Elphie: A Wicked Childhood
By Sioph W. Leal
Elphie: A Wicked Childhood is the latest in Gregory Maguire’s Wicked series, taking the readers back to Elphaba Thropp’s childhood before she became the Wicked Witch, or even before she possessed any magic skill. Elphaba’s childhood could be relatively normal, she has siblings that get under her skin, a mother and father who aren’t interested in parenting but Elphaba must endure her glaringly obvious green-skin and aversion to water. Elphie: A Wicked Childhood takes the reader on a journey, focusing on Elphaba’s years when she was three, seven, ten and thirteen, showing the pivotal moments in her formative years while her father takes them on a journey of repentance.
One of the key themes within Elphie: A Wicked Childhood must be the loss of Elphaba’s mother, Melena Thropp. Melena is one of the focus points in the first part of the story, but we don’t get to delve into her character during these parts. While reading this book, it could have been assumed that Maguire was trying to factor in Erik Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development, and through the first part, we see Elphaba starting to assert within herself the world around her, but the short chapters and repetitive sentences make it difficult to follow. Elphaba’s teenage years are, by far, the most interesting part of the story; it’s just a shame that it took so long to get to. During her teenage years, Elphaba fully immersed herself in the Quadling Country way of life. Although she was reluctant to do so at first, it’s the first time in the novel that we see the emergence of who Elphaba will be; with her strong will and sense of justice for the animals, it’s a shame that Maguire didn’t use this as one of the focus points of the novel.
In her teenage years, Maguire throws in a random plot of Elphaba having a captivating singing voice. Readers of Maguire’s older Wicked works will be as equally surprised, as this was never mentioned. It could be said that this was added as an homage to the phenomenal stage and screen adaptation of his book, but it’s something that didn’t quite fit into this version of the character. Had more exploration been used to further develop Elphaba as a character, it could have worked, but it felt like a random addition to the already unfocused story of Elphie: A Wicked Childhood.
Animal rights and how they impact the Elphaba we meet at Shiz University and in her later years are not clearly defined. While Maguire does a good job at establishing Elphaba’s interest and fascination with these talking animals, nothing is explored outside of that. There is a potential injustice of a group of animals near Quadling Country, but it’s nothing of substantial impact to Elphaba’s overall story. In the earlier parts, it’s clear Maguire does not know which character to focus on. Between very short chapters that often feel like an excerpt and the repetitive sentences, it makes Elphaba’s childhood story difficult to engage with. There is nothing new to be discovered, no new insight into the green girl that is offered throughout this story, while it could have been better spent focusing on Elphaba and the relationships she builds both within and outside her small family.
Overall, it’s clear that Gregory Maguire is trying to target too many groups for Elphie: A Wicked Childhood. From the lack of focus to the random subplot of Elphaba’s beautiful singing talents, it feels as if Maguire was trying to water down his original novel series for a younger audience. Given the success of his adaptations, it’s not surprising, but it feels like this is what hindered what could have been an in-depth look into Elphaba Thropp and her upbringing.