Yes! Another review out in The Star. Here is the link: http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2008/8/17/lifebookshelf/1658611&sec=lifebookshelf

And here is the original version:
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Author : Gregory Maguire

Published by Headline Review

Published in 2007

ISBN 978 0 7553 4155 9

399 pages

Reviewed by Koay Ee Ling

A unique fantasy novel for adults

‘Son of a Witch’ is the fifth adult fantasy novel in the WiCKED series written by Gregory Maguire. It is something like a sequel to Disney’s movie ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ an all-time classic famous for its yellow brick road.

Prior to this book, Maguire wrote ‘Wicked: the Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West’ which is about how the Wicked Witch came to be in ‘The Wizard of Oz’.  This book was a great success and received many good reviews.

Just as a refresher: in the Wizard of Oz, the protagonist is a girl named Dorothy who is blown by a tornado into the world of Oz. In this story, the Wicked Witch of the West is the villain whereas Dorothy is the hero. Elphaba, the Wicked Witch, was a green woman and supposedly pure evil.

Son of a Witch is the story of what happens after Dorothy kills the witch. Taking this as his starting point, Maguire built an entirely new epic journey with the focus on an obscure boy called Liir, instead of the focus being on Dorothy.

Son of a Witch is about Liir, vaguely suspected to be the son of Elphaba though nobody could be sure where he came from. Even Liir is not sure.

Maguire kept this mystery throughout the entire novel until the very end without making me frustrated or irritated. This is one of the factors which made it a good read for me.

He revealed it bit by bit in a series of memory flashbacks through Liir’s coma. Liir was discovered almost dead by a traveller who brought him to a mauntery – Oz’s strange version of a nunnery.

The old maunts (nuns) try to heal Liir and find out why some of their younger maunts were murdered, their faces literally peeled off their skulls.

The Superior Maunt, oldest and leader of the mauntery, remembers Liir as the little boy who was last seen tagging along with Elphaba. If Liir was found to be truly the son of a witch, he would be persecuted and crucified.

But then, we are never sure of his real identity until the very end. Instead, we’re brought through a series of adventures through his memories during coma and after he awakens from the coma.

The adventures are indeed bizarre and unpredictable. The plot gave me a number of pleasant and unpleasant surprises, which I would rather leave for the reader to find out.

I find Son of a Witch quite an ingenious piece of work though I was initially not quite used to Maguire’s style of writing.

He has his own peculiar style and does not use as much descriptive language as regular fantasy writers do. I had to use much of my own imagination to cook up images of his characters and sceneries.

However, I love the way the story is unravelled; even more so for its witty humour and  creativity.

Yes, in Maguire’s Oz, nuns drink alcohol; some tribes of animals talk and get harassed to convert to the government’s religion; scarecrows are cunning politic-players and the prison is a maze under the city of Oz.

There is one particular scene in the book which still tickles me: Sister Liquor (nun in charge of the brandy store) swinging and singing on a ladder while ‘checking’ on the brandy.

I also love the episode where Liir travels to Oz with Dorothy, the cowardly Lion, Tin Woodman, Scarecrow and Toto. Maguire was very sarcastic in his portrayal of these characters.

This fantasy sparked from a children’s story is truly for adult reading and enjoyment. That’s how starkingly real it can be. I say this because Maguire revealed all the rotten sides of human nature, set in the magical world of Oz.

He explored different sexual preferences, political corruption, hypocrisy, perversions of human nature and religious oppression.

On a serious note, Maguire gave me a touching insight into the heart and mind of an orphan (Liir) while experiencing his insecurities and realisations.

Gregory  Maguire has published five novels for adults and more than a dozen for children. His other adult novels are ‘Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister’, ‘Lost’ and ‘Mirror Mirror.’

His works have been published abroad and many titles have been translated into 8 foreign languages.