Customer Reviews

Pornucopia

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I'm not certain a wilder fantasy can be had. An incubus/succubus, magical smegma, a set of detachable, interchangable penises of various sizes & functions, demons, & a woman scientist who doesn't know the meaning of the word "No" nor how a man values his own penis. This is Piers Anthony boldly rushing in where Mrs. Grundy fears to tread.

I enjoy his novels, and this one was no exception. I read it long before I had discovered Xanth, Tarot, or the Incarnations of Immortality. I don't think I had yet read the first Phaze trilogy. What an introduction! This book stood alone in it's own right--one doesn't have to be an Anthony fan to enjoy it.

I was attracted to the taboo-violating nature of the basic plot device: Evil scientist removes man's stubby little penis & gives him a wide range of accessories (with full sensate functioning) to replace it. Man goes on quest to obtain techno-magical item to exchange for his original organ. The theme of "a quest to obtain something magical so the wizard will return what is rightfully yours" is a tired old theme. Applying it to a man's =PENIS= returns it to novelty!

Once you get past the creative audacity, this reads like any other Anthony novel. The characters don't have a lot of depth (the hero seems to occupy a fractal dimension larger than two but fails to achieve a full three dimensions). Who cares? His creativity is legendary--and this book showcases it well. Lots of challenges, action & even the odd pun, all played out in a sci-fi-magico-phantasy-sexual arena.

Yes, there are some very interesting forms of coupling portrayed in this book. I would hesitate to label it erotica, and certainly =NOT= consider it pornography. It's not a one-handed read. Think of it more as a Xanth novel you'd hate to explain to a pre-pubescent! This is as violent as any quest novel, but the sexual arena for the quest makes the violence less palatable.

Three stars for characterization. Four stars for plot. Five stars for shear audacity. If you've got an open & adventurous mind, don't miss this unique book.

(If you liked this review, please read my other reviews at Amazon.com. Thanks, Elderbear)

When I picked up my first Xanth book at 14 and learned about the adult conspiracy, little did I know what I was going to get myself into later. Pornucopia was a completely different beast than the punny Xanth series, whimsical Adept series, the more philosophical Incarnation series, or anything else by my favorite author.
Although the writing style had the same basic flavor as Anthony's other writing, Pornucopia had a