Toto

By: A.J. Hackwith

“When in doubt, cause chaos. That’s the motto of terriers everywhere, and it’s always served us well.”

A.J. Hackwith, Toto

*This post contains spoilers for Toto

Overview:

I was mostly a Good Dog until they sold me out to animal control, okay?

But if it’s a choice between Oz, with its creepy little singing dudes, and being behind bars in gray old Kansas, I’ll choose the place where animals talk and run the show for now, thanks.

It’s not my fault that the kid is stuck here too, or that she stumbled into a tug-of-war over a pair of slippers that don’t even taste good. Now one witch in good eyeliner calls her pretty and we’re off on a quest? Teenagers.

I try to tell her she’s falling in with the wrong crowd when she befriends a freaking hedge wizard made of straw, that blue jay with revolutionary aspirations, and the walking tin can. Still, I’m not one to judge when there’s the small matter of a coup in the Forest Kingdom….

Look, something really stinks in Oz, and this Wizard guy and the witches positively reek of it. As usual, it’s going to be up to a sensible little dog to do a big dog’s job and get to the bottom of it.

And trust me: Little dogs can get away with anything.

Toto

The Positives

The concept is great. Oz through the eyes of Toto who is often smarter and more strategic than his companions but can’t communicate effectively… or so you think.

I did really like that the author used elements of the original book and the more modern Wizard of Oz Cannon. The silver slippers are a nice detail. I like that they stayed true to the silver slippers and did not revert to the newer ruby slippers.

Also, it is accepted today that the Wicked Witch of the East is not the bad guy. I can’t recall a single modern story that has her as the villain. Toto continues this trend and makes it obvious that the Wizard is the real enemy.

Another positive was the character details and individual stories. Dorothy’s companions are a flushed out version of the original characters. They are much more complex and their motives to help Dorothy make more sense.

The Negatives

The story followed the traditional movie plot almost scene for scene. Yes, a few things from Toto’s point of view was added but it was really just a cut and paste. I would have loved to have some deviation and twists. Oz is a world were you could do so much so it felt like a missed opportunity.

I felt myself skimming the paragraphs still being able to follow what was happening. There was nothing holding me into the story.

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Overall,

The book felt like fan fiction. Mostly because (for all intents and purposes) it is. I wanted to see new things or use the themes of Oz but in a different story and, we did not get that.

I think a good retelling or story from another POV gives the reader something they hadn’t gotten from the original work, Expanding on the world. I just didn’t feel that this was necessary or needed in the Oz cannon.

Rating: 2.5/5 stars