Step off the Yellow Brick Road and into the untold story of a woman we’ve long known, but never truly met—until now. In this week’s Jen’s Jewels, bestselling author Hazel Gaynor invites us to imagine the life of Aunt Em before the twister, before the farmhouse, and before Dorothy. With BEFORE DOROTHY, Hazel spins a powerful prequel filled with sisterhood, sacrifice, and resilience set against the stark contrasts of 1920s Chicago and Dust Bowl-era Kansas. Don’t miss this heartfelt conversation about reinvention, Easter eggs for Oz fans, and the power of rewriting forgotten women into the story.
Jen: Hazel, BEFORE DOROTHY is such a captivating idea. What sparked the inspiration to imagine Aunt Em’s life before Oz?
Hazel: BEFORE DOROTHY was inspired by a few lines from the opening chapter of L. Frank Baum’s book, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: ‘When Aunt Em came there to live she was a young, pretty wife. The sun and wind had changed her, too…She was thin and gaunt, and never smiled now.’ I had so many questions! What had changed her so drastically? Where had she lived before Kansas, and why was Dorothy living with her aunt and uncle? Before Dorothy answers these questions and explores who Auntie Em was before Dorothy came into her life, and how life on the prairie - and Dorothy – change her.
Jen: I loved the relationship between Emily and her sister Annie. How did you approach writing their bond, especially knowing the separation would play such a pivotal role?
Hazel: I’m very close to my sister and to several aunts, so a lot of my writing was drawn from experience of strong family ties among women. There is no definitive explanation in Baum’s books about Dorothy’s mother, or how she is related to Aunt Em so I was keen to explore how a relationship between sisters can change as they grow up, marry, and take different directions in life, and how those decisions may impact them both.
Jen: The contrast between 1920s Chicago and 1930s Kansas is so vivid. How did you research and capture the atmosphere of both places so authentically?
Hazel: I wanted to set the book, and Emily’s life, in two very different places. Chicago - a city of opportunity and industry in the post-war years - was the perfect contrast to the very practical and physical challenges of life as a Kansas prairie farmer (and was also where Baum wrote the original Oz story).Newspaper archives, museum documents, and accounts written about life in Chicago and Kansas during the 1920s and 1930s were incredibly helpful in establishing a strong sense of place and time.
Jen: Dorothy’s arrival on the farm is such a turning point. What was it like crafting her character while staying true to a figure readers already know and love?
Hazel: I loved imagining Dorothy as a young child (closer to the age she is believed to be in Baum’s book), and how she adjusts to life in Kansas with Aunt Em and Uncle Henry. Judy Garland’s performance in the 1939 movie is the iconic version of Dorothy most of us know, so it was important to me to establish a very grounded reality for my pre-Oz Dorothy, and to find real world examples to act as a bridge to the adventures yet to come in The Wizard of Oz. It was great fun to weave in those Easter eggs and nods to the original story.
Jen: The dust storms feel like characters themselves in the story. What drew you to this specific historical moment and setting in American history?
Hazel: The Great Depression and Dust Bowl years provided the perfect setting for Emily and Henry’s lives at the point when Dorothy comes to live with them and also offered a very authentic explanation as to why they, and their fortunes, have changed so drastically. The dust storms also serve as a very real source of fear for Emily and Dorothy - a metaphor to represent the malevolent force of the Wicked Witch of the West. The transition of the once lush and colorful prairie to a colorless land of dust and drought also offered a way to mirror the iconic movie transition from sepia to color.
Jen: Writing a prequel to such an iconic story comes with a lot of expectations. How did you balance honoring the original Wizard of Oz with creating something entirely your own?
Hazel: As a reviewer recently put it,‘it must be tricky for an author to walk the tightrope between fiction and more fiction.’When embarking on anything inspired by existing material, there’s an inevitable sense of imposter syndrome, but because I’ve loved The Wizard of Oz for most of my life, I felt I could embrace the enormous affection there is for these characters, rather than feel intimidated by it. It really mattered to me to honor and respect Baum’s original story and the movie we all love so much, but I also wanted to create my own story; add my own footprints to the Yellow Brick Road. I’ve been so thrilled with early reader responses – both from readers who share my love of The Wizard of Oz, but also from those who aren’t so familiar with that world and have come to Before Dorothy as a reader who loves historical fiction. It was important to me that the book worked on both levels.
Jen: Do you have a favorite spot where you love to write? And any must-have rituals or quirks that help you get into the creative zone?
