In the third volume of Gregory Maguire’s acclaimed series, the Wicked Years, we return to Oz, seen now through the eyes of the Cowardly Lion.
While civil war looms in Oz, Brrr—the Cowardly Lion—surrenders the story of his life to a tetchy oracle named Yackle. Abandoned as a cub, Brrr’s path from infancy in the Great Gillikan Forest is no Yellow Brick Road. Seeking to redress an early mistake, he trudges through a swamp of ghosts, becomes implicated in a massacre of trolls, falls in love with a forbidding Cat princess, and avoids a jail sentence by agreeing to serve as a lackey to the war-mongering Emperor of Oz.
A portrait of a would-be survivor and a panoramic glimpse of a world gone shrill with war fever, Gregory Maguire’s A Lion Among Men is written with the sympathy and power that have made his books contemporary classics.
Industry Reviews
"The third book in Maguire's Wicked Years is at once funny, charming, harrowing, bleak and incredibly beautiful."--The American Chronicle "Entertaining....The author mixes some relatively weighty existential themes--the search for self, faith, redemption--into his whimsical story line. [A] darkly enchanting saga"--Publishers Weekly "This Oz goes far beyond L. Frank Baum's; it's as surreal as a dream, but as immaculately and impeccably detailed as history. Maguire's wizardlike grasp over every aspect of this reinvented land rivals classic literary landscapes like Tolkien's Middle Earth and Faulkner's Yoknapatawpha County."--Albany Times Union "Much to savor, laugh at, and think about. . . . A page-turning fantasy and a timely political allegory."--USA Today "As usual, Maguire, a seasoned fabulist, populates his version of Oz with a cast of utterly fantastical characters who must face their own inner demons while tumult and uncertainty rages around them. An absolute must-read for fans of this ever-evolving dark fairy tale."--Booklist "Engrossing...Maguire is a masterful storyteller with an uncanny flair for mixing political and personal while exploring what it means--and what it costs--to be accepted in a society."--New York Daily News "So well-crafted that readers of all ages could enjoy witnessing Brrrr's transformation from an insecure kitten in the woods to a compassionate, engaged 'manimal.'"--Christian Science Monitor A New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Boston Globe, Wall Street Journal, Denver Post, and USA Today bestseller--No Source "The minute you open A Lion Among Men, you're back in Maguire's exquisitely detailed environment, caught up once again in his geography, his characters, his worldview, touched anew by the loneliness that lurks in the heart of all things."--New Orleans Times-Picayune "Maguire's work is melodic, symphonic and beautiful; it is dejected and biting and brave. . . . In fabulous details and self-mocking language, Maguire displays his gift for whimsical portrayals of the broken, the powerless, the hopeless, the bad."--Los Angeles Times Maguire s work is melodic, symphonic and beautiful; it is dejected and biting and brave. . . . In fabulous details and self-mocking language, Maguire displays his gift for whimsical portrayals of the broken, the powerless, the hopeless, the bad. --Los Angeles Times" Much to savor, laugh at, and think about. . . . A page-turning fantasy and a timely political allegory. --USA Today" Entertaining....The author mixes some relatively weighty existential themes the search for self, faith, redemption into his whimsical story line. [A] darkly enchanting saga --Publishers Weekly" This Oz goes far beyond L. Frank Baum s; it s as surreal as a dream, but as immaculately and impeccably detailed as history. Maguire s wizardlike grasp over every aspect of this reinvented land rivals classic literary landscapes like Tolkien s Middle Earth and Faulkner s Yoknapatawpha County. --Albany Times Union" So well-crafted that readers of all ages could enjoy witnessing Brrrr s transformation from an insecure kitten in the woods to a compassionate, engaged manimal. --Christian Science Monitor" The third book in Maguire s Wicked Years is at once funny, charming, harrowing, bleak and incredibly beautiful. --The American Chronicle" Engrossing...Maguire is a masterful storyteller with an uncanny flair for mixing political and personal while exploring what it means and what it costs to be accepted in a society. --New York Daily News" As usual, Maguire, a seasoned fabulist, populates his version of Oz with a cast of utterly fantastical characters who must face their own inner demons while tumult and uncertainty rages around them. An absolute must-read for fans of this ever-evolving dark fairy tale. --Booklist" The minute you open A Lion Among Men, you re back in Maguire s exquisitely detailed environment, caught up once again in his geography, his characters, his worldview, touched anew by the loneliness that lurks in the heart of all things. --New Orleans Times-Picayune"
