Letters to Jenny [School & Library Binding]

Piers Anthony (Author), Alan Riggs (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1994

A collection of letters written by a fantasy master to a twelve-year-old fan lying in a coma captures the drama of the slow response that the reading of the letters elicits from the injured child.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In February 1989, science fiction writer Anthony, author of the Xanth series, received a moving letter. It came from a woman whose daughter, Jenny, was in a coma as a result of severe injuries caused by a drunk driver. She asked Anthony to write to Jenny, an avid fan of his, in the hope that a letter from him would evoke some response. Her request resulted in a series of warm, supportive and humorous letters written weekly from Anthony to Jenny. These were read to the patient by her mother. The original letters Anthony wrote between February 1989 and 1990, reproduced here along with Anthony's comments, reveal the author's wit, humanism and social conscience. Jenny has come out of her coma, but is still confined to a wheelchair. Anthony also named a character in his next Xanth novel after Jenny, whose limited but definite physical responses to his letters indicated how important they were to her. Of greatest interest to Anthony devotees.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Piers Anthony is one of the world's most popular fantasy authors, and a New York Times bestseller twenty-one times over. His Xanth novels have been read and loved by millions of readers around the world, and he daily receives hundreds of letters from his devoted fans.

In addition to the Xanth series, Anthony is the author of many other best-selling works. Piers Anthony lives in Inverness, Florida.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• School & Library Binding
• Publisher: Topeka Bindery (December 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0613064143
• ISBN-13: 978-0613064149
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,932,673 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #45 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Authors, A-Z > ( A ) > Anthony, Piers

More About the Author

Piers Anthony is one of the world's most popular fantasy authors, and a New York Times bestseller twenty-one times over. His Xanth novels have been read and loved by millions of readers around the world, and he daily receives hundreds of letters from his devoted fans.In addition to the Xanth series, Anthony is the author of many other best-selling works. Piers Anthony lives in Inverness, Florida.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Don't exspect it to be like Xanth series, May 14, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Lake County, Illinois) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Letters To Jenny (Mass Market Paperback)

If you are looking to see where Letters To Jenny ties in with the Xanth Series, don't.

The two have only one thing in common and that is Jenny Elfs portrayer...

Letters To Jenny is about a young persons life hanging in the balance after a cruel twist of fate and the hands of a drunk driver tried to end her precious life. I found most of the letters very insperational for her inner soul to heal, and hope to see what becomes of Jenny Elf in the Xanth series.

I gave this book 4 stars for the in depth information on the progress of this young persons daily tasks for life, and the heart of a wonderful writer to reach out and pull her back to the living.

It's folks like Piers Anthony and many others similar to him that help folks of all ages take a moment out of their hectic lives and dream of something more adventures.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Refreshing, May 30, 2000

By 

Peter Dykhuis (Grandville, MI USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Letters to Jenny (School & Library Binding)

I do not believe that Piers Anthony was being exploitive in his publication of Letters To Jenny as one previous reviewer thought. This is a non-fiction work as all prospective purchasers should be aware of. This is a series of letters Mr. Anthony wrote to a very sick young fan over a span of several years. The letters are touching and entertaining and make for an easy read. I for one enjoy knowing a bit about the person who wrote the book I am reading so I am glad to have this opportunity. If the author's true motive was money I doubt this would ever have been published. Non-fiction works by fiction authors rarely sells as well as fiction.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A sliver of marshmallow in the heart of an Ogre, November 11, 1999

By 

Laurie Anne Paul (Great Smokies, TN, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Letters To Jenny (Mass Market Paperback)

I've always enjoyed Anthony's Author's Notes, finding it amusing and touching that he takes the time to share the ups and downs of his life with us as he writes. I was very moved by the Note in which he discussing his letters with a young suicidal woman. But in this, his Letters to Jenny, a real sense of Anthony comes across. This is a man often accused of being a sexist, whose life is surrounded and filled by a wife and daughters:) There is a real fatherly, or maybe "uncle-ly", compassion in his teasing and thoughtful letters to young Jenny. I have more regard for this author, who has given me so many hours of entertainment with his fiction, after reading this incredible piece of non fiction. My best wishes are with Jenny, and her guardian Ogre:)