John Dough and the Cherub is a fantasy book written by L. Frank Baum and published in 1906.
It is the story of John Dough, a gingerbread man come to life, and his adventures as he travels through many fairylands and eventually becomes king of Hiland and Loland.
Summary[]
John Dough was a life-sized gingerbread man created by Jules Grogrande of Grogrande Bakery and brought to life due to the accidental inclusion in his recipe of the Great Elixir claimed by Ali Dubh. Hoping to still gain the effects of the Elixir, Ali Dubh tried to eat John Dough, but the baked man escaped by grabbing onto a Fourth of July rocket.
He landed on the Isle of Phreex where he met Chick the Cherub and a number of other unusual people. When Ali Dubh appeared on the island (having paid a witch to transport him to John's location), John Dough and Chick escaped aboard a flying machine.
They stopped briefly at the Palace of Romance and then crashed on the Isle of Mifkets where they met a lovely Princess and a rubber bear named Para Bruin. Ali Dubh followed them and stirred up the Mifkets against them, but they were able to escape again, this time with the help of the Fairy Beavers.
After a brief stop on Pirate Island they arrived on the island of Hiland and Loland where the people of both countries were awaiting a king not made of flesh and blood. Since John Dough met the criteria, he was crowned king and appointed Chick his Head Booleywag.
Characters[]
- Ali Dubh
- Austed Alfrin
- Awkward
- Bebe Celeste
- Blunderer
- Brotherhood of Failings
- Chick
- Diamond Maker
- Disagreeable
- Duo
- Fairy Beavers
- Flamingos
- Fresh-Air Fiend
- General
- Imar
- Jacquelin
- John Dough
- Jules Grogrande
- Kinglet
- Leontine Grogrande
- Maria Simpson
- Nebbie
- Ned Robbins
- Ooboo
- Para Bruin
- Pittypat
- Prize Potato
- Silver Pig
- Sir Pryse Bocks
- Sorrowful
- Sport
- Thoughtless
- Tietjamus Toips
- Two-Legged Horse
- Ugly
- Unlucky
- Wart-on-the-Nose
Background[]
Although it is not part of the Oz series, John Dough and the Cherub does have connections with the Land of Oz. John Dough, Chick the Cherub, and Para Bruin all visited the Emerald City and were honored guests at Ozma's birthday party in The Road to Oz.
John Dough is a figure in a commercial window display that is brought to life by magic. Baum uses the same idea in earlier stories, "The Dummy That Lived" and "The Enchanted Types." The concept was rooted in his strong interest in window displays; see The Show Window.