The Wizard Of Oz 👠💚 Bedtime Story for Wicked Fans

[00:00:10] [SPEAKER_03] Hello and welcome back to Koala Moon, a podcast of original children's bedtime stories and meditations designed to make bedtime a dream. We're saying a big warm Coco Club welcome to Serena, Nivan and Sonia from Florida and Indra and Izara listening in Utah. Wonderful! Thank you so much for subscribing for the year and enjoy all your extra stories that you've got now.

[00:00:39] [SPEAKER_03] Before we begin, a quick message for the grown-ups. If you'd like to support our podcast, enjoy ad-free listening, unlock four bonus stories per month and much, much more, you can join Coco Club. Subscribe in just two taps via the link in the show notes. But now here's a quick word from our sponsors.

[00:01:00] [SPEAKER_00] Hey parents, my name is Jessica Porter and I'm the host of Sleep Magic, the sleep hypnosis podcast. As a hypnotherapist, I've helped many parents tackle their sleep troubles, whether it's letting go of bedtime worries or getting back to sleep after tiny bedroom intruders.

[00:01:19] [SPEAKER_00] I know finding peace amidst all that life brings can be tough. But since 2021, I've been delivering weekly episodes of solution-focused sleep hypnosis, which have now helped with over 5 million restless nights. Sleep magic has proven to help you relax really deeply, maybe more deeply than you have in years.

[00:01:42] [SPEAKER_00] With a mix of hypnosis techniques, meditations, and classic bedtime stories, each week there's brand new episodes to help you unwind and fall asleep effortlessly. You can find me and Sleep Magic on all major podcast platforms. Just search Sleep Magic and hit follow so that you can find it easily when you go to bed. Relaxation is truly closer than you think. I'll see you there.

[00:02:13] [SPEAKER_03] Okay, we're dusting off another classic story tonight, in this episode of Abby's Bookshelf. If I said it features a young girl and a small dog, you might be none the wiser. But how about if I mention a scarecrow? Tin man? Maybe even a yellow brick road. Yes, it's the Wizard of Oz, of course. We're soon joining Dorothy and her little pooch Toto as they travel along the yellow brick road towards the Emerald City.

[00:02:43] [SPEAKER_03] Come with me in this specially adapted version for Koala Moon of The Wizard of Oz by Frank L. Baum. When Dorothy was left alone, she went to the cupboard and cut herself some bread, which she spread with butter. She gave some to Toto. Toto was a little black dog with long, silky hair.

[00:03:11] [SPEAKER_03] He had small black eyes that twinkled merrily on either side of his funny wee nose. Toto played all day long and Dorothy played with him and loved him dearly. Taking a bucket from the shelf, she carried it down to the little brook and filled it with clear, sparkling water. Toto ran over to the trees and began to bark at the birds sitting there.

[00:03:39] [SPEAKER_03] Dorothy went to get him and saw such delicious fruit hanging from the branches that she gathered some of it. It was just what she wanted to help out her breakfast. Then she went back to the house and having helped herself and Toto to a good drink of the cool, clear water, she set about making ready for the journey to the Emerald City.

[00:04:05] [SPEAKER_03] Dorothy had only one other dress, but that happened to be clean and was hanging on a peg beside her bed. It was gingham with checks of white and blue. Although the blue was somewhat faded with many washings, it was still a pretty frock. The girl washed herself carefully, dressed herself in the clean gingham and tied her pink sunbonnet on her head.

[00:04:30] [SPEAKER_03] She took a little basket and filled it with bread from the cupboard, laying a white cloth over the top. Then she looked down at her feet and noticed how old and worn her shoes were. They surely will never do for a long journey, Toto, she said. And Toto looked up into her face with his little black eyes and wagged his tail to show he knew what she meant.

[00:04:57] [SPEAKER_03] At that moment, Dorothy saw lying on the table the ruby slippers from the adventurous incident that had occurred earlier in the day. I wonder if they will fit me, she said to Toto. They would be just the thing to take a long walk in, for they could not wear out.

[00:05:21] [SPEAKER_03] She took off her old leather shoes and tried on the ruby ones, which fitted her as well as if they had been made for her. Finally, she picked up her basket. Come along, Toto, she said. We will go to the Emerald City and ask the Great Oz how to get back to Kansas again. She closed the door, locked it and put the key carefully in the pocket of her dress.

