I loved this book about a woman I knew nothing about. I admired her fierce nature and intelligent mind. I loved learning about the backstory of Oz.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book

The life story of Maud Gage Baum, wife of prolific author L. Frank Baum, is a compelling read on its own. Added to it is the background of the Wonderful Wizard of Oz book, the story of the MGM film based on it, and the character based on Judy Garland, playing Dorothy in the film. All this makes for a rich story and will probably make a terrific film, but as a book, something (for me) is lost in the author's style of writing which felt less artful than I would have wished, almost as if it were written for a younger audience (and yet that feels like a discredit to YA authors who write as beautifully for younger audiences in the same measure as writers of adult fiction) . The afterword and acknowledgements are, by contrast, very well written, so I wonder why the odd narrative voice was chosen.

My review: I really loved this story told from Maud’s point of view. Maud’s mother was the famous suffragette Matilda Gage and encouraged her daughter to be ferociously independent. She was one of the first women to attend Cornell University but left when she married Frank Baum.. She was a no nonsense wife and mother who was always trying to keep her husband somewhat grounded as he was always a dreamer. It is somewhat heartbreaking when Maud meets July Garland a lonely, desperate and exploited young girl. She reminds Maud of the niece she so wanted to help. Great read for lovers of the book and movie.

I loved The Wonderful Wizard of Oz as a child -- not just the movie, but ALL the books. I even read those by other authors than L. Frank Baum, but the rest paled in comparison to Baum's original stories. If you're a fan of the books or the movie, this is the book for you!

Told in alternating time periods -- 1939 as the movie is being filmed and the late 1800s when Baum and his wife, Maud, are meeting/dating/married. Both stories are equally compelling. Filled with anecdotes about the filming of the movie (accurately portrayed, as far as I can tell) that will delight any fan, and then the story of the "real" Dorothy. Sweet, touching, endearing, this is a story for any fan of OZ.

Admittedly, this is not amazing literary prose, but the story flows well and the transitions between time periods are well crafted. A very entertaining book and one I'm happy to have read and recommend.

Finding Dorothy by Elizabeth Letts is a charming imagining of the life of Mrs. Frank L. Baum.

In 1938 a seventy-seven-year-old Maud Baum pushes her way into MGM studios to fulfill her promise to her husband to always protect Dorothy. She isn't taken seriously, but nonplussed, continues to show up during the production of The Wizard of Oz to protect her husband's creation, so believed by children. She notices the appalling treatment endured by teenage actress Judy Garland and befriends the girl.

Maud Gage was the daughter of a well-connected suffragette who expected her to earn a college degree. Being a coed was hard enough in 1880; being the daughter of a notorious activist brought further harassment.

Visiting her college roommate's family she meets L. Frank Baum. He wins her heart--and her parent's approval, even though he was self-educated and ran a traveling troupe that performed his plays across the country.

Their life is filled with hardship and challenges, love and loss, taking them from New York State to touring the country, to the upper plains to Chicago, until Frank finally sets down on paper the stories he loves to tell.

Letts' story is based on actual events and persons. Some of the most amazing events in the novel actually happened.

As a girl in the 1950s, I was always so excited when The Wizard of Oz movie was aired on television. I was an adult before I saw it in color! I discovered very old copies of the Oz series in my elementary school library and read most of the books.

I enjoyed Finding Dorothy and I think you will, too. It was wonderful to learn about the "man behind the curtain" who imagined the Oz stories, and the strong woman he married. Judy Garland's experience of abuse mirror stories we still hear today.

I received a free ebook from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

If you’re like me and fascinated with the story behind the story of The Wizard of Oz you’ll surely find this book fascinating. It’s about the widow of Frank Baum, Maud. She started life as a feisty tomboy, daughter of a suffragette and remained feisty her whole life. The book starts with Maud’s pleas to MGM studios to allow her to help keep her husband’s vision of the story going unheeded. In her suffragette mind set she sets up an appointment with Louis B Mayer and confronts him personally.

The book then reverses chronology and tells the wonderful story of her childhood, her entrance into Cornell and her meeting her future husband Frank through a college friend. At the time Frank was an actor and not much of a breadwinner. The couple has four sons and as the tale unfolds it tells of their life as Frank pursues a writing career. You will see portions of Baum’s famous tale as the story unfolds in their real life.

“Oh,” Maud said. “I don’t know the first thing about theater. How does one go about becoming a theatrical man?”

“Well, I wasn’t fit for anything else,” Frank answered, his eyes crinkling up into a smile. “Not a whit of business sense, I’m afraid- unless that business is magic.”

Maud Gage “understood that she has been anointed- she must not let her mother down.” Matilda, her mother, had fought for women to be seen as equals to men, for women to have the right to earn college degrees (the only hope for a better future) something she herself was denied. When Maud’s older sister Julia cannot fulfill her progressive mother’s expectations due to health difficulties, Maud must take her place. At Sage (Sage Hall was built to house females at Cornell back in 1875) she befriends Josie Baum, and realizes that her ‘eccentricities’ that at home were encouraged make her feel like a complete misfit at Cornell. Women may have more doors open to them than her mother ever did, but aren’t meant to be engaging, are expected to fade into the wallpaper. For all the talk of equal rights, women are still expected to be ‘like a houseplant’ more for pretty decoration, to be less engaging, to bend to a man’s will and be a rapt audience who fawns over the male pontificating in the classroom rather than voicing their views. If they don’t land a husband their only other option, educated or not, is to return back home to their parents, where they are managed instead by their father or mother. It is through her friend Josie Baum that she meets her future husband, when Josie invites her over to her to a party at her house over Christmas break. Josie’s cousin Frank, a man of the theater (actor, director, stage manager of the small traveling Baum Theater Company) who will go on to write the much-loved children’s classic, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Frank, whose name starts with F. F, the letter that during a seance with her group of friends at the college appeared on the board, whose name her future husband begins with, if you believe that sort of thing and of course… of course she doesn’t. Does she?

The joy of this novel is how Maud and others served as Frank’s inspiration, from a fear of scarecrows to a sad, lonely niece, her special doll and the dress that inspired Dorothy’s iconic gingham one. Anyone who has ever watched Dorothy will warm while reading about the birth of Oz. It wasn’t all success for Maud, whom watches her own sister’s poor choice of the heart and every sorrow and hardship that follows. Her own path now tied to Frank Baum’s, she must bust free from the confines of her mother’s plans, marrying a man whose life is spent on the road with his theater. When she has a child, he must find a career to support Maud and their infant son, working as a salesman and trying to ignore his ‘flights of fancy’. They experience loss, Maud’s severe illness during her second pregnancy, changes in career for Frank, family strain and deep grief between she and her sister Julia while living in the vastness of Dakota territory.

Future Maud is a widow, nearing 80 and on the set of the film The Wizard of Oz. Here she meets and befriends Judy Garland, developing tender feelings for the lonely, young woman whose overbearing stage manager mother doesn’t seem to protect enough. Bullied by everyone from the director to her co-stars, spies watching her diet like a hawk, young Judy Garland spends a lot of time on the verge of a breakdown, her insecurities fueled by on set cruelties but finds a nurturing presence in Maud, as well as insider information on the part she wants to play to perfection. Who understands Dorothy better than Baum’s own wife, inspiration behind the beloved characters? Too, Maud will fight to keep one of the now most famous songs Somewhere Over the Rainbow from being cut from the film, as much as fight to see young Judy isn’t smacked around, literally. This ‘old woman’ will not be pushed aside, she has made a promise to her husband’s memory and herself that this film must do justice to Frank’s tale, not diminish it! Having been raised by a mother who was quite the suffragette, it seems like destiny that Maud witnesses the binding of Judy’s developed body, to make her appear younger, after all Dorothy was a little girl in the book and the attempts to deny her proper nutrition of course Maud sneaks tasty snacks to feed Judy herself! Such control a far cry from the rights her mother demanded, so far into the future and women still being handled, unrealistic expectations forced upon them. Maud, despite giving up her degree for marriage wasn’t one to retreat, her marriage to Frank dealt her many hardships that even the most educated, progressive woman would break under. They always had love and respect, and she is due credit as much as Frank’s own diligence, for his success. Maud was a woman who managed their family finances, raised their two sons while Frank’s career often pulled him away, who pushed her husband to realize his dreams.

While the relationship between Maud and Judy Garland is tender, the past is the heartbeat of this novel. I don’t think I will ever watch the film without thinking of all the sorrows that touched the Baum’s. There is a lot of heartbreak, the story isn’t all rainbows and good witches but that’s not to say there isn’t a lot of happiness too. Beautiful, I didn’t expect to like this novel as much as I did. It’s a very rich story!

Publication Date: February 12, 2019

Random House Publishing

Ballantine Books

Finding Dorothy by Elizabeth Letts focuses on the lives of Maud Gage Baum and Judy Garland. It is also a behind the scenes look at the making of the classic movie. There is interesting information about the set of the movie and the other actors and film personnel involved. If you are an Oz fan, this is an interesting read.

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for the opportunity to preview the book.

This “historical novel” had a lot of interesting information about the family of Maud Sage who became the wife of L. Frank Baum, writer of “The Wizard of Oz” and the follow up books.

