Xanth Books by Piers Anthony

[Cody Windle]

So from a general feel of how things go with the Dragonmount community, I'm wondering if anyone has read the Xanth books and what peoples thoughts on them are. Those were books that I loved and hated at the same time. I like the witty humor along with the puns, but the puns could at times get extremely annoying. My favorites in the series would be A Crewel Lye, Dragon on a Pedestal and Geis of the Gargoyle. What are your thoughts on the series as a whole?

[Whizbang]

Haven't read them all, but enjoyed the ones I did read.

 

Vale of the Vole was the first one I read, waaay back at 12 or 13 years old. I then read Man from Mundania. I really wanted to read "The Color of Her Panties" (for research purposes, of course), but couldn't bring myself to check it out of the library.

 

This year, purchased A Spell for Chameleon on my Kindle and read it and enjoyed it. I plan on eventually reading them all. They are quick, light-hearted fantasy novels, with very little continuity (that I can tell) between books. It really makes it a great choice when you are looking to take a break from reading LOOOONNG, heavy series like Wheel of Time or The Song of Ice and Fire. Xanth's puns can be a bit over the top, but the pace and shortness of the books make this bearable, and even enjoyable if you don't try to read several books back to back. I just like the escapism in the series. Not only are you escaping from reality, you are escaping from even the serious tones in other fantasy writing. You are escaping back to adolesence when everything is light and nothing is funnier than a slightly dirty joke about sex.

[Cody Windle]

I know. I love the series. I've read pretty much every single one of them up till Knot Genesis. There are a few of the newer ones that I haven't read, only because I haven't been to my local Barnes and Noble(AKA Library/Coffee Shop) and they don't really carry a whole lot of them.

 

It's been a little while since I read them, but one thing that I really enjoyed about them is the fact that you can just jump in on pretty much any of the books and just go. Also, if you do read them in chronological order, from the very first and through, they do flow together damn near perfectly. Being able to just zone out and fall into those books is one of the most relaxing things that I've found to do. I think the best one of the series has to be Demons Don't Dream. The way that it starts out from the point of view of a kid that has no idea what Xanth is and get's the game Companions of Xanth is probably one of the best things that I read as a kid.

[batcaver]

Wow, I haven't thought about these in years. Back when I was in 6th grade it was all about Xanth and Dragonlance. They were the first fantasy I think I read after LoTR. I think I read 7 or 8 of them. I do remember the puns! There was the girl in the first book who was smart when she was ugly, and stupid when she became pretty. Wasn't the guy in the first book's name Bink or Bonk or something? I remember really loving them. Night Mares. Har har.

[Wildfire Sedai]

I loved the Xanth series...I too only read a few but that was because I couldn't find the order in which I was supposed to read...the one scene i remember most is the one about the prince who has two princesses to marry and they have to pick a rose and one of them tries to pick the black rose which could lead to death and the prince stops her. Or atleast I think they were prince/princesses...This was over 20 years ago so ya gotta give me a break....

[ReleaseTheEvil]

I've read only one but enjoyed it a lot at the time. Was a long time ago, and recently was considering getting through the rest of the whole collection. Then when I saw the size of it, I wasn't so sure anymore :P. Maybe I'll try the library before buying them all? Maybe now I should read this thread to see if others have enjoyed it...

[Haggis]

I been a long time reader I think since middle school I'm now 28 so over a decade and a half. It's a fun series that living in florida I get that little extra bit of enjoyment from.

 

One aspect I'm sure WoT fans will enjoy is character reuse. Minor characters from one book will get some screen time a few books later, and then bam 10 years later they are the new main character or perhaps their children show up.

 

If I had to suggest one to dip your toe in with it would be Ogre, Ogre. I always enjoyed it, and most people seem to really like it. It's got a intersting viewpoint and unusually serious plot yet still the xanth fun, It's also the point when puns start becoming a big part of the story, if you have trouble with them at the point you won't be able to stand some of the later stuff.

[Smittyphi]

The first one I read was Centaur Aisle.  I have since read up to Zombie Lover.  Some are better than others.  They are a nice read for just fluff.