[00:05:49] [SPEAKER_03] And so, with Toto trotting along behind her, she started on her journey. There were several roads nearby, but it did not take her long to find the one paved with yellow bricks. Within a short time, she was walking briskly toward the Emerald City, her red shoes twinkling merrily on the hard yellow roadbed.

[00:06:15] [SPEAKER_03] The sun shone bright and the birds sang sweetly, and Dorothy didn't feel bad at all, considering she had been whisked away to the midst of a strange land. She was surprised as she walked along to see how pretty the country was about her. There were neat fences at the sides of the road, painted a dainty blue colour.

[00:06:40] [SPEAKER_03] Beyond them were fields of grain and vegetables in abundance. Evidently, the munchkins were good farmers. Once in a while, she would pass a house, and the people came out to look at her and bow low as she went by. The houses of the munchkins were odd-looking dwellings, for each was round with a big dome for a roof.

[00:07:05] [SPEAKER_03] All were painted blue, for in this country of the east, blue was the favourite colour. Toward evening, when Dorothy was tired from her long walk and began to wonder where she should spend the night, she came to a house rather larger than the rest. On the green lawn before it, many men and women were dancing.

[00:07:30] [SPEAKER_03] Five little fiddlers played as loudly as possible, and the people were laughing and singing, while a big table nearby was loaded with delicious fruits and nuts, pies and cakes, and many other good things to eat. The people greeted Dorothy kindly and invited her to supper and to pass the night with them. This was the home of one of the richest munchkins in the land,

[00:08:00] [SPEAKER_03] and his friends were gathered with him to celebrate their new freedom. Dorothy ate a hearty supper and was waited upon by the rich munchkin himself, whose name was Bok. Then she sat upon a city and watched the people dance. She bade her friends goodbye and again started along the yellow brick road. When she had gone several miles, she thought she would stop to rest,

[00:08:29] [SPEAKER_03] and so climbed to the top of the fence beside the road and sat down. There was a great cornfield beyond the fence, and not far away she saw a scarecrow placed high on a pole to keep the birds from the ripe corn. Dorothy leaned her chin upon her hand and gazed thoughtfully at the scarecrow. Its head was a small sack stuffed with straw,

[00:08:58] [SPEAKER_03] with eyes, nose and mouth painted on it to represent a face. An old pointed blue hat that had belonged to some munchkin was perched on his head. The rest of the figure was a blue suit of clothes, worn and faded, which had also been stuffed with straw. On the feet were some old boots with blue tops, such as every man wore in this country,

[00:09:26] [SPEAKER_03] and the figure was raised above the stalks of corn by means of the pole stuck up its back. While Dorothy was looking earnestly into the painted face of the scarecrow, she was surprised to see one of the eyes slowly wink at her. She thought she must have been mistaken at first, for none of the scarecrows in Kansas ever wink.

[00:09:51] [SPEAKER_03] But presently, the figure nodded its head to her in a friendly way. Then she climbed down from the fence and walked up to it, while Toto ran around the pole and barked. My name is Dorothy, said the girl to the scarecrow, and I'm going to the Emerald City to ask the Great Oz to send me back to Kansas.

[00:10:18] [SPEAKER_03] Where is the Emerald City? He inquired. And who is Oz? Why, don't you know? She returned in surprise. No, indeed, I don't know anything. You see, I am stuffed, so I have no brains at all, he answered.

[00:10:45] [SPEAKER_01] Oh, said Dorothy. I'm awfully sorry for you. Do you think, he asked,

[00:10:54] [SPEAKER_03] If I go to the Emerald City with you, that Oz would give me some brains? I cannot tell, she returned. But you may come with me if you like. If Oz does not give you any brains, you will be no worse off than you are now. They walked back to the road. Dorothy helped him over the fence,

[00:11:22] [SPEAKER_03] and they started along the path of yellow brick for the Emerald City. After a few hours, the road began to be rough, and the walking grew so difficult that the scarecrow often stumbled over the yellow bricks, which were very uneven here. Sometimes, indeed, they were broken or missing altogether, leaving holes that Toto jumped across and Dorothy walked around.

[00:11:51] [SPEAKER_03] As for the scarecrow, having no brains, he walked straight ahead, and so stepped into the holes and fell on the hard bricks. It never hurt him, however, and Dorothy would pick him up and set him upon his feet again, while he joined her in laughing merrily at his own mishap. The farms were not nearly so well cared for here as they were farther back.

