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- Herausgeber: Bookish
- Kategorie: Für Kinder und Jugendliche
- Sprache: Englisch
- Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024
Step into a world of wonder and magic... Embark on an unforgettable adventure with Dorothy and her faithful dog Toto as they're whisked away from the Kansas prairies to the vibrant Land of Oz. This beloved tale has captivated readers for generations, weaving a tapestry of friendship, courage, and self-discovery. In this enchanting eBook edition of L. Frank Baum's masterpiece, you'll: Meet unforgettable characters like the Scarecrow, Tin Woodman, and Cowardly Lion Explore the dazzling Emerald City and face the mysterious Wizard of Oz Discover the true meaning of home and the power within yourself Praised by critics and cherished by millions, "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" has stood the test of time. The New York Times hails it as "America's greatest and best-loved homegrown fairytale," while The Library of Congress recognizes its profound cultural impact. Don't miss out on this magical journey that has inspired countless adaptations and touched hearts across generations. Click 'Buy Now' to add this timeless classic to your digital library and let the adventure begin!
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fairy tale, in which the wonderment and joy are retained and the heartachesandnightmaresareleftout.
L. Frank BaumChicago,April,1900.
The
Cyclone
DorothylivedinthemidstofthegreatKansasprairies,withUncleHenry,whowas a farmer, and Aunt Em, who was the farmer's wife. Their house wassmall, for the lumber to build it had to be carried by wagon many miles. Therewere four walls, a floor and a roof, which made one room; and this roomcontained a rusty looking cookstove, a cupboard for the dishes, a table, threeor four chairs, and the beds. Uncle Henry and Aunt Em had a big bed in onecorner, and Dorothy a little bed in another corner. There was no garret at all,and no cellar--except a small hole dug in the ground, called a cyclone cellar,where the family could go in case one of those great whirlwinds arose, mightyenough to crush any building in its path. It was reached by a trap door in themiddleofthefloor,fromwhichaladderleddownintothesmall,darkhole.
WhenDorothystoodinthedoorwayandlookedaround,shecouldseenothingbut the great gray prairie on every side. Not a tree nor a house broke the broadsweep of flat country that reached to the edge of the sky in all directions. Thesun had baked the plowed land into a gray mass, with little cracks runningthroughit.Eventhegrasswasnotgreen,forthesunhadburnedthetopsofthelong blades until they were the same gray color to be seen everywhere. Oncethe house had been painted, but the sun blistered the paint and the rainswasheditaway,andnowthehousewasasdullandgrayaseverythingelse.
When Aunt Em came there to live she was a young, pretty wife. The sun andwind had changed her, too. They had taken the sparkle from her eyes and leftthem a sober gray; they had taken the red from her cheeks and lips, and theyweregrayalso.Shewasthinandgaunt,andneversmilednow.WhenDorothy,who was an orphan, first came to her, Aunt Em had been so startled by thechild's laughter that she would scream and press her hand upon her heartwhenever Dorothy's merry voice reached her ears; and she still looked at thelittlegirlwithwonderthatshecouldfindanythingtolaughat.
Uncle Henry never laughed. He worked hard from morning till night and didnot know what joy was. He was gray also, from his long beard to his roughboots,andhelookedsternandsolemn,andrarelyspoke.
It was Toto that made Dorothy laugh, and saved her from growing as gray asher other surroundings. Toto was not gray; he was a little black dog, with longsilky hair and small black eyes that twinkled merrily on either side of hisfunny, wee nose. Toto played all day long, and Dorothy played with him, andlovedhimdearly.
Today, however, they were not playing. Uncle Henry sat upon the doorstepand looked anxiously at the sky, which was even grayer than usual. Dorothystood in the door with Toto in her arms, and looked at the sky too. Aunt Emwaswashingthedishes.
From the far north they heard a low wail of the wind, and Uncle Henry andDorothy could see where the long grass bowed in waves before the comingstorm. There now came a sharp whistling in the air from the south, and as theyturned their eyes that way they saw ripples in the grass coming from thatdirectionalso.
