The Emperor’s New Clothes
By Jason Zapata
Ignorant of his troubled kingdom and
His subject’s woes
Someone needs to tell the emperor to
Put on some clothes
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My Review of "Wicked: The Life and Times of The Wicked Witch of the West"
Gregory Maguire’s “Wicked” is a victory in revisionist fictional writing. The novel is based on the origins of the Wicked Witch of the West. The author takes his time in establishing his interpretation of OZ. In wonderful detail we are told of the different races such as the Munchkin Landers, Quadlings, and Arjiki. Maguire even goes so far as to create a volatile political climate. The Wizard of Oz is portrayed as a cruel dictator determined to strip away the rights of Animals (not to be confused with animals). These are talking beasts who strive to be first class citizens. But the real fulcrum on which this story rests is the complicated character of Elphaba – who eventually becomes the infamous Wicked Witch of the West.
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Wheat Field with Crows
By Jason Zapata
I was the one to find you.
You were in the very field you painted.
The wind sighed. The wheat swayed.
You lay still.
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