Speedy in Oz

Last updated
Ojo in Oz
Speedy cover.jpg
Cover of Speedy in Oz.
Author Ruth Plumly Thompson
Illustrator John R. Neill
LanguageEnglish
Series The Oz Books
Genre Children's novel
Publisher Reilly & Lee
Publication date
1934
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint (Hardcover)
Pages298
Preceded by Ojo in Oz  
Followed by The Wishing Horse of Oz  

Speedy in Oz (1934) is the twenty-eighth book in the Oz series created by L. Frank Baum and his successors, and the fourteenth written by Ruth Plumly Thompson. [1] It was illustrated by John R. Neill. The novel was followed by The Wishing Horse of Oz (1935).

Contents

This book features yet another island which floats in the sky: Umbrella Island, which flies by virtue of a huge umbrella with lifting and shielding powers. The king is not very good at steering the flying island; he bumps it into a giant's head. For compensation, Loxo, the great brute, demands the King's daughter Gureeda, whom he mistakes for a boy, as a servant to lace his huge boots. However, he grants the Umbrella Islanders three months to train the child to be a bootlacer.

Meanwhile, the boy Speedy (from The Yellow Knight of Oz ) returns for another adventure. While inspecting a dinosaur skeleton, Speedy is blown by a geyser into the air. The skeleton comes magically to life and becomes Terrybubble, a live dinosaur skeleton. Terrybubble and Speedy land on Umbrella Island. Speedy develops a friendship with Princess Gureeda. He also becomes friendly with the island's resident wizard, Waddy. An unscrupulous minister, however, notices that Speedy and Gureeda look very much alike and could pass for fraternal twins. [2] He hatches a plot to compensate the giant by handing Speedy over to him as a slave instead of Gureeda. Terrybubble learns of this plot, and he parachutes off the island with Speedy and Gureeda. All three are captured by Loxo, and it is up to the wizard Waddy to save them.

Aside from a brief consultation with Princess Ozma and her advisers at the conclusion, the book deals exclusively with characters of Thompson's creation. [3]

Reception

The Billings Gazette said that the book offers "rollicking fun and quaking amazement for the under 12s," lauding it as a "book of glorified nonsense". [4] The Boston Globe called it an "entrancing story". [5]

Under current United States copyright laws, Speedy in Oz is scheduled to enter the public domain on January 1, 2030. All of Thompson's subsequent Oz books for Reilly had their copyrights expire prematurely, thus this will be the last copyright in the series to lapse.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ruth Plumly Thompson</span> American author of childrens books (1891–1976)

Ruth Plumly Thompson was an American writer of children's stories, best known for writing many novels placed in Oz, the fictional land of L. Frank Baum's classic children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and its sequels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mombi</span> Fictional character

Mombi is a fictional character in L. Frank Baum's classic children's series of Oz Books. She is the most significant antagonist in the second Oz book The Marvelous Land of Oz (1904), and is alluded to in other works. Mombi plays a very important role in the fictional history of Oz.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kabumpo</span> Fictional character

Kabumpo, the Elegant Elephant of Pumperdink, is a fictional character in the Oz books of Ruth Plumly Thompson.

<i>The Giant Horse of Oz</i> 1928 novel

The Giant Horse of Oz (1928) is the twenty-second book in the Oz series created by L. Frank Baum and his successors, and the eighth written by Ruth Plumly Thompson. It was illustrated by John R. Neill. The novel was followed by Jack Pumpkinhead of Oz (1929).

<i>The Yellow Knight of Oz</i> 1930 book by Ruth Plumly Thompson

The Yellow Knight of Oz (1930) is the twenty-fourth book in the Oz series created by L. Frank Baum and his successors, and the tenth written by Ruth Plumly Thompson. It was illustrated by John R. Neill. The novel was followed by Pirates in Oz (1931).

<i>Ojo in Oz</i> 1933 book by Ruth Plumly Thompson

Ojo in Oz (1933) is the twenty-seventh book in the Oz series created by L. Frank Baum and his successors, and the thirteenth written by Ruth Plumly Thompson. It was illustrated by John R. Neill. The novel was followed by Speedy in Oz (1934).

<i>The Wishing Horse of Oz</i> 1935 novel

The Wishing Horse of Oz (1935) is the twenty-ninth book in the Oz series created by L. Frank Baum and his successors, and the fifteenth written by Ruth Plumly Thompson. It was illustrated by John R. Neill. The novel was followed by Captain Salt in Oz (1936). This entry marked the point at which Thompson had written more Oz books than Baum.

<i>Captain Salt in Oz</i> 1936 book by Ruth Plumly Thompson

Captain Salt in Oz (1936) is the thirtieth book in the Oz series created by L. Frank Baum and his successors, and the sixteenth written by Ruth Plumly Thompson. It was illustrated by John R. Neill. The novel was followed by Handy Mandy in Oz (1937).

