The Road to Oz by L. Frank Baum. Short summary

5 seconds

Ozma, princess of the Magic Land of Oz, deliberately tangles the tracks in Kansas so that her friend Dorothy can get to her birthday party in the Emerald City.

1 minute

One day Dorothy, a girl living on her Uncle Henry’s farm, is asked by a shaggy-haired man to show her the way to Butterfield. Dorothy accompanies him to a fork in the road. The terrain seems unfamiliar to her. The girl and Shaggy follow the chosen path. They meet a lost boy in a sailor suit, Pugovka, and take him with them.

The travelers meet the King of Lisburg, Rainbow’s daughter, Multicolor, the donkeys from Osloville, the musician Allegro, and the Jumpals. Across the Perilous Desert they are helped across by Johnny the Smart Guy. The company meets Tic Toc’s Copper Man and Billina the Yellow Hen, old acquaintances of Dorothy. They escort the guests to the Emerald City.

It turns out that Ozma mixed up the tracks in Kansas on purpose so that they would bring Dorothy to her birthday party. All day long, the Princess welcomes the arriving distinguished guests from all over the Magic Land. She throws a wonderful party with a performance. The Wizard sends the boy Button to his mother and father.