This book is dedicated with
all of my heart
To Janet
My littlest sister but biggest assistor
Ruth Plumly Thompson
LIST OF CHAPTERS
Page 1 [The Exploding Birthday Cake] 15 2 [Picking a Proper Princess] 30 3 [Kabumpo and Pompa Disappear] 44 4 [The Curious Cottabus Appears] 50 5 [In the City of The Figure Heads] 62 6 [Ruggedo’s History In Six Rocks] 78 7 [Sir Hokus And The Giants] 95 8 [Woe in the Emerald City] 105 9 [Mixed Magic Makes Mischief] 114 10 [Peg and Wag to the Rescue] 132 11 [The King of the Illumi Nation] 145 12 [The Delicious Sea of Soup] 160 13 [On the Road to Ev] 174 14 [Terror in Ozma’s Palace] 188 15 [The Sand Man Takes a Hand] 205 16 [Kabumpo Vanquishes The Twigs] 211 17 [Meeting the Runaway Country] 226 18 [Prince Pompadore Proposes] 240 19 [Ozma Takes Things in Hand] 255 20 [The Proper Princess is Found] 267 21 [How It All Came About] 281 22 [Ruggedo’s Last Rock] 292
Chapter 1
The Exploding Birthday Cake
“The cake, you chattering Chittimong! Where is the cake? Stirem, Friem, Hashem, where is the cake?” cried Eejabo, chief footman in the palace of Pumperdink, bouncing into the royal pantry.
The three cooks, too astonished for speech, and with staring eyes, pointed to the center table. The great, gorgeous birthday cake was gone, though not two seconds before it had been placed on the table by Hashem himself.
“It was my m-m-asterpiece,” sobbed Hashem, tearing off his cap and throwing his apron over his head.