A Lion Among Men continues the Wicked series by Gregory Maguire. Focusing on the character of the cowardly lion who accompanies Dorothy to Oz and is her accomplice in killing the Wicked Witch of the West, the book examines the concept of identity and family and how important it is to have a sense of groundedness in a past that pre-exists us yet defines us by placing us into a set of boundaries.
The Lion, named Brrr, is the baby lion cub who Elphaba saves from a despicable scientific experiment. He grows up in the woods without family, somehow surviving and moving on to find what it means to have companionship. He makes a name for himself by playing dead during a riot—the people of Traum herald him as a cowardly hero, provide him with a handsome purse of money and a train ticket to get out of town. He settles in the university town of Shiz where he makes a name for himself as an art connoisseur. He finances his purse well and also becomes somewhat of a dandy.
Things change for Brrr, however, when he realizes that he is ostracized because he is an Animal. Fearing for his life at one point, he leaves Shiz and embarks on a journey to discover his Animal origins and find a place that will continue to define him. He somehow fails at every attempt to find companionship and ends up in the guise of a government recorder of information in order to stay away from jail. It is, ironically, his cowardly nature and his connection with the Wicked Witch of the West that provide him an escape from prison.
It is during this job that he meets up with Yackl. Yackl is a sort of guardian angel sent to guard over Elphaba and her progeny. She becomes lucid and magical at times when necessary and otherwise seems like a crazy loon other times. Interspersed with Brrr’s story is Yackl’s. We learn that she woke up an old woman and had visions, powerful vision, when pertaining to Elphaba and her family. She is waiting to die but doesn’t know how to. Brrr’s job, she learns, is to help her learn to die and hers is to help Brrr learn to live.
The book is a very nice addition to the Wicked series. I enjoyed the writing: Maguire has a magical way with words, so his books are always a pleasure to read. I highly recommend it to anyone who has read and enjoyed Wicked, though it would be helpful to understanding the sequence of events to also read the 3 books in order.