[00:12:17] [SPEAKER_03] There were fewer houses and fewer fruit trees, and the farther they went, the more dismal and lonesome the country became. At noon, they sat down by the roadside near a little brook, and Dorothy opened her basket and got out some bread. She offered a piece to the scarecrow, but he refused. Once they'd finished eating,

[00:12:44] [SPEAKER_03] they turned and walked through the forest a few steps, when Dorothy discovered something shining in a ray of sunshine that fell between the trees. She ran to the place and then stopped short. One of the big trees had been partly chopped through, and standing beside it, with an uplifted axe in his hands, was a man made entirely of tin. He stood perfectly motionless,

[00:13:14] [SPEAKER_03] as if he could not stir at all.

[00:13:19] [SPEAKER_01] What can I do for you? She inquired softly.

[00:13:25] [SPEAKER_03] Get an oil can and oil my joints, he answered. They are rusted so badly that I cannot move them at all. If I am well oiled, I shall soon be all right again. You will find an oil can on a shelf in my cottage. So they oiled his joints until he could move them freely,

[00:13:54] [SPEAKER_03] and he thanked them again and again for his release, for he seemed a very polite creature, and very grateful. The tin woodman had asked Dorothy to put the oil can in her basket. For, he said, if I should get caught in the rain and rust again, I would need the oil can badly.

[00:14:21] [SPEAKER_03] It was a bit of good luck to have their new comrade join the party, for soon after they had begun their journey again, they came to a place where the trees and branches grew so thick over the road that the travellers could not pass. But the tin woodman set to work with his axe and chopped so well that soon he cleared a passage for the entire party. While walking, much time had passed.

[00:14:50] [SPEAKER_03] The bread was nearly gone, and another meal for herself and Toto would empty the basket. But before long, they saw a beautiful green glow in the sky just before them. That must be the Emerald City, said Dorothy. As they walked on, the green glow became brighter and brighter, and it seemed that at last

[00:15:20] [SPEAKER_03] they were nearing the end of their travels. Yet it was afternoon before they came to the great wall that surrounded the city. It was high and thick and of a bright green colour. In front of them, and at the end of the road of yellow brick, was a big gate, all studded with emeralds that glittered so in the sun that even the painted eyes of the scarecrow were dazzled by their brilliancy.

[00:15:51] [SPEAKER_03] There was a bell beside the gate, and Dorothy pushed the button and heard a silvery tinkle sound within. Then the big gate swung slowly open, and they all passed through and found themselves in a high-arched room, the walls of which glistened with countless emeralds. Dorothy and her friends were at first dazzled

[00:16:19] [SPEAKER_03] by the brilliancy of the wonderful city. The streets were lined with beautiful houses, all built of green marble, and studded everywhere with sparkling emeralds. They walked over a pavement of the same green marble, and where the blocks were joined together were rows of emeralds set closely and glittering in the brightness of the sun.

[00:16:48] [SPEAKER_03] The window panes were of green glass. Even the sky above the city had a green tint, and the rays of the sun were green. There were many, many people, men, women and children walking about, and these were all dressed in green clothes and had greenish skins. They looked at Dorothy and her strangely assorted company with wondering eyes,

[00:17:17] [SPEAKER_03] but no one spoke to them. Many shops stood in the street, and Dorothy saw that everything in them was green. Green candy and green popcorn were offered for sale, as well as green shoes, green hats, and green clothes of all sorts. At one place, a man was selling green lemonade, and when the children bought it,

[00:17:45] [SPEAKER_03] Dorothy could see that they paid for it with green pennies. There seemed to be no horses nor animals of any kind. The men carried things around in little green carts, which they pushed before them. Everyone seemed happy and contented and prosperous. The guardian of the gates led them through the streets until they came to a big building,

[00:18:14] [SPEAKER_03] exactly in the middle of the city, which was the Palace of Oz, the Great Wizard. There was a soldier before the door, dressed in a green uniform and wearing a long green beard. Here are strangers, said the guardian of the gates to him, and they demand to see the Great Oz.

[00:18:43] [SPEAKER_03] Step inside, answered the soldier, and I will carry your message to him. So they passed through the palace gates and were led into a big room with a green carpet and lovely green furniture set with emeralds. The soldier made them all wipe their feet upon a green mat before entering this room, and when they were seated, he said politely,

[00:19:14] [SPEAKER_03] Please make yourselves comfortable while I go to the door of the throne room and tell Oz you are here. They had to wait a long time before the soldier returned. The soldier now blew upon a green whistle, and at once, a young girl dressed in a pretty green silk gown entered the room.

