Ruth Plumly Thompson 2 hr 40 min read

The Royal Historian expected a drowsy year of birthdays and visits, until a special radiogram arrives from the Emerald City: the deposed Gnome King Ruggedo is stirring up trouble in Oz once more.

Ruth Plumly Thompson's 1927 novel is a lively entry in the beloved Oz series. Warm, whimsical, gloriously inventive. Read it for a rousing Oz adventure starring the wicked old Gnome King, as Thompson, the second Royal Historian, spins a fresh tale of mischief and marvel in the fairyland of Baum.

In its time

Published in 1927, during the 1920s, the pulp era proper.

Reading it

2 hr 40 min read (a novel-length work, settle in).

Illustrated by

John R. Neill