Hazel: I now have my own writing room (my first novels were all written at the kitchen table), but I’ve learned to write wherever I find space and time. The reality is that the words need to be written regardless of how creative I might feel on any given day. It might be a few scrappy paragraphs at an airport departure gate, or on the football sidelines, or at a writer’s retreat - what matters is showing up and getting something onto the blank page. It doesn’t have to be perfect, especially in early drafts as everything will be revised and rewritten multiple times anyway, and even a bad day’s writing is better than no writing at all. For me, there’s no magic ritual. It’s simply about getting my butt in the chair! Great coffee and a good candle also help!
Jen: What’s currently on your to-be-read stack? Any recent favorites or go-to authors you’re always recommending?
Hazel: I’m currently reading The Antidote by Karen Russell which is a fascinating novel set during the dust bowl.I’m looking forward to Taylor Jenkins Reid’s Atmosphere and I keep hearing amazing things about They Will Tell You The World is Yours by Anna Mitchael. I’m always recommending the brilliant Rachel Joyce and Rose Tremain. I’ll read anything they write.
Jen: How can readers stay up to date with your latest releases, events, or behind-the-scenes glimpses of your writing life?
Hazel: I’m mostly active (aka procrastinating) on Instagram and have a regular newsletter which readers can subscribe to via my newsletter while visiting my website.
Jen: Can you share a little teaser about what you’re working on next? Will it be another twist on a classic tale or something completely different?
Hazel: For the first time in twelve years, I’m not working on anything new which feels both daunting and liberating. My elderly father has been unwell for the last six months so that has absorbed a lot of my time and energy, and I need to give myself space to feel ready to return to the page. That said, I do have an idea percolating which would indeed be another twist on a classic, so hold that thought!
Jen: Thank you for sharing an inside peek into your new release, BEFORE DOROTHY. I can’t wait to see what’s next!
Hazel: Thank you so much! I hope readers enjoy discovering Auntie Em’s story as much as I did while writing it.
Long before Dorothy visits Oz, her aunt, Emily Gale, sets off on her own grand adventure, leaving gritty Chicago behind for Kansas and a life that will utterly change her, in this transporting novel from New York Times bestselling author Hazel Gaynor.
Chicago, 1924: Emily and her new husband, Henry, yearn to leave the bustle of Chicago for the promise of their own American dream among the harsh beauty of the prairie. But leaving the city means leaving Emily’s beloved sister, Annie, who was once closer to her than anyone in the world.
Kansas, 1932: Emily and Henry have established their new home among the warmth of the farming community in Kansas. Aligned to the fickle fortunes of nature, their lives hold a precarious and hopeful purpose, until tragedy strikes and their orphaned niece, Dorothy, lands on their doorstep.
The wide-eyed child isn’t the only thing to disrupt Emily’s world. Drought and devastating dust storms threaten to destroy everything, and her much-loved home becomes a place of uncertainty and danger. When the past catches up with the present and old secrets are exposed, Emily fears she will lose the most cherished thing of all: Dorothy.
Bursting with courage and heart, Before Dorothy tells the story of the woman who raised a beloved heroine, and ponders the question: what is the true meaning of home?
Historical [Berkley, On Sale: June 17, 2025, Trade Paperback / e-Book , ISBN: 9780593440339 / eISBN: 9780593440346]
Hazel Gaynor is an award-winning New York Times and internationally bestselling author of historical novels which explore the defining events of the 20th century. A recipient of the 2015 RNA Historical Novel Award (The Girl Who Came Home) and the 2024 Audie award for Best Fiction Narrator (The Last Lifeboat), her work has also been shortlisted for the 2019 HWA Gold Crown, the 2020 RNA Historical Novel Award, and the Irish Book Awards in 2017, 2020 and 2023. Her co-written historical novels with Heather Webb have all been published to critical acclaim. Hazel’s work is translated into 20 languages and she is published in twenty-seven territories to date. She lives in Ireland with her family.
Jennifer Vido writes sweet romances set in the Lowcountry, earning acclaim as the award-winning author of the Gull Island series. Her debut novel, "Serendipity by the Sea," secured the prestigious Best First Book award from the New Jersey Romance Writers Golden Leaf Contest. In 2024, Vido's talent garnered further accolades, with Baltimore Magazine readers naming her Best Local Author in their annual Best of Baltimore poll, while the Baltimore Sun acknowledged her with an Honorable Mention in their Best of 2024 Author category. When not writing fiction, she interviews authors for her weekly Jen’s Jewels column, leads water exercise classes, and directs a legal nonprofit. Currently residing in Maryland, she and her husband are proud parents to two grown sons and a rescue dog named Fripp.
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