SuddenlyUncleHenrystoodup.
"There's a cyclone coming, Em," he called to his wife. "I'll go look after thestock."Thenherantowardtheshedswherethecowsandhorseswerekept.
Aunt Em dropped her work and came to the door. One glance told her of thedangercloseathand.
"Quick,Dorothy!"shescreamed."Runforthecellar!"
Toto jumped out of Dorothy's arms and hid under the bed, and the girl startedto get him. Aunt Em, badly frightened, threw open the trap door in the floorand climbed down the ladder into the small, dark hole. Dorothy caught Toto atlast and started to follow her aunt. When she was halfway across the roomthere came a great shriek from the wind, and the house shook so hard that shelostherfootingandsatdownsuddenlyuponthefloor.
Thenastrangethinghappened.
The house whirled around two or three times and rose slowly through the air.Dorothyfeltasifsheweregoingupinaballoon.
The north and south winds met where the house stood, and made it the exactcenter of the cyclone. In the middle of a cyclone the air is generally still, butthe great pressure of the wind on every side of the house raised it up higherand higher, until it was at the very top of the cyclone; and there it remainedandwascarriedmilesandmilesawayaseasilyasyoucouldcarryafeather.
Itwas very dark, andthe wind howled horriblyaround her, but Dorothyfound
she was riding quite easily. After the first few whirls around, and one othertime when the house tipped badly, she felt as if she were being rocked gently,likeababyinacradle.
Toto did not like it. He ran about the room, now here, now there, barkingloudly; but Dorothy sat quite still on the floor and waited to see what wouldhappen.
Once Toto got too near the open trap door, and fell in; and at first the little girlthought she had lost him. But soon she saw one of his ears sticking up throughthe hole, for the strong pressure of the air was keeping him up so that he couldnotfall.Shecrepttothehole,caughtTotobytheear,anddraggedhimintotheroom again, afterward closing the trap door so that no more accidents couldhappen.
Hour after hour passed away, and slowly Dorothy got over her fright; but shefelt quite lonely, and the wind shrieked so loudly all about her that she nearlybecamedeaf.Atfirstshehadwonderedifshewouldbedashedtopieceswhenthehousefellagain;butasthehourspassedandnothingterriblehappened,shestopped worrying and resolved to wait calmly and see what the future wouldbring. At last she crawled over the swaying floor to her bed, and lay downuponit;andTotofollowedandlaydownbesideher.
Inspiteoftheswayingofthehouseandthewailingofthewind,Dorothysoonclosedhereyesandfellfastasleep.
The
Council
with
the
Munchkins
She was awakened by a shock, so sudden and severe that if Dorothy had notbeen lying on the soft bed she might have been hurt. As it was, the jar madeher catch her breath and wonder what had happened; and Toto put his coldlittle nose into her face and whined dismally. Dorothy sat up and noticed thatthe house was not moving; nor was it dark, for the bright sunshine came in atthewindow,floodingthelittleroom.ShesprangfromherbedandwithTotoatherheelsranandopenedthedoor.
Thelittlegirlgaveacryofamazementandlookedabouther,hereyesgrowingbiggerandbiggeratthewonderfulsightsshesaw.
Thecyclonehadsetthehousedownverygently--foracyclone--inthemidstofacountryofmarvelousbeauty.Therewerelovelypatchesofgreenswardall
about, with stately trees bearing rich and luscious fruits. Banks of gorgeousflowers were on every hand, and birds with rare and brilliant plumage sangand fluttered in the trees and bushes. A little way off was a small brook,rushing and sparkling along between green banks, and murmuring in a voiceverygratefultoalittlegirlwhohadlivedsolongonthedry,grayprairies.
Whileshestoodlookingeagerlyatthestrangeandbeautifulsights,shenoticed coming toward her a group of the queerest people she had ever seen.They were not as big as the grown folk she had always been used to; butneither were they very small. In fact, they seemed about as tall as Dorothy,who was a well-grown child for her age, although they were, so far as looksgo,manyyearsolder.
