Greetings Easter Bunny in Oz fans! Today's magical being comes from an area just a little hop and skip outside of Oz, the Easter Bunny! We will be discussion where he is introduced and the story behind Dorothy meeting the Easter Bunny, his magical mark on Oz, and how to bring the Easter Bunny magic to your neck of the woods. But, before we dive into our Easter Bunny in Oz experience, I should state that, "this is not the first time magical, talking bunnies have been introduced in the Land of Oz." The first time that magical, talking bunnies appear in Oz are in Baum's The Road to Oz. Here Dorothy meets the denizens of a small town in the Quadling Country called Bunnybury (seen above) along with its fantastical and talking King Bunny (see below). The town of Bunnybury was created by Glinda because she had a love of bunnies. I wonder where that came from? Any ideas? Let me know your thoughts below. So, now the second time we experience magical, talking bunnies are with the Easter Bunny in Bunnyland. The Easter Bunny's first (and only) Oz appearance comes in the book, The Merry Go Round of Oz by Lauren McGraw and Eloise Jarvis. This book is not a Baum book (since I just stated the names of the authors) and is the FINAL book in the "official canon" series called "The Famous Forty", which you can find out more about here. Anyways, in this book, Dorothy and the Cowardly Lion are preparing for an Easter celebration in the Emerald City of Oz and are told to visit the Easter Bunny in Bunnyland to request help with making Easter Eggs, so they can use them in their festivities. Well, in typical Oz fashion, they begin their walking journey to Bunnyland. You can see that journey below on the Oz map, provided in the book, as the two make their way to Bunnyland from the Emerald City. Once there, they requested to see the Easter Bunny and kindly asked him to fulfill their request for decorated Easter eggs. (A great side note that I would like to point out is a great website that discusses the many maps of Oz by author and longtime Oz fan, David Maxine. One post that David writes about concerns the map below and you can see it here. So, feel free to check that out for more fun activities and inspirations.) POP QUIZ: Did you notice where the entrance to the Easter Bunny's land is? Correct: Munchkin Country. Now, when we look to find the origin of the Easter Bunny and how he came to obtain his connection to Oz, it is never divulged in this story or any other (that I am aware); so, unfortunately, there is no origin story to tell. Maybe someone should write one? That would be wonderful. Now, in the spirit of fans writing fanfiction, there is a great piece regarding the Easter Bunny in Oz, that was written back in 2014 by Nathan DeHoff, a longtime Oz fan and blogger. In the introduction of this piece, we discover that the Easter Bunny calls himself Paschal and there might be a new holiday called "Wester" that the citizens of Oz would like to celebrate. Oh, what else will we discover? To answer that, you will have to check out the store here and leave your thoughts on the story in the comments below. Also, Nathan has a really great blog that highlights and showcases many great components in the Land of Oz (as well as other great stories out there), which you can check out here. Before we move onto how we can bring this Easter Oz magic to life, let us first address the magic of the Easter Bunny, since we are in our year of magic in Oz. Now, very little is described or said in this book regarding his magic; however, some elements can be inferred as to what are within his magical reign of powers. First, there is his magical ability to replicate and decorate Easter eggs on command. I came to this realization because why else would Dorothy and the Cowardly Lion go to put in an order for decorated Easter eggs with him if he did not have this ability and why would Ozma not just magic them up herself if they didn't need his help. A second ability that I feel he has mastered is the power of magical teleportation because our heroes have to enter into a cavern just to arrive in Bunnyland (entrance on the map above). This cavern/tunnel takes them into a new land, outside of Oz, but is magically connected through some sort of transportation spell. A third ability that I am sure just comes with being associated with the magic of Oz is the magical ability to be a talking animal as the Cowardly Lion has shown multiple times as well. Sounds like he is one powerful, magical animal. What powers or abilities did you notice when reading this book (or the fan-fiction piece)? Please let me (and other followers of this page) know in the comments below. So, what can you do to bring this Easter celebration to your own neck of the woods? Well, first, be sure to check out the story itself where the Easter Bunny first appears in the Oz world (original cover image seen above left). I found a physical copy with an updated cover (seen above right) on Amazon. You can also check out The Wonderful Books of Oz page for your own copy. I have not found or seen an e-book or audio version of this book, but if you know where to find one, please share that with us below. One version that definitely does not exist of this book yet is video form and that would be wonderful adaptation to see at this time of the year. So, if you are feeling inspired and have the ability to do so, create your own version of this story in video or media form and share it below for all to see, as that would be a wonderful way to celebrate the Easter festivities. Of course, what would the Easter Bunny be without his Easter eggs and we have just the fix for that. A great Easter read is called Red Reera the Yookoohoo and the Enchanted Easter Eggs of Oz by Richard G. Quinn and illustrated by A.E. Mouse. For more on this book, click here and here. This book lies outside of the canon and is just another fun Oz story. I personally have not read this book, but if you have or are planning on reading it, please let us know what your thoughts are on the plot, content, and its connection to Oz. If you would like to get a copy for yourself or an Easter basket gift, you can order it here. Thirdly, you can always create your own Wizard of Oz themed Easter eggs and as a bonus, I have supplied some inspiration above to help you along. Some great paths you can take with this idea is that you can make them character based or location based like doing an Emerald City themed egg or a Munchkinland themed egg. It is up to you! If decorating eggs is not your schtick, you can always purchase something fun for your Easter baskets from the Oz Museum. Either way, have fun with it and feel free to post how you plan on bringing the magic of the Easter Bunny in Oz to your domain in the comments below. Well, that will do it for our Easter Bunny in Oz experience; and, before we leave, I have one final recommendation for this Easter: Let's make more Easter Bunny in Oz stories and media adaptations; and, until next time when we continue our year of magic in Oz, we'll be seeing you somewhere over the Vinkus.
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AuthorMy name is Vinkus Ken and I have been a long time fan of many things in Oz and how their world truly does emulate much of ours. Did you know that they have a flag of their own? Or did you know that they have a law about only having 9 jurors in their courts? Also, Oz has a court system! I like to introduce facts that seem meaningless and bring meaning to them by comparing them to our world. So, come along on this journey and enjoy the ride. |