t say you now, squirt? Do you still hate me?" cackled the
Witch, breaking into fits of hideous laughter.

"Oh, no. Not anymore," replied Graham, his voice trembling. "I think
you're pretty nice, um, all things considered."

"Oh, come now!" replied the Witch. "Let's be reasonable. You don't
really think that. You're just afraid of what I might do to you. Look at
you. You're shaking in your boots!"

"I'm afraid, yes," said Graham. "Really afraid. But I don't think you'll
harm me after you hear what I have to say."

"Oh," replied the Witch. "Really? And what might that be?"

Graham knew he had piqued her interest and was now desperately trying to
think of a plausible story that would keep her occupied while he tried
to figure out a way to escape. He had managed to see out of one of her
windows and knew he was, without a doubt, in the Land of Oz.

[Illustration]

CHAPTER TWO:

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

Now, in the event that this book may have fallen into the hands of
someone who is unfamiliar with the marvelous Land of Oz, it seems
fitting that an explanation be inserted right about here. Oz is an
oblong-shaped country that is surrounded on all sides by a vast Deadly
Desert that is supposed to keep visitors out. Even so, it has been
visited by any number of American children prior to Graham's visit. Some
came by way of invitation, but mostly they arrived by accident. The most
famous of these visitors, of course, was little Dorothy Gale. Dorothy
traveled to Oz via a powerful cyclone which carried her house and
herself over the massive desert and plopped her on top of a particularly
evil Witch. With the help of a live Scarecrow, a man made out of tin,
and a Cowardly Lion, she was able to find her way back to her home in
America. She returned a short time later and had a wonderful new series
of adventures in which she met Princess Saari, Gayelette, and even some
Fuzzy Yellow Wogglebugs. It was but a few years after that when little
Dorothy finally consented to become a citizen of Oz and live there
happily--or reasonably so--for many years thereafter. In fact, even
after nearly eighty-five years, she remains an honorary princess of that
lovely country. Because no one has to ever grow old or die in this
singular land, Dorothy remains as young and innocent as on the day she
first arrived. At one point, Dorothy was joined by a fine young boy
named Button-Bright, who was about as bright as a cloth-covered button.
T