Author: Jacqueline Rayner
Publisher: BBC Children’s Books
Pages: N/A
Formats: Kindle, paperback
Rating: 5 Stars
What grabbed my attention to this is the beautifully designed cover; while it is in the newer style of the Doctor Who branding with the current logo, you can’t help but admire the beauty of it even if it contains one massive spoiler! (Although, to be fair, not entirely unexpected so in that sense could it be considered a spoiler?)
The book opens in 1939 with the thirteenth doctor and her “fam” trying to find the premier of The Wizard of Oz only to find that it’s not only not occurring but the book seems to have vanished from the annals of society!
After encountering a quiet young chap by the name of Theodore, they soon find themselves in a world that’s very Oz-like and must try to find a way to get back to their own time and space!
While it could be said that this is a “simple” retelling/mash up of The Wizard of Oz with Doctor Who, it grossly oversimplifies matters as what this novel gets right is the characterisations of The Thirteenth Doctor, along with Graham, Yaz and Ryan; in fact I found that I discovered a good insight into them all but more in particular the Doctor along with Theodore, who isn’t a Mary Sue but indeed a really well developed character with their own insights and believes and self doubts.
While none of the major reveals are surprising in any way, the way they are revealed and fleshed out is, in my opinion, very well done.
Without giving too much away, the ending of this novel is simply one of the most heart warming I’ve read in fiction in a long long time- and I read a lot of fiction! The ending is, at its core; very simple and life affirming while also drawing tears of happiness to ones eyes; it’s further proof of what science fiction and Doctor Who does best and that is to accept without judgment.