The Lizard of Oz and Other Stories

Book excerpt: The Lizard of Oz is a satiric, child-like fantasy, for children fifth grade and up and also for adults. This is a revised and expanded version of the underground classic, self-published in 1974. "When an elementary class sets out on a quest to save the world from disenchantment, their adventures reveal paradoxes of the human mind and ways of awakening the magic within us." The Lizard has captured the imaginations of an enthusiastic cadre of fans, who enjoy reading it to their children. The "other Stories" include: Now and Then -- Once upon a space there was a time, a cute little time. Her name was Now... She saw him. And he saw her. And Now and Then. Then and Now played and played and played. Now and Then -- the greatest playmates of all time. Julie's Book: The Littler Princess -- Long ago, there was a castle with towers taller than church steeples, with stairs that wound round and around a thousand steps high. And at the top of one of those towers lived a little princess named Julie... But in spite of everything she did to make herself miserable, she lived happily ever after. Mary Jane's Book: the Book of Animals -- It was summer vacation, and everything was different: Mary Jane didn't have to go to school, and everything she just loved turned into a car -- all the animals, that is... And Leroy and James and Ricky and Raymond and Michael and David and Penny and Frank and Julie and Desire and Miss Morgan rode on horses and cows and birds and brand-new animals. And everybody was happy -- especially the animals. The Little Oops Named Ker Plop -- Once beneath a space there was an oops named Ker Plop. She had fallen all the way down through that vast empty space and had landed in the middle of nowhere... Soon they felt like they had everything they ever wanted. And they loved everybody, and everybody loved them. And they were at home everywhere. Just the little oops named Ker Plop and the nobody named Norris. Other stories in this collection: Hundreds and Hundreds of Gerbils -- A parent who is trying to avoid getting pets is outmaneuvered by his kids and winds up with hundreds and hundreds of gerbils.