Three were men and one a woman, and all were oddly dressed. They woreround hats that rose to a small point a foot above their heads, with little bellsaroundthebrimsthattinkledsweetlyastheymoved.Thehatsofthemenwereblue;thelittlewoman'shatwaswhite,andsheworeawhitegownthathunginpleats from her shoulders. Over it were sprinkled little stars that glistened inthe sun like diamonds. The men were dressed in blue, of the same shade astheir hats, and wore well-polished boots with a deep roll of blue at the tops.The men, Dorothy thought, were about as old as Uncle Henry, for two of themhad beards. But the little woman was doubtless much older. Her face wascoveredwithwrinkles,herhairwasnearlywhite,andshewalkedratherstiffly.
When these people drew near the house where Dorothy was standing in thedoorway, they paused and whispered among themselves, as if afraid to comefarther. But the little old woman walked up to Dorothy, made a low bow andsaid,inasweetvoice:
"You are welcome, most noble Sorceress, to the land of the Munchkins. Weare so grateful to you for having killed the Wicked Witch of the East, and forsettingourpeoplefreefrombondage."
Dorothy listened to this speech with wonder. What could the little womanpossiblymeanbycallingherasorceress,andsayingshehadkilledtheWickedWitchoftheEast?Dorothywasaninnocent,harmlesslittlegirl,whohadbeencarriedbyacyclonemanymilesfromhome;andshehadneverkilledanythinginallherlife.
But the little woman evidently expected her to answer; so Dorothy said, withhesitation, "You are very kind, but there must be some mistake. I have notkilledanything."
"Yourhousedid,anyway,"repliedthelittleoldwoman,withalaugh,"andthatisthesamething.See!"shecontinued,pointingtothecornerofthehouse.
"Therearehertwofeet,stillstickingoutfromunderablockofwood."
Dorothy looked, and gave a little cry of fright. There, indeed, just under thecorner of the great beam the house rested on, two feet were sticking out, shodinsilvershoeswithpointedtoes.
"Oh,dear!Oh,dear!"criedDorothy,claspingherhandstogetherindismay."Thehousemusthavefallenonher.Whatevershallwedo?"
"Thereisnothingtobedone,"saidthelittlewomancalmly."Butwhowasshe?"askedDorothy.
"She was the Wicked Witch of the East, as I said," answered the little woman."She has held all the Munchkins in bondage for many years, making themslave for her night and day. Now they are all set free, and are grateful to youforthefavor."
"WhoaretheMunchkins?"inquiredDorothy.
"TheyarethepeoplewholiveinthislandoftheEastwheretheWickedWitchruled."
"AreyouaMunchkin?"askedDorothy.
"No, but I am their friend, although I live in the land of the North. When theysaw the Witch of the East was dead the Munchkins sent a swift messenger tome,andIcameatonce.IamtheWitchoftheNorth."
"Oh,gracious!"criedDorothy."Areyouarealwitch?"
"Yes, indeed," answered the little woman. "But I am a good witch, and thepeople love me. I am not as powerful as the Wicked Witch was who ruledhere,orIshouldhavesetthepeoplefreemyself."
"ButIthoughtallwitcheswerewicked,"saidthegirl,whowashalffrightenedat facing a real witch. "Oh, no, that is a great mistake. There were only fourwitches in all the Land of Oz, and two of them, those who live in the Northand the South, are good witches. I know this is true, for I am one of themmyself, and cannot be mistaken. Those who dwelt in the East and the Westwere, indeed, wicked witches; but now that you have killed one of them, thereisbutoneWickedWitchinalltheLandofOz--theonewholivesintheWest."
"But,"saidDorothy,afteramoment'sthought,"AuntEmhastoldmethatthewitcheswerealldead--yearsandyearsago."
"WhoisAuntEm?"inquiredthelittleoldwoman.
