L. Frank Baum: Royal Historian of Oz

Author: Angelica Shirley Carpenter & Jean Shirley
Title: L. Frank Baum: Royal Historian of Oz
Book Genre: Biography
Publishing Info: Lerner Publications, 139 pp

Summary: Wow! Anyone who appreciated/or did not appreciate the film The Wonderful Wizard of Oz , will surely appreciate Frank Baum’s work after reading this biography. The book begins with Baum’s life as a child who suffered from severe health problems, but managed to find a dream and passion that would not interact with his heart conditions. The authors have deeply researched Baum’s life and accomplishments to write this book. I personally had no idea about the other 13 Oz stories. This book talks about his journey’s in and out of the states. When Baum died in 1919, his legacy still continued. Most people are only familiar with the 1939 classic film released by MGM of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, but that production did not involve Frank, only his ideas from his book. “The Wizard of Oz is one of the 25 film titles to be protected as “national treasure” under the National Preservation Act of 1988.”

Personal Rating: *****

Rationale: Well-written, well researched material, detailed, great photos included

Reading Level: 7.2 Interest Level: 4th-8th

Thematic Areas: Determination, character, values, culture, diversity, perserverance

Subject Content: Social Studies, Language Arts, Geography

Possible problems or difficulties: N/A

Possible uses in the classroom: For a Geography lesson: Frank Baum and his wife Maud traveled all around the world, where he would write and get ideas. Have the students do a map of the places that Frank Baum traveled.
For a Social Studies unit, have the students do a timeline of events that happened in his lifetime.
For a language arts activity, have the students choose two of his Oz books and have them compare and contrast the characters, setting, and plot.
Also, have the students get into literature circle groups and choose one of the Oz books by Frank Baum to read and discuss.