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!

I DNF’d at 20%, I love wicked and was so excited to read this but I could not get past the writing style , it was almost like a mix of old English and poetry (but not) and made it impossible to follow or understand what was going on.

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow for the arc .

A captivating story of family, rootlessness, and trying to find belonging, Elphie: A Wicked Childhood dives into the hard life of the traveling missionary family that Elphaba is born into. As Elphaba is a strange and unexplainable addition to the family, she is also a major support for keeping her unusual set of siblings and her distracted father together. Maguire’s book holds a unique look at belonging despite differences and the need for each individual to find their own sense of self and value through their unique experiences and perspectives. This book gives a glimpse at some of the hardships, explorations, questions, and understandings that shape Elphaba into the timeless character of the Wicked Witch of the West. As I read this book, it was so easy to fall into the world of Oz and to connect with the young Elphaba. Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for access to this immersive and wondrous story!

As we all know Wicked is a beloved musical that is taking the world by storm once again this time on the big screen.
This reignited my love for the books and really made me want to revisit the Gregory Maguire collection.

I will state this for everyone, THE WICKED BOOKS ARE NOT LITTLE CHILD APPROPERATE.

with that being said. I personally liked Elphie and if you can get your hands on the special edition hard cover, its so pretty, also there is a map, we all know we love a good book map. However it also wasnt my favorite out of the series.

If your like me and have read the other four books, this is a nice little treat. If you havent , then this is a good place to start you dont really need to read the other ones first.

Gregory Maguire has a unique writing style and isnt for everyone, if you have a hard time with the writing styles in LOTR or any book where there is quite a bit of alliteration and imagery this may not be for you.

Elphie, you guessed it is about our greenest gal Elphaba. This story illustrates her journey from childhood to where we meet her in the wicked series at SHIZ.

All in all it was a good read, a nice little treat. Im not sure it added much to the original four books as we really did get a good understanding of her past. However i dont think it takes away from anything either.

Again i want to state THE WICKED BOOK SERIES IS NOT FOR SMALL CHILDREN.

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow
#Elphie #NetGalley

Absolutely loved this book! Elphie is perfect for fans of Wicked. I loved the musical and the book had a lot of interesting tid bits.

What a gift it is to be able to dive back into Maguire's Oz, with a peek behind the curtain at a time even further back before Dorothy dropped in. Visiting Elphaba's childhood - when she was simply Elphie - is as engaging and enthralling...and, dare I say, bewitching, as Maguire has ever been, and I loved every second of this new chapter in the green girl's story. (Though I'm reminded how much I utterly LOATHE the books' version of Nessarose, who is simply abhorrent, exceedingly sanctimonious, and just...the worst. Nessa in the musical and the new film is simply annoying, while it is so, so easy to see the seeds of wickedness in her in the books.) The pages cannot help but fly by like the pages of Elphaba's Grimmerie as it intuits the next spell she needs, and every bit of it is magic. Thank you, Gregory Maguire, for giving us the chance to revisit this world in an all-new way.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this early! With the current buzz around all things Wicked, I was excited to dive into this. I loved it, and I also didn't. I guess I had expected and hoped for more Elphie and less.... Oz politics? I know most books revolve around that in some way, but I just thought this would dive deeper into her / herself.

The cover is stunning though. I love how they all look together!

as someone who haven't read wicked but was really intriguide to learn more about elphaba early childhood, i jumped at the occasion of reading this quick and easy read. it didn't disappoint. witty, funny, provocative at times, elphie: a wicked childhood is a delight to every reader eager for a light-hearted adventure while also tackling hard themes.

This one just wasn’t for me, it was very confusing and rambled all over the place. I really wanted to like this but it honestly just doesn’t make sense.

Before I started this book, I was warned that the Gregory Maguire’s Wicked series were nothing like the movie. I still hoped the book would answer some questions as “Elphie” was released after the movie.
For starters, we can tell Elphaba’s story is being narrated by an outside spectator that we will never meet. It is more of outside looking in at young Elphie’s relationships with her deceased mother, overly devout father, and siblings. There are also other characters such as the opinionated older nanny, the Indigenous cook, the shop owner, and the scheming landlady who will do anything to get remarried. Other than the shopkeeper who challenges Elphaba to want more for herself, they are not that important in my opinion.
This book focuses on Elphie’s childhood, and how a search for her mother/father’s lover’s tribe propels her into the prestigious academy, Shiz. I liked learning about childhood Elphie, but I felt that the sibling/ family relationship was drawn out too much. There wasn’t even anything out of the ordinary there, and was boring at times. The ending was very bittersweet though, and showcased the strong bond between Elphie and her family.
I would have liked to see more emphasis on Elphaba’s power and connection to the animals. Like others, I wasn’t really a fan of the writing style. It was very choppy for me. In addition to this, I did not like how the indigenous tribe were depicted as, and detected heavy racial overtones.
There was also some parts of the story that were bought up but didn’t go anywhere such as: vengeance for Turtle heart’s murder, and the ski’oti (bears?)
Also thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review. Its expected publication date is March 25, 2025

I enjoyed it. The book is a bit wordy and has tons and tons of details. I know that a lot of details are suppose to help the storyline and break down what happens to Elphie as a child. I loved all the extra backstory and clarification but I never felt they were all that mysterious. I felt Wicked was pretty good at explaining Alphaba and her destiny. But overall it was a lengthy, but easy to read and enjoyable read.

Overall a rather dull book where not much happens at all. Will likely be a must read for Wicked lovers, but was rather anti climatic.

This book is a captivating prequel that delves into the early life of Elphaba, the future Wicked Witch of the West. The story explores Elphaba's childhood, shaped by her complex family dynamics and early encounters with the mistreatment of Animals in Oz. Maguire's storytelling is both enchanting and poignant, offering a deeper understanding of Elphaba's character before her witchy powers fully emerge. Fans of the Wicked series will find this coming-of-age tale both riveting and heartwarming.

If you are a Wicked Years fan, this is a must-have title for your shelf and collection. It expands on character perspectives that weren't always as prominent in the original Wicked novel. The insight this brought really expanded Elphaba's formative years, and I do believe it will brighten anyone still yearning for more from the Wicked Years. I will say this has nothing to do with the Broadway musical or new movie, and I am sure somebody will think it does.