I enjoyed this, but I know a lot of people who didn't. Yes, it was a bit far-fetched, but it's just a work of fiction Slightly tedious in the middle.
I gave this away on bookcrossing as the cover photo was freaking me out!
How old is your daughter? It's not a book for children. The show is a very family friendly sugar coated version of the book. So yes, it is very different and for that reason a lot of people don't like it, because they are expecting a book of the show. I personally love both the show and the book - but as a story the book is FAR better. Gregory Maguire says that the show is inspired by his book in the same way that his book was inspired by Baum.