"SheismyauntwholivesinKansas,whereIcamefrom."
The Witch of the North seemed to think for a time, with her head bowed andher eyes upon the ground. Then she looked up and said, "I do not know whereKansasis,forIhaveneverheardthatcountrymentionedbefore.Buttellme,isitacivilizedcountry?"
"Oh,yes,"repliedDorothy.
"Then that accounts for it. In the civilized countries I believe there are nowitches left, nor wizards, nor sorceresses, nor magicians. But, you see, theLand of Oz has never been civilized, for we are cut off from all the rest of theworld.Thereforewestillhavewitchesandwizardsamongstus."
"Whoarethewizards?"askedDorothy.
"Oz himself is the Great Wizard," answered the Witch, sinking her voice to awhisper. "He is more powerful than all the rest of us together. He lives in theCityofEmeralds."
Dorothy was going to ask another question, but just then the Munchkins, whohad been standing silently by, gave a loud shout and pointed to the corner ofthehousewheretheWickedWitchhadbeenlying.
"What is it?" asked the little old woman, and looked, and began to laugh. Thefeet of the dead Witch had disappeared entirely, and nothing was left but thesilvershoes.
"She was so old," explained the Witch of the North, "that she dried up quicklyin the sun. That is the end of her. But the silver shoes are yours, and you shallhave them to wear." She reached down and picked up the shoes, and aftershakingthedustoutofthemhandedthemtoDorothy.
"The Witch of the East was proud of those silver shoes," said one of theMunchkins, "and there is some charm connected with them; but what it is weneverknew."
Dorothy carried the shoes into the house and placed them on the table. ThenshecameoutagaintotheMunchkinsandsaid:
"I am anxious to get back to my aunt and uncle, for I am sure they will worryaboutme.Canyouhelpmefindmyway?"
TheMunchkinsandtheWitchfirstlookedatoneanother,andthenatDorothy,andthenshooktheirheads.
"AttheEast,notfarfromhere,"saidone,"thereisagreatdesert,andnone
couldlivetocrossit."
"It is the same at the South," said another, "for I have been there and seen it.TheSouthisthecountryoftheQuadlings."
"I am told," said the third man, "that it is the same at the West. And thatcountry, where the Winkies live, is ruled by the Wicked Witch of the West,whowouldmakeyouherslaveifyoupassedherway."
"The North is my home," said the old lady, "and at its edge is the same greatdesert that surrounds this Land of Oz. I'm afraid, my dear, you will have tolivewithus."
Dorothy began to sob at this, for she felt lonely among all these strangepeople. Her tears seemed to grieve the kind-hearted Munchkins, for theyimmediately took out their handkerchiefs and began to weep also. As for thelittle old woman, she took off her cap and balanced the point on the end of hernose, while she counted "One, two, three" in a solemn voice. At once the capchangedtoaslate,onwhichwaswritteninbig,whitechalkmarks:
"LETDOROTHYGOTOTHECITYOFEMERALDS"
The little old woman took the slate from her nose, and having read the wordsonit,asked,"IsyournameDorothy,mydear?"
"Yes,"answeredthechild,lookingupanddryinghertears.
"ThenyoumustgototheCityofEmeralds.PerhapsOzwillhelpyou.""Whereisthiscity?"askedDorothy.
"It is exactly in the center of the country, and is ruled by Oz, the Great WizardItoldyouof."
"Isheagoodman?"inquiredthegirlanxiously.
"HeisagoodWizard.WhetherheisamanornotIcannottell,forIhaveneverseenhim."
"HowcanIgetthere?"askedDorothy.
"You must walk. It is a long journey, through a country that is sometimespleasant and sometimes dark and terrible. However, I will use all the magicartsIknowoftokeepyoufromharm."
"Won'tyougowithme?"pleadedthegirl,whohadbeguntolookuponthelittleoldwomanasheronlyfriend.
"No, I cannot do that," she replied, "but I will give you my kiss, and no onewilldareinjureapersonwhohasbeenkissedbytheWitchoftheNorth."