<i>Handy Mandy in Oz</i> 1937 book by Ruth Plumly Thompson

Handy Mandy in Oz (1937) is the thirty-first book in the Oz series created by L. Frank Baum and his successors, and the seventeenth written by Ruth Plumly Thompson. It was illustrated by John R. Neill. The novel was followed by The Silver Princess in Oz (1938).

<i>The Silver Princess in Oz</i> 1938 book by Ruth Plumly Thompson

The Silver Princess in Oz (1938) is the thirty-second book in the Oz series created by L. Frank Baum and his successors, and the eighteenth written by Ruth Plumly Thompson. It was illustrated by John R. Neill. The novel was followed by Ozoplaning with the Wizard of Oz (1939).

<i>The Shaggy Man of Oz</i> Book by Jack Snow

The Shaggy Man of Oz (1949) is the thirty-eighth book in the Oz series created by L. Frank Baum and his successors, and the second and last by Jack Snow. It was illustrated by Frank G. Kramer. The book was followed by The Hidden Valley of Oz (1951). The novel entered the public domain in the United States when its copyright was not renewed as required.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pastoria</span> Fictional character from L. Frank Baums Oz-series

King Pastoria is a fictional character mentioned in the Oz books by American author L. Frank Baum. He was the rightful ruler and King of the undiscovered Land of Oz, but was mysteriously removed from his position when the Wizard of Oz unexpectedly came to the country and took the throne, proclaiming himself as the new dominant ruler of Oz. Shortly after, Pastoria's only child and heir, Princess Ozma, suddenly vanished, leaving not a single clue of her whereabouts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jellia Jamb</span> Fictional character

Jellia Jamb is a fictional character from the classic children's series of Oz books by American author L. Frank Baum. She is first introduced in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900), as the head maid who works in the royal palace of the Emerald City which is the imperial capital of the Land of Oz. In later books, Jellia eventually becomes Princess Ozma's favorite servant out of the Emerald City's staff administration. She is also the protagonist of Ruth Plumly Thompson's 1939 novel Ozoplaning with the Wizard of Oz. Her name is a pun on the phrase "Jelly or jam?"

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jinnicky the Red Jinn</span> Fictional character

The Red Jinn, later known as Jinnicky, is one of Ruth Plumly Thompson's most frequently occurring characters in her Oz books. According to David L. Greene and Dick Martin, he is "the most fondly remembered" of all the characters Thompson created. The Jinn is a supernatural force that lives in a large red ginger jar.

<i>Yankee in Oz</i> Book by Ruth Plumly Thompson

Yankee in Oz is a 1972 novel in the Oz series by Ruth Plumly Thompson. It was the first published by The International Wizard of Oz Club. The novel was originally written in 1959, but because the Oz books were not selling, it was not published. A letter from the Henry Regnery Company, which bought Reilly & Lee, is reproduced in the front indicating the publisher's blessing for the new Oz book to appear.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Brown (Oz)</span> Fictional character

Peter Brown is a major character in the Oz novels of Ruth Plumly Thompson, who continued the series of Oz books after the death of their creator, L. Frank Baum. Thompson used Peter as the protagonist in three of her books: The Gnome King of Oz (1927), Jack Pumpkinhead of Oz (1929), and Pirates in Oz (1931).

The copyright status of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and related works in the United States is complicated for several reasons. The book series is very long-running, and written by multiple authors, so the books often fall on opposite sides of eligibility for copyright laws. There have also been multiple adaptations across many different media, which enjoy different kinds of copyright protection. The copyright law of the United States has changed many times, and impacted Oz works every time. As of 2024, twenty-nine Oz books and five films are in the public domain. Starting in 2019, an Oz book has entered the public domain every year. Barring another extension of copyright terms, all of the Famous Forty will be in the public domain by 2059.

References

  1. Simpson, Paul (2013). A Brief Guide to Oz. Constable & Robinson Ltd. p. 55. ISBN   978-1-47210-988-0 . Retrieved 10 February 2024.
  2. Jack Snow, Who's Who in Oz, Chicago, Reilly & Lee, 1954; New York, Peter Bedrick Books, 1988; pp. 87, 200, 210.
  3. Hearn, Michael Patrick (1983). "Ruth Plumly Thompson". In Cech, John (ed.). Dictionary of Literary Biography, vol 22: American Writers for Children, 1900-1960. Gale Research Company. p. 312. ISBN   0-8103-1146-1 . Retrieved 20 May 2024.
  4. "Looking Bookward". Billings Gazette. May 20, 1934. p. 18. Retrieved 23 February 2024.
  5. "Latest Books". Boston Globe. June 23, 1934. p. 15. Retrieved 23 February 2024.
The Oz books
Previous book:
Ojo in Oz
Speedy in Oz
1934
Next book:
The Wishing Horse of Oz