Wicked (Maguire novel)

Wicked

First edition
Author	Gregory Maguire
Illustrator	Douglas Smith
Cover artist	Douglas Smith
Language	English
Series	The Wicked Years
Genre	Fantasy
Publisher	ReganBooks
Publication date	1995
Publication place	United States
Media type	Print (hardback)
Pages	560
ISBN	0-06-039144-8
OCLC	32746783
Dewey Decimal	813/.54 20
LC Class	PS3563.A3535 W5 1995
Followed by	Son of a Witch

Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West is an American novel published in 1995, written by Gregory Maguire with illustrations by Douglas Smith. It is the first in The Wicked Years series, and was followed by Son of a Witch (published in September 2005), A Lion Among Men (published in October 2008), and Out of Oz (published in November 2011).

Wicked is a darker and more adult-themed revisionist exploration of the characters and setting of the 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, its sequels, and the 1939 film adaptation. It is presented as a biography of the Wicked Witch of the West, here given the name "Elphaba". The book follows Elphaba from her birth through her social ostracism, school years, radicalization, and final days. Maguire shows the traditionally villainous character in a sympathetic light, using her journey to explore the problem of evil and the nature versus nurture debate, as well as themes of terrorism, propaganda, and existential purpose.

In 2003, it was adapted as the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical Wicked, in-turn adapted into a two-part feature film, with the first film released in November 2024 and the second film expected in November 2025.