Land of Oz Story Book

Here's a fun bit of ephemera - the Land of Oz Story Book, published in Great Britain by Hutchinson & Company. This is an abridged version of the second Oz book, 19 pages long, published in a softcover pamphlet form. Hutchinson also published the Land of Oz Paint Book, in a similar format; this had a cover featuring more characters, as well as interior illustrations to color, by the same artist. There’s no date, but I would guess these books are from the same late 1930's/early 1940’s period of the other Oz books the company produced. These were intended to tie in with the British premiere of the MGM film.

The cover shows Mombi hiding behind a tree, watching Tip and a rather unusual Jack Pumpkinhead pass by. Jack's human face is a bit disconcerting, and reminds me of some of the early 20th century stage productions, like The Wogglebug, The Pearl and the Pumpkin, and The Lady of the Slipper.

The interior makes use of several of the original John R. Neill drawings, but due to the format of the book, the placement can be rather haphazard. All three scenes shown below happened earlier in the story!