[00:19:41] [SPEAKER_03] She had lovely green hair and green eyes, and she bowed low before Dorothy as she said, Follow me, and I will show you to your room. So Dorothy said goodbye to all her friends except Toto, and taking the dog in her arms, followed the green girl through seven passages and up three flights of stairs

[00:20:09] [SPEAKER_03] until they came to a room at the front of the palace. It was the sweetest little room in the world, with a soft, comfortable bed that had sheets of green silk and a green velvet counterpane. There was a tiny fountain in the middle of the room that shot a spray of green perfume into the air

[00:20:35] [SPEAKER_03] to fall back into a beautifully carved green marble basin. Beautiful green flowers stood in the windows, and there was a shelf with a row of little green books. When Dorothy had time to open these books, she found them full of green pictures that made her laugh they were so funny.

[00:21:02] [SPEAKER_03] In a wardrobe were many green dresses made of silk and satin and velvet, and all of them fitted Dorothy exactly. The girl left Dorothy alone and went back to the others. These she also led to rooms, and each one of them found himself lodged in a very pleasant part of the palace.

[00:21:32] [SPEAKER_03] The next morning, after breakfast, the green maiden came to fetch Dorothy, Dorothy, and she dressed her in one of the prettiest gowns made of green brocaded satin. Dorothy put on a green silk apron and tied a green ribbon around Toto's neck, and they started for the throne room of the Great Oz. First they came to a great hall

[00:22:01] [SPEAKER_03] in which there were many ladies and gentlemen of the court, all dressed in rich costumes. These people had nothing to do but talk to each other, but they always came to wait outside the throne room every morning, although they were never permitted to see Oz. Just then a bell rang, and the green girl said to Dorothy, That is the signal.

[00:22:30] [SPEAKER_03] You must go into the throne room alone. She opened a little door, and Dorothy walked boldly through and found herself in a wonderful place. It was a big round room with a high arched roof, and the walls and ceiling and floor were covered with large emeralds set closely together.

[00:22:57] [SPEAKER_03] In the centre of the roof was a great light, as bright as the sun, which made the emeralds sparkle in a wonderful manner. But what interested Dorothy most was the big throne of green marble that stood in the middle of the room. It was shaped like a chair and sparkled with gems, as did everything else.

[00:23:26] [SPEAKER_03] Dorothy gazed upon it in wonder. Dorothy gazed upon this in wonder. Then the mouth moved, and Dorothy heard a voice say,

[00:23:53] [SPEAKER_03] I am Oz, the great and powerful. Who are you, and why do you seek me?

[00:24:07] [SPEAKER_01] Dorothy cleared her throat and replied, I'm Dorothy,

[00:24:13] [SPEAKER_03] the small and meek. I've come to you for help. The eyes looked at her thoughtfully for a full minute.

[00:24:22] [SPEAKER_01] Then Oz asked, What do you wish me to do?

[00:24:30] [SPEAKER_03] Send me back to Kansas, where my Aunt Em and Uncle Harry are, she answered earnestly. I don't like your country, although it is so beautiful, and I'm sure Aunt Em will be dreadfully worried over my being away so long. The puppet blinked three times, and at last they looked at Dorothy again.

[00:24:58] [SPEAKER_03] Why should I do this for you?

[00:25:02] [SPEAKER_01] asked Oz.

[00:25:04] [SPEAKER_03] Because you are strong and I am weak. Because you are a great wizard, and I am only a little girl. The wizard seemed to think, then said he would think about it, and asked her to send for her friend next, the scarecrow. Dorothy did what she was told. The scarecrow, now, was admitted into the great throne room,

[00:25:35] [SPEAKER_03] where he saw, sitting in the emerald throne, a most lovely lady. She was dressed in green silk gauze, and wore upon her flowing green locks a crown of jewels. Growing from her shoulders were wings, gorgeous in colour, and so light that they fluttered if the slightest breath of air reached them. When the scarecrow had bowed,

[00:26:04] [SPEAKER_03] as prickly as his straw stuffing would let him, before this beautiful creature, she looked upon him sweetly, and said, I am Oz, the great and powerful. Who are you, and why do you seek me? Now, the scarecrow, who had expected to see the puppet Dorothy had told him of, was much astonished, but he answered her,

[00:26:35] [SPEAKER_03] I am only a scarecrow, stuffed with straw. Therefore, I have no brains, and I come to you, praying that you will put brains in my head instead of straw, so that I may become as much a man as any other.

[00:26:55] [SPEAKER_01] Why should I do this for you? Asked the lady.

[00:27:01] [SPEAKER_03] Because you are wise and powerful, and no one else can help me, answered the scarecrow. With that, he was dismissed. The scarecrow went back to his friends, and told them about his meeting with Oz, and Dorothy was surprised to find that the great wizard was not a head, as she had seen him, but a lovely lady. On the next morning,

[00:27:31] [SPEAKER_03] a soldier with green whiskers came to the tin woodman, and said, Oz has sent for you, follow me. So the tin woodman followed him, and came to the great throne room. He did not know whether he would find Oz a lovely lady, or a funny puppet, but he hoped it would be the lovely lady. For, he said to himself, if it is the puppet,

[00:28:01] [SPEAKER_03] I am sure I shall not be given a heart, since a puppet has no heart of its own, and therefore cannot feel for me. But if it is the lovely lady, I shall beg hard for a heart, for all ladies are themselves said to be kindly hearted. But when the woodman entered the great throne room,

[00:28:30] [SPEAKER_03] he saw neither the head nor the lady, for Oz had taken the shape of an elephant. I am Oz, the great and powerful, spoke the elephant, in a voice like a trumpet.

[00:28:47] [SPEAKER_01] Who are you? And why do you seek me? I am a woodman, and made of tin.

[00:28:58] [SPEAKER_03] Therefore, I have no heart, and cannot love. I pray you to give me a heart, that I may be as other men are. Why should I do this? demanded the beast. Because I ask it, and you alone can grant my request, answered the woodman. Oz nodded thoughtfully,

[00:29:27] [SPEAKER_03] and dismissed the tin woodman. So the tin woodman was forced to return to his friends, and tell them of the elephant he had seen. They all wondered greatly, at the many forms the great wizard could take upon himself. And their new friend the lion said, However he looks, when I go to see him, I shall roar my loudest,

[00:29:55] [SPEAKER_03] and demand our wishes be granted promptly, so be of good cheer, my friends, for all will yet be well. The next morning, the soldier with the green whiskers, led the lion to the great throne room, and bade him enter the presence of Oz. The lion at once passed through the door,

[00:30:24] [SPEAKER_03] and glancing around, saw, to his surprise, that before the throne, was a ball of fire, so fierce and glowing, he could scarcely gaze upon it. It was warm and brilliant, and the lion stepped back, to be sure not to singe his whiskers. Then a low, quiet voice, came from the ball of fire,

[00:30:54] [SPEAKER_03] and these were the words it spoke, from Oz, the great and powerful. who are you,

[00:31:07] [SPEAKER_01] and why do you seek me? And the lion answered, I am cowardly lion, afraid of everything.

[00:31:20] [SPEAKER_03] I came to you, to beg that you give me courage, so that in reality, I may become the king of the jungle, as men call me.

[00:31:35] [SPEAKER_01] Why should I give you courage? demanded Oz. Because, of all wizards,

[00:31:45] [SPEAKER_03] you are the greatest, and alone, have power to grant my request, answered the lion. The ball of fire, burned fiercely for a time, and then, the lion was dismissed. He was glad, to find his friends, waiting for him, and told them, of his interview, with the wizard.

[00:32:14] [SPEAKER_03] What shall we do now? asked Dorothy sadly.

[00:32:20] [SPEAKER_01] There is only one thing, we can do, returned the lion, and that is, weight, and hope. Soon I shall have courage, declared the lion, and I shall have brains, added the scarecrow. And I shall have a heart, spoke the tin woodman,

[00:32:50] [SPEAKER_01] and I shall see Aunt M, and Uncle Henry, said Dorothy. The more they hoped,

[00:33:02] [SPEAKER_03] the more they waited. They began, to feel their wishes, bubbling in their bellies. They began, they began, to feel braver, and stronger,

[00:33:15] [SPEAKER_02] and smarter, and kinder. Like, maybe, just maybe, they might, be becoming true. And I shall have a cup of Vanity, of Начale Donahue, of me. Thank you, and

[00:33:29] Thank you.