It’s a beautiful artifact.
A few weeks ago I journeyed to John K. King Bookstore in Detroit, MI. They had an entire shelf of first-edition Oz books. Most were too expensive for me, of course, but I was able to pick up two written by Ruth Plumly Thompson, the second Oz historian. (And, in my controversial opinion, better than L. Frank Baum.)
I gently carried them home. I just sat down to open up Kabumpo in Oz, which is supposed to be a pretty darn good one. I’d not read it yet, and was eager to do so.
I paged through. The binding was in terrible condition. Pages fell out. Still, the color plates shone, even after all these years. I wanted to see how long the book was… and discovered the first problem.
It was missing at least a few pages at the end. I have no clue how many, but the last page in the book ended in the middle of a sentence. Pretty sure that wasn’t the intent.
Good thing it’s available at Gutenberg Project. I download an epub and decided to switch to digital for the last chapter or so.
Satisfied, I turned to the front. The first chapter grabbed me. New characters I’d not met in Oz before! A vanishing birthday cake that returns only to explode in the royal court! A prince refusing to marry! A king wanting to dip half his subjects! Mystery and action!
And then… twenty pages missing right in the middle.
I set the book down. I couldn’t read it. After all that, I couldn’t read it.
I appreciate this book as an artifact. I love that it’s a first edition. But, old as it is… it’s a book. It’s meant to be read, not to be ogled at. I suppose it’s a bit like toys as told by Toy Story 2. They’re not meant for museums. They’re meant to be played with.
And so this book is a supreme disappoint for me. I could just read the free digital version, but that feels like such a disappointment. I don’t know I will. I haven’t decided yet.
But for the moment, I’m simply put out.
Jonathon Mast: Author 