Birdie and His Fairy Friends-Margaret T. Canby

This is the second to last book in the OZ series that Baum actually wrote himself before he passed away. "A Faithful Record of the Remarkable Adventures of Dorothy and Trot and the Wizard of Oz, together with the Cowardly Lion, the Hungry Tiger and Cap'n Bill, in their successful search for a Magical and Beautiful Birthday Present for Princess Ozma of Oz." - Summary by Baum. Almost all the marvelous creatures of OZ are involved in this far reaching adventure story with tons of danger, evil magic, dastardly plots and heroic last minute acts of bravery to finally save the day. The Lonesome Duck makes her first and last appearance in this book which, by itself, makes it a 'must listen to' in my opinion.