align with the character that we all know and love through Wicked.

Elphie follows Elphaba from a very young age up until she goes to Shiz. We see snapshots of her life at key childhood and teenage years, The book does reference some of the more pivotal moments of Elphie's childhood. I enjoyed seeing some more glimpses into understanding the relationship between Elphie and Nessie, and Elphie and her dad.

Unfortunately, even having read Maguire's Wicked series and knowing his style of writing, this book just did not deliver for me. Maguire has a very unique style of writing, but this book did not flow or move along with the pacing as I would have liked. I felt like the beginning of the book was very slow and I wanted to see more and learn more about the key moments of Elphie's childhood. There was a lot of describing without actually getting anywhere with the flowery writing. The book did start to move along a bit better towards the second half as Elphie becomes closer to going to Shiz, but parts were harder to read.

Thanks to WilliamMorrow for the free book!!

Thank you to NetGalley for an eARC copy of Elphie by Gregory Maguire.

Gregory Maguire's Elphie, brings us back to his world of Wicked, the story of the girl who will one day become the infamous Wicked Witch of the West. That being said, I loved his original series, and I quite honestly believe that there wasn't a real reason for Elphie and it really came from the fact that the movie was being produced and released. Not to mention there was certainly some inconsistant information that left me wondering if it were intentional or not.

Elphie, is the childhood story of Elphaba - Elphie - an outsider. Her striking green skin sets her apart, but it is her sharp intelligence, fierce independence, and moral complexity that truly define her. Raised by a mother whose affections are scattered and a father whose religious zealotry leaves little room for warmth, Elphie navigates childood marked by both isolation and resilience. As she struggles with family dynamics, the arrival of her siblings, and the injustices of the world around her - particularly the mistreatment of Animals - she begins to forge her own path, one that is neither wholly good nor evil but entirely her own.

I was a bit disappointed, as I knew that during my first reading of Wicked, I wanted something very much like this. But, it could have been done so much better.

This wasn’t quite what I was hoping for—I wanted more Elphie! That being said, the story still had its moments, and if you’re looking to dip your toes into this author’s work, you can definitely read this as a standalone. While it didn’t fully meet my expectations, it might be the right fit for someone else!