The Emerald City of Oz

BAUM, L[yman] Frank. The Emerald City of Oz. Illustrated by John R. Neill. Chicago: The Reilly & Britton Co [1910]. 8vo, 296pp. Dark blue cloth with spine pictorially stamped in silver and black and color pictorial label affixed to front. Two-color pictorial endpapers; 16 full-color plates and numerous b&w illustrations. Spine ends lightly rubbed, lower corners a bit rubbed, with front corner lightly bumped (with some resulting light damage to lower corner of label), else a clean, tight copy with all color plates remarkably bright.

First edition in the rare dark blue cloth. The first printing of this book was created with lavish color plates and cover label embellished with metallic green ink. The second printing changed to a label without the metallic green ink, and all other printings left the color plates blank in the areas that the metallic green had appeared. When Dorothy, Aunt Em, and Uncle Henry need a new home, Dorothy comes up with the perfect answer -- The Emerald City of Oz. But while Dorothy and her family are being welcomed to Oz, the wicked Nome King is busily plotting to conquer Oz and have his dastardly revenge on Princess Ozma and Dorothy. The sixth Oz book, which Baum originally planned to be his last, but ended up reopening the series a few years later when his other books failed to sell as well.