The reason I’m putting historical novel in quotes is that it seemed to me that the author was trying to make a story based on actual history, but simply didn’t have enough facts. Or maybe the actual facts didn’t support her premise. Or maybe she was goaded into pushing current agendas of her own or of the publisher. In reading the book I went back and forth between enjoying it and being annoyed by the obvious fictional intrusions.

Also, it was difficult to decide the actual purpose of the book. Who was the central character? Not Frank. Not Dorothy (nor Judy Garland). Not his wife, Maud, although she was closer than anyone else. It was a jumbled up mishmash of real or imaged or contrived (those were the worst) scenes.

I’m giving this 3 stars (rounded up from 2.5) as I guess I enjoyed ½ of it. It’s not bad, it’s just frustrating.

I received this ARC from NetGalley and the publisher, Random House/Ballentine, in exchange for an honest review.

Not sure what I was hoping for but I was not entirely sold on the characters or the fictionalized history created for the characters. There was a lot of hype about this title or I may not have event read it. A bit disappointing.

I received a free e-copy of Finding Dorothy: A Novel by Elizabeth Letts from NetGalley for my honest review.

Who didn't love The Wonderful Wizard of Oz? A fascinating and adventurous classic MGM movie starring Judy Garland. Now years later,Elizabeth Letts introduces us to the author (L. Frank Baum) behind the book and movie. We also get to learn about his wife, (Maud). This story is told through Maud's voice. It is a story of her life.

Maud Baum, f/k/a Maud Gage, was the daughter of a shopkeeper, Maud's mother, Matilda, taught her daughter to treasure education and independent thinking. Maud, later meets Frank, an traveling theater man. Maud marries Frank, and they spent many years living poorly. It wasn't until Frank wrote The Wizard of Oz, that their lives changed. Maud later moved to Hollywood and when the book was turning into a film, she met Judy Garland. Maud befriended Judy, and fought with the producers, trying to keep her husbands book true to his story.

This book is beautifully written with lots of detail and emotion. I highly recommend this book to anyone especially for those who love The Wizard Of Oz.

A beautiful, well-written story-behind-the-story of The Wizard of Oz. Narrated from the perspective of Frank Baum's wife, Maud, you see the inspiration behind the scarecrow, the tin man, the Emerald City, and Dorothy herself. The novel has two plots line: one set during the filming of the movie in 1939, and the other chronicles the lives of Maud and Frank Baum during the 1880's and 1890's. The story of the Baum's is the stronger of the two, as a young Maud tries to become her own person and follow her love for Frank in the face of a suffragette mother bent on making a scholar of her daughter. Maud follows Frank through a theatre career and through several failed businesses before he puts all their joys and heartbreaks into his first novel, The Wizard of Oz.

Highly recommended. This one will be a hit (and would make a wonderful movie)!

In 1939, Maud Gage Baum met with Judy Garland on the set of the now classic The Wizard of Oz. The seventy-eight year old widow of the Oz author immediately felt drawn to the young star, particularly after hearing her rendition of the iconic “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”. From that bit of music, their stories unfold as Maud recounts growing up as the daughter of a major suffragette and her eventual marriage to and life with the man behind the curtain all while Judy balances her blooming career on a tumultuous set. From Maud’s past struggling in the prairies of South Dakota to Judy’s present dealing with a predatory director, their stories weave around each other, all while Maud tries to protect Judy and, in turn, Dorothy.

Author Elizabeth Letts works some remarkable magic by making Maud’s story take center stage in a compelling way. This is not to suggest that Maud Gage isn’t a great character in her own right. She is. The daughter of an important suffragette, she could refer to Susan B. Anthony as Auntie. She attended Cornell in one of the first co-ed classes in the school’s history. And, of course, she inspired, in some capacity, most of the book The Wizard of Oz.

However, even with all of that, her story has to compete with the dual narrative of Judy Garland and the making of the movie. Characters like Ray Bolger and Louis B. Mayer crop up regularly, and major fans of Oz will most likely be looking out for how these individuals are portrayed. Maud has to deal with focus being pulled away from her simply because she’s (unjustifiably) less famous in the movie’s lore.

But that doesn’t happen. As the book chronicles Maud’s movement from under her famous mother to college and the prairie and beyond, she commands attention. It’s easy to understand how her passion and drive would ultimately inspire the idealistic dreamer that was L. Frank Baum to pen his most famous work, even when her confidence in his success was shaken.

When the narrative shifts back to the movie studio and Maud’s mission to protect Judy, there’s almost a pull to keep the story going in the past. It becomes too interesting listening to Maud deal with her ever-strained relationship with her sister or her desire for a daughter. Yet Letts masterfully weaves these two stories together by slapping on a bit of Hollywood veneer, and soon it’s just as compelling reading about a Scarecrow smoking a cigarette while on break from filming. Of course, much like The Wizard of Oz wouldn’t have worked without Maud, these scenes also would have suffered without her parallel from the past. They’re gorgeously linked.

