 First edition cover ofThe Lost King of Oz | |
| Author | Ruth Plumly Thompson |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | John R. Neill |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Oz books |
| Genre | Children's novel |
| Publisher | Reilly & Lee |
Publication date | 1925 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover) |
| Pages | 280 |
| Preceded by | Grampa in Oz |
| Followed by | The Hungry Tiger of Oz |
The Lost King of Oz (1925) is the nineteenth book in theOz series created byL. Frank Baum and his successors, and the fifth written byRuth Plumly Thompson. It was illustrated byJohn R. Neill. The novel was followed byThe Hungry Tiger of Oz (1926).
The book went into the public domain on January 1, 2021.[1]
As she sometimes does in her books,[2] Thompson exploits a detail in Baum's work to generate her story. Baum mentions Pastoria, Ozma's father and former ruler of Oz,[3] only briefly in the twentieth chapter ofThe Marvelous Land of Oz (1904); Thompson spins Baum's hint into a full tale of Pastoria's exile and rescue.[4]
Thompson dedicatedThe Lost King of Oz to her invalid mother. She suggested to her publishers that the dedication be made in the form of acrossword puzzle — but Reilly & Lee rejected the idea.[5]
OldMombi, formerly the Wicked Witch of the North, is now a cook in the land of Kimbaloo. One day she comes across Pajuka, the former prime minister of Oz, transformed by Mombi into a goose years before. She sets out to findPastoria, the king ofOz, whom she also enchanted in the past. However, she has forgotten what shape she transformed Pastoria into. She kidnaps a local boy called Snip as her unwilling assistant and bearer of burdens. Eventually deciding, however, that he knows too much, Mombi throws Snip down a well; he ends up in Blankenburg, populated by the invisible Blanks. Snip meets and soon rescues Tora, an amnesiac old tailor. Tora has been held prisoner for many years by the Blanks, to do their tailoring; he has compensated by sending his detachable ears flying about the countryside to hear the news.
Meanwhile,Dorothy is accidentally transported toHollywood, where she meets Humpy, a live stunt dummy, whom she brings back to Oz. They escape the Back Talkers in Eht Kcab Sdoow (by running backwards), and meet the Scooters who help scoot them on their way.Kabumpo the Elegant Elephant shows up to provide transport (of the mundane sort). Dorothy's party encounters Snip and Tora, and Mombi and Pajuka too. They come to the conclusion that Humpy the dummy is the enchanted Pastoria.
Eventually, matters are clarified and settled: Pajuka is restored to humanity, but Humpy proves not to be the missing king after all. Old Tora is disenchanted and turns out to be Pastoria. He spurns any notion of returning to his throne, however; he is content to settle down as a humble tailor in theEmerald City, with Snip as his apprentice and Humpy as his tailor's dummy.
In a rare act of Ozite capital punishment, Mombi is ruthlessly doused with water and melts away like theWicked Witch of the West, so that nothing is left of her but her buckled shoes.
Reilly & Lee took a new approach to publicizing its Oz books in 1925. Thompson wrote a short play for child actors titledA Day in Oz, with songs composed byNorman Sherrerd. The play was performed in bookstores and department stores by local children, with costumes provided by Reilly & Lee. The performances promoted each year's Oz book, and continued through the 1920s.[6]
InA Brief Guide to Oz, Paul Simpson notes that Mombi being put to death "caused considerable controversy with Oz fans."[7]
| TheOz books | ||
|---|---|---|
| Previous book: Grampa in Oz | The Lost King of Oz 1925 | Next book: The Hungry Tiger of Oz |
