I wasn't expecting to enjoy the book because I have never enjoyed the movie very much, however I really liked the book. The overall tone was much darker than I was expecting so some of the scenes (like the tin man killing tigers and wolves, or the scarecrow twisting the necks of crows) caught me a little off guard, and I liked it.
While it seems strange that the story was created for children, the ideology being passed down in the book are things that children are still taught today. For example it teaches the idea that admirable qualities such as courage and compassion are not things that we have to go look for but rather they are already found within us if we just recognize them. The lion, tin man, and scarecrow repeatedly show that they already posses the traits they are looking to acquire, but they are so worried about not having it that they can't see it. It also teaches more obvious ideas; in particular that good always overcomes evil, friends are valuable and look after each other, and of course that there is no place like home.
The edition that I read had the original illustrations in them and I really enjoyed that. Because I have seen the movie I was worried that I wouldn't be able to help but picture the characters as they were in the film where I didn't enjoy them so much, however seeing the illustrations of the characters helped me to push the film versions out of my mind and I found the illustrated versions much more appealing (especially in the case of the lion). My favorite of all the illustrations was the depiction of the hammerheads. I really got a kick out of their clothes and expressions.