She came close to Dorothy and kissed her gently on the forehead. Where herlips touched the girl they left a round, shining mark, as Dorothy found outsoonafter.
"The road to the City of Emeralds is paved with yellow brick," said the Witch,"so you cannot miss it. When you get to Oz do not be afraid of him, but tellyourstoryandaskhimtohelpyou.Good-bye,mydear."
The three Munchkins bowed low to her and wished her a pleasant journey,after which they walked away through the trees. The Witch gave Dorothy afriendly little nod, whirled around on her left heel three times, and straightwaydisappeared, much to the surprise of little Toto, who barked after her loudlyenough when she had gone, because he had been afraid even to growl whileshestoodby.
But Dorothy, knowing her to be a witch, had expected her to disappear in justthatway,andwasnotsurprisedintheleast.
How
Dorothy
Saved
the
Scarecrow
When Dorothy was left alone she began to feel hungry. So she went to thecupboard and cut herself some bread, which she spread with butter. She gavesome to Toto, and taking a pail from the shelf she carried it down to the littlebrook and filled it with clear, sparkling water. Toto ran over to the trees andbegan to bark at the birds sitting there. Dorothy went to get him, and saw suchdelicious fruit hanging from the branches that she gathered some of it, findingitjustwhatshewantedtohelpoutherbreakfast.
Thenshewentbacktothehouse,andhavinghelpedherselfandTototoagooddrinkofthecool,clearwater,shesetaboutmakingreadyforthejourneytotheCityofEmeralds.
Dorothy had only one other dress, but that happened to be clean and washanging on a peg beside her bed. It was gingham, with checks of white andblue; and although the blue was somewhat faded with many washings, it wasstill a pretty frock. The girl washed herself carefully, dressed herself in theclean gingham, and tied her pink sunbonnet on her head. She took a littlebasketandfilleditwithbreadfromthecupboard,layingawhiteclothoverthe
top.Thenshelookeddownatherfeetandnoticedhowoldandwornhershoeswere.
"They surely will never do for a long journey, Toto," she said. And Totolooked up into her face with his little black eyes and wagged his tail to showheknewwhatshemeant.
At that moment Dorothy saw lying on the table the silver shoes that hadbelongedtotheWitchoftheEast.
"I wonder if they will fit me," she said to Toto. "They would be just the thingtotakealongwalkin,fortheycouldnotwearout."
She took off her old leather shoes and tried on the silver ones, which fitted heraswellasiftheyhadbeenmadeforher.
Finallyshepickedupherbasket.
"Come along, Toto," she said. "We will go to the Emerald City and ask theGreatOzhowtogetbacktoKansasagain."
She closed the door, locked it, and put the key carefully in the pocket of herdress. And so, with Toto trotting along soberly behind her, she started on herjourney.
There were several roads nearby, but it did not take her long to find the onepaved with yellow bricks. Within a short time she was walking briskly towardthe Emerald City, her silver shoes tinkling merrily on the hard, yellow road-bed.Thesunshonebrightandthebirdssangsweetly,andDorothydidnotfeelnearly so bad as you might think a little girl would who had been suddenlywhisked away from her own country and set down in the midst of a strangeland.
She was surprised, as she walked along, to see how pretty the country wasabouther.Therewereneatfencesatthesidesoftheroad,paintedadaintybluecolor, and beyond them were fields of grain and vegetables in abundance.Evidently the Munchkins were good farmers and able to raise large crops.Onceinawhileshewouldpassahouse,andthepeoplecameouttolookatherandbowlowasshewentby;foreveryoneknewshehadbeenthemeansofdestroying the Wicked Witch and setting them free from bondage. The housesof the Munchkins were odd-looking dwellings, for each was round, with a bigdome for a roof. All were painted blue, for in this country of the East blue wasthefavoritecolor.
Toward evening, when Dorothy was tired with her long walk and began towonderwheresheshouldpassthenight,shecametoahouseratherlargerthan