Above all, it’s the tension of the piece that’s brilliant, which is so hard to get right in historical fiction. Yes, the book eventually gets written. Yes, the movie eventually gets made. However, much like the many retellings of the doomed Titanic (spoiler: it sinks), it’s not about the ending— it’s about the journey. This one just happens to take place on a long, bumpy road of yellow brick.

Judy Garland was a huge talent who suffered for her big break. Maud Gage was a wonderful woman who sacrificed immensely for her husband’s creativity. Elizabeth Letts has created a deeply satisfying work by exploring their stories together.

In 1938, Maud Baum takes on a Hollywood studio to ensure the character Dorothy is portrayed as her husband would have wanted. As she does what she can to protect a young Judy Garland, she remembers her life before and with Frank Baum.

I didn't know much about the author of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, his family life, or even about the filming of the film adaptation. So I found this fiction telling a delight. Maud jumps off the page as a practical, no-nonsense woman who could see the beauty of striving for dreams.

It would have been impossible to empathize with Frank Baum, a dreamer who sacrificed what made him happy to provide for his family. My heart went out to Judy Garland as a young actress under pressure from so many to be a star.

This was well written, and the details shine. I found it to be an excellent telling of a fierce woman who rose above what life threw at her.

I would recommend this to readers with an interest in historical fiction or the life of Maud Baum.

I received an advance copy of this book, its shelf date is February 2019. It’s an historical fiction about the life of Maud Baum, wife of L. Frank Baum, author of The Wizard of Oz. It is also about the making of the movie in 1939, and Maud’s relationship with Judy Garland. It was so very interesting and fun to read.

I rarely give a book 5 stars, but this one definitely deserves it.

This is a story about the kind of obscure things you wonder about from time to time, such as, what's the story behind The Wizard of Oz? I found this book quite informative as well as entertaining. It's amazing to take a look behind the scenes of a classic movie. Readers of historical movie tales will love this one!

I have always been a huge fan of "The Wizard of Oz", and remember going to see it for the first time at the theater in San Antonio, when I was around the age of 5. The book started out a little slow to me, but it just got better and better. I am so glad I read this amazing book and Elizabeth Letts wrote it beautifully with fiction, based on true history. It is actually Maud Baum's story, Frank Baum's wife. Frank Baum wrote the original book of "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz". I like how it goes from an earlier time to a later time in Maud's life. She was an amazing woman, and never gave up what she believed in. The character's are so very well done and so very believable, you forget that a lot of it is fiction. I know later today when I watch the movie, I will probably cry through the whole thing after reading this book, and will see it in a much different way, with much more meaning. Thank you Elizabeth Letts for a simply awesome story, one I will never forget!

The fourteen Oz books by L. Frank Baum were my favorite childhood companions; Dorothy, Ozma, Polychrome, et all were my best friends, the four quadrants of Oz existed in my mind, and the Nome King haunted my nightmares. In other words, I was obsessed in the way that the millennials love Harry Potter. So this book, detailing the life of Maud Baum, Frank's wife, was just the ticket I needed to return to childhood. Born during the Civil War, Maud was raised by a rather famous suffragette, having both Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton at her wedding. Maud was intelligent, adventuresome, and independent, much like the young girl characters Frank created for his stories. Author Letts sprinkles a plethora of wonderful Oz trivia throughout the book (though I suspect only geeky readers like myself picked up on Jim the Cab horse from Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz book), takes us into the filming of the famous movie, and it is fascinating to see where some of Baum's more fantastical ideas originated. Extremely well-researched, if a bit saccharine in spots, this is an intriguing story. If you too loved Oz and all its inhabitants and love historical fiction, you will not go wrong with this book.

I loved the book, I love the movie, and I wanted so very much to revisit both though this book. The prose was stilted and the narrative stiff. Perhaps the author should explore writing for secondary grades. When I find I’m confused by the direction a book is going, I ask myself - whose story is this? I think the answer is it’s Maud’s story and frankly, her husband and mother were more interesting. Thank you NetGalley and Ballantine Books for letting me read this prepublication copy. I really wanted to like it.

The Wizard of Oz holds a treasured place, not only in my memories, but most of Americas. Who can resist a historical fiction of the back story of the movie, book and the author L Frank Baum and his family? Not me!

I so enjoyed this novel, thank you author Elizabeth Letts for the experience, and knowledge you have shared.

I received an ARC from Netgalley and publisher Ballantine Books in exchange for my honest opinion