Friday, May 10, 2019

This Week's Oz Short Story

The 2001 edition of Oziana was the product of several crises. The journal had not been selling well, it had had few original illusrations for some time, there were those in the Oz Club who wanted to discontinue it—and then editor Robin Olderman had a computer crash, losing everything he had planned for the issue! So the Club approached Joel Harris, then head of Special Publications, about temporarily taking over, and putting out both a 2001 and 2002 issue in time for the Club's summer conventions in 2002. (Yes, the 2001 issue came out a year late.) He wrote to a few people, asking for help, and they came through like nobody's business. It proved to be a new lease on life for Oziana, as these two issues were larger than it had been for a long time, and both issues even had color covers for the first time.

There is a good reason I am skipping the first story in this issue, which I'll tell you about when the time comes. I will instead start with the second story, "The Many Trees" by Kieran F. Miller, with illustrations by Marcus Mébès. Visiting her friend Pethri the Tree Fairy in the Forest of Burzee, Polychrome learns about an enchanted tree that Pethri is not allowed to care for. It is a human who has been punished for crimes against the forest. This troubles Polly, so the next time she is in the Emerald City she brings the matter to Ozma's attention. Ozma, too, is disturbed by some of the ethical questions this enchantment raises, so she and Polly meet with Queen Zurline and Pethri in Burzee, where they learn that many years ago, a woodcutter tried to chop down an oak. While this violated the Law of the Forest, the oak is now healed, and the woodman's brother turns out to have been caring for the enchanted tree all this time. Zurline now sees that her punishment may have gone too far, and had unforeseen consequences for others. She disenchants the woodcutter, and he and his brother are happily reunited. Polychrome is disappointed, however, that she didn't have a bigger adventure.

It's a charming story, even if it doesn't have a lot of action. Zurline, last seen in The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus, has some terrific character growth, and Pethri is a fun new character whom it would be great to see having an adventure of her own.

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