The Marvelous Neverland of Oz
Oz-Wonderland Series Book 4
Fantasy
Ron Glick
January 1, 2016
ebook
176
author
Wonderland and the Looking Glass World have been joined to Oz, saving three faery lands from destruction - but nothing is as simple as this when the Cheshire Cat is involved.
Meanwhile, the March Hare leads a renegade army from Wonderland and Mombi plots to bring even more chaos in an effort to escape Oz. Glinda must delve into her own past - but will what she discovers require the greatest sacrifice of all? And as three magical realms seek to find balance, an eternally young boy makes his way to Oz with secrets of yet another faery world - Neverland.
With a faithful eye to the original Baum, Carroll and Barrie classics, The Marvelous Neverland of Oz launches the next exciting chapter in the modern classic Oz-Wonderland series.
Ron Glick’s Oz-Wonderland world has expanded now to include Neverland, and with the introduction of this new land comes a teaser about other lands we can expect to read about in later books.
I don’t want to spoil the plot or give away any of the twists, but I’m sure Dorothy, Alice, and now Peter Pan will be traveling to new lands in later books, and I’m excited to read Ron Glick’s take on whatever other well-known stories he decides to incorporate.
But I’ve gotten ahead of myself. In book 4 of the Oz-Wonderland series, we are introduced to Peter Pan, pre-Tinkerbell and pre-pirates. Peter is at a stage in his life where he doesn’t like any girls, and he and the Lost Boys spend all their time chasing after faeries to steal their dust.
A lot of other people and animals live on the island of Neverland, including newly arrived Crocodile. And it seems they all spend all their time chasing each other around the island. However, they also all avoid the center of the island, which has some ominous power.
Always on the hunt for adventure and looking for ways to increase his faerie dust, Peter follows his shadow to Alice, who he heard can jump through mirrors. Alice takes Peter to a strange new land, Oz (which now also contains Wonderland and the land from the Looking Glass).
Peter doesn’t trust any girls, so he quickly escapes Princess Ozma’s castle. But no one told Peter to be weary of cats, and he inadvertently gives away vital information to the crafty Cheshire Cat. Mombi also overhears them, unbeknownst to both the Cheshire Cat and Peter, and she uses that knowledge to escape from Emerald City to Neverland.
Meanwhile Glinda is struggling with the knowledge that she used to be a Wicked Witch, and the Wizard and Princess Ozma are trying to confine the Hare who has declared himself King and Queen.
Everything comes together nicely when the protagonists learn of Mombi’s escape, and they turn to Peter Pan for help. Because Neverland is only for young people, it’s up to Dorothy and Alice to travel there and save the day.
Like the other books in this series, Ron Glick does a great job of staying true to the stories’ original settings and rules, while still finding creative ways to tie together all the characters and give them new adventures.
At times, the backstory and dialogue feel a bit repetitious, but overall it’s a fun read—Ron’s fondness for the original stories of The Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland, Through the Looking Glass, and Peter Pan really shines through. The book does end on a large cliffhanger, which makes me impatient for the next book in the series.
I think I say this in all my reviews of Ron Glick’s books—I am a fan of his work and have enjoyed all his series. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens next to Dorothy, Alice, and Peter, and what new lands they may end up journeying to.
