Carol Ann, I understand your frustration with details that don’t follow history. Yet, that’s what the genre of historical fiction does.
In order to enjoy reading and discussing a historical fiction book, I have to first read the author’s notes explaining what was not “real” or was “changed” to make the plot more interesting or exciting.
Hazel Gaynor is a great author and I enjoy her writing. I didn’t enjoy this book as much as some of her others, but she does an amazing job of placing you in historical context and giving you an image of the setting. I learned a lot about Kansas and the Dust Bowl, and the despair that came along with it. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys learning about a period of history through a cast of characters rather than through pure description.
Ever since my grandma first read “The Wizard of Oz” to me, I have been madly in love with the story. It has become one of my favorite childhood reading adventures. It never gets old, even today as an older adult it has become a family tradition to watch the movie together each holiday season. So, when I heard about Gaynor’s book “Before Dorothy,” its premise captivated me.
In the original book, Auntie Em is portrayed as a hard woman with little or no color, however, this interpretation brings warmth to her character. I found her inspirational, enduring all kinds of struggles and caring for her little family and her town. This book explores Emily, (Auntie Em) as a young woman who comes to Kansas , her marriage to Henry, and how her niece, Dorothy, came to live with them. Gaynor shares the background of Emily’s family before Dorothy’s arrival, you will learn the depth of the family’s Irish roots and their struggles to find happiness and stability in America.
Her writing provides rich descriptions of the Kansas prairie, its beauty and darker side. I soon found myself transported to the 1930’s Kansas prairie with its drought conditions, horrific dust storms, and black blizzards all contributing to the family’s struggle against the environment. History plays a very important part of this book by taking its readers from the stock market crash of the 20’s through, Depression. The characters however, come full circle when they realize that home is where your family/love is.
Recommend it to all fellow Oz fans. You’ll find herself loving Auntie Em.
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I really enjoyed it! I found it to be an great prelude storyline to the classic wizard of oz it gave me a greater depth of the characters and some “whys” of the Oz plot
I enjoyed most of the book but I found that sometimes, it lagged. I haven’t read the Wizard of Oz series. I think fans of Oz would enjoy the book.
I agree that there were times that the book dragged, but I still enjoyed it
I really enjoyed the book as it was a great historical fiction account of what the great plains were like before the dust bowl. I also enjoyed the characters introduced as you knew who they were representing from the Wizard of Oz. I was touched by the story of a family adjusting to a sudden change with a child coming to live with them.
I loved this book. I thought it was well written. I would recommend this book to middle schoolers and older. A prequel to The Wizard of Oz was very enjoyable.
I did enjoy this book, maybe because of The Wizard of Oz movie. I loved the movie as a kid and still do to this day. I liked that the author told the story of Auntie Em and took the liberty authors have to make a story their own. I would think anyone who enjoyed or enjoys the Wizard of Oz movie would enjoy this. I enjoyed the “Easter eggs” throughout that were a nod to the movie.
I have not yet read The Antidote, but I will be reading soon.
It is depressing in parts, but reading about the and the Great Depression and Dust Bowl are depressing topics.
I enjoyed the book Before Dorothy though it was in my mind ‘light-hearted.’ There was more to the Dust Bowl than just dust everywhere and crops not being able to grow. What did they eat or drink? Only once did they mention water. How did they survive? It was fun figuring out the references to The Wizard of Oz. I didn’t realize who the ‘good’ witch was until the end but I did figure out the ‘wicked’ witch right away. I would recommend it to Wizard of Oz fans. I wonder if book clubs would enjoy it - comparing the books and talking about the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression.
One of my dearest memories is lying in the shade of a tree on a warm summer afternoon, gently rocking in the hammock with my grandmother, she reading The Wizard of Oz to me. This book didn’t bring back even a hint of that same joy. The writing was uninspired - but I’d guess I was spoiled by The Antidote.
I liked the book. Having read about the DustBowl and watching A documentary on PBS years ago, I knew where the author was going as soon as I saw the dates and the move to Kansas. It was a terribel time in our history, so many people dies or had health problems. But if you liked the Wizard, this book explains a lot! As a prequel It was very good!
Awww, what a sweet memory, @Nancy_B!
I have to admit I’ve never read Baum’s books. Think it’s too late?
It took me awhile to get into this book (I put it down at one point and read something else). BUT once I did, I enjoyed it so much and sped through. I think it was because I really loved the character of Emily, and her hopes, dreams, struggles, her internal life was so real to me. And her realization that every life has ups and downs, tragedies and heartache, but the key is to keep going with love. A solid 4-star read for me.
I enjoyed the book as a light and easy read with clever allusions to all the iconic imagery of the OZ books and films. It did give some backstory to questions left unanswered such as why is Dorothy living with her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry? What happened to her parents? other family? The depression and dust bowl setting are very appropriate, and although I already knew all of these parts of our American history, I wonder if many readers do not have the history. I particularly think this book appropriate for YA audiences that may not have the background of the depression and dust bowl and would learn something new. It is also a story of immigrants coming to this country (here they are Irish), and these stories are important to be seen as an integral part of our country’s life in reflection of those issues still lasting today.
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Oh my gosh as I was reading the book I shared my excitement with everyone! I felt so lucky to be able to read it!
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I enjoyed the novel and the connection to The Wizard of Oz. I think this would be a good read for people who loved Wizard of Oz, people who enjoy historical fiction about the depression and the dust bowl and there’s a lot that could be discussed in a book club.
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I have always been a fan of The Wizard of Oz. I have read all of Gregory Maquire’s books and loved the background of Oz. So when I saw that Hazel Gaynor wrote a book- I absolutely had to read it. Before Dorothy was the first book to talk about Emily and Henry Gale. I loved learning the background of Emily and how she met Henry and how they ended up in Kansas. I loved the book! It was a wonderful read. I probably would have read it in one day had I not had to work and other daily life duties. I would recommend it to a book club especially one that had Oz fans.
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This book was interesting because it provided Dorothy and auntie Em’s background and how they got together (tragically). I liked the way that the author introduced all of the OZ characters (and even Oz) before Dorothy went there and developed their unique personalities.
I would recommend this to my book clubs - everyone knows the story of Oz
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