Customer Reviews
A Courageous Third Installment - By: Oxford Reader, 22 Oct 2008 
For me Maguire had a lot to live up to. Wicked was sensational, & Son of a Witch continued his story of Oz perfectly. Yet another new take on the adventures in Oz we thought we knew.
In truth I was dubious about a tale of the Cowardly Lion. Always the least favourite of the characters in my opinion, Maguire had a challlenge on his hands to pull this off. And he does. Kind of.
Oz is at war, the political backdrops are classic Maguire, & his development & reveal of what we assume are stage-side characters blossom at a perfect pace - it made me want to keep reading! The two protagonists, Brrr the Lion & Yackle (the previously discrete oracle hag) grew to be more appealing, interweaving their stories in interviews. There is tension, drama & that level of humour we have grown to love in the previous novels. Brrr is endearing to an extent but one can see where Maguire has tried to make him so. His adventures were a tad dull, but I suppose that's made him who he is! I couldn't have cared less about the Ghullim - his time there bored me (absolutely nothing happpened) & they were poorly drawn. Yackle on the other hand appears just as I have grown to love & wonder about her, a true enigma. It's also true there are other characters I care about & wanted to learn more - Liir, Trism, Glinda & Shell certainly, with brief mentions but that is alll, but as an intermediary book (I hope) we will return to their stories soon enough.
To answer a question - yes buy it, read it, marginallly enjoy it & then wait for the next one.
One final thing - Unlike Son of a Witch (which I believe was written with the idea in mind) this isn't going to be a musical anytime soon.
Relatively Strong with a Few Furry Bits - By: M. Adams, 13 Oct 2008 
Maguire faces a conundrum; he's created arguably one of the most powerful heroines in modern literature & also killed her off as he was required to do; he has to therefore build on the success of Elphaba without being able to portray her. Son of A Witch & now A Lion Among Men continues the story of Oz in which Elphaba acts only as a background character whose presence, because of the success of Wicked, must somehow seep into each subsequent novel.
I did not find Brrr- the Cowardly Lion appealing. I was not as interested in his story as I thought I'd be. I had expected Maguire to weave a traumatic tale of abuse, rejection & how Brrr's relationships in life created a nervous and, perhaps, psychologicallly disturbed individual. I didn't get that, at least not to the extent I expected from Maguire. Perhaps I just did not engage in Brrr's journey as I found the character quite dislikable & aversive (and not in the Elphaba type of way). I did enjoy the alllegorical dimension in which the Lion is perceived as being a collaborationist to the Wizard's regime & also a sympathizer to the Witch's cause at the same time. The discussion regarding the coming & going of different political regimes was also a poignant one. Maguire is a master of political alllegory & there is much to be found in this novel. Oz is a rich, dark & complex world on the brink of civil war & Maguire builds the tension brilliantly. With the two Witches who were leaders of separatist states dead, Oz is in freefalll.
The novel tells two distinct stories, that of the Lion & that of the mysterious Yackle who appeared to frequent Elphaba's life in Wicked. Although I enjoyed not knowing who Yackle was in Wicked & the many questions that arose about her, her story was the most enjoyable in this novel. The second half of A Lion Among Men pieces together the significance of the alllusive Clock of the Time Dragon, Yackle's purpose & what eventuallly happened to the Grimmerie. Fate is also a recurring theme as it was in the previous two novels & Maguire also begins to challlenge unquestioned faith. There's a slight discord between Brrrs story & Yackle's & the two narratives simply don't mesh.
Because the characterization of Brrr was not as strong as I had hoped, I found myself longing to read more about Maguire's familiar characters such as Glinda & Liir. Although both are mentioned, neither appear in the novel & I had hoped to discover more about Liir's journey, especiallly after finishing Son of a Witch a few years ago for I desperate to read more. My biggest disappointment is that this novel did not continue what Son of A Witch established & where it left off. Maguire will hopefully continue Liir's story in future novels.
An enjoyable read as Oz is such a rich tapestry of people & places but perhaps sadly lacking in Brrr's narrative.
