I'm here. I made it. I did the work and finished the journey.
"Spots in Oz" is a short story written by Rachel Cosgrove Payes. It was published in 1997 in the third issue of Oz-story Magazine. It is the very last canon Oz story that I am required to read.
The story centers around two children named Taffy and Fudge, a girl and boy respectively. They are Winkies who live a fairly normal life with their mother. Although there is a sibling rivalry happening which causes all of the problems of the story.
Fudge wants to use some herbs to make a spot removal for his mother, but his sister plays a mean trick on him and adds a bewitched flower to his formula. Meanwhile, Spots the Leopard and the Hungry Tiger are in the area when something bad happens.
Spots is a character that only appears in books written by Rachel Cosgrove Payes. He is a leopard that can actually change his spots. It's how he expresses himself. Basically, he speaks very little, and lets his spots do most of the talking. They change into little emojis, basically. This was a concept that happened long before emojis were even a thing, and it is very cute.
Unfortunately, the bewitched spot remover made Spot's spots disappear. This hilariously made him overtalkative because he did not have his special spots to help him communicate his feelings. The two big cats end up going to the children's house in an attempt to figure out how to solve this problem.
I won't spoil anymore. Afterall, it looks like this magazine isn't too hard to come by. Sufficed to say, I liked this story, and I do recommend it. I like Spots a lot! I think it was almost as good as her other character Percy the Rat... almost. I think Percy will always win the trophy with me. Either way, the story was charming and worth the read. Rachel is very good with characterization and dialog that sounds cute and natural at the same time.
Whelp! That's it! I have read all the canon Oz books and stories. It's all done. I am ready to move on. Thank you all for putting up with all these Oz reviews. I began writing the Oz reviews at book number twenty-three (Jack Pumpkinhead of Oz) way back in December of 2020. I have doggedly reviewed each one up to this final story, and I am happy to have come this far with you guys.
It's sad, but it's finally time to say goodbye to Oz, at least the canon stories anyhow. Either way, I had a great time, and I look forward to what other fairy tales I can find here on Planet Earth. Cheers!
This blog was written on March 21, 2024. (I've only just realized that these have been saying 2023 since the beginning of the year. Oops!)
Thank you for reading my blog! Did you enjoy it? Either way, you can comment below, or you can email me at tkwadeauthor@gmail.com. Also stop by my Amazon.com listing by clicking this link: https://www.amazon.com/T.K.-Wade/e/B07BQK9RTZ
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Not only did you finish reading Oz, but you finished your reviews AND have caught up with 2024. No one can call you lazy without being liar. You NEVER waste time. Your own work has been growing over the years. Not only do you have more product, but it is getting deeper and deeper. Your technique is becoming more and more advanced. Reading and pondering what you read has sharpened you mind into something razor sharp. As for this latest review: Clever idea about Spot, and he sounds very cute. I could use his spots. It would keep me from rambling.
ReplyDeleteThank you very much for your kind words, Shawn.
DeleteI like the idea of a leopard that spots change based on emotions and subjects. I can see how losing that means of communication would suddenly make them over compensate with speech. It sounds like a fun story for sure.
ReplyDeleteIt came across as surprisingly modern. He was a walking emoji.
DeleteThese stories are filled with wonder, so it is not surprising to find a leopard who can change his spots. It is cool that his means of communicating through them predates our use of emoticons. When the imagination is free to roam, it is amazing where it goes.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely, and this was clearly one of the better ideas had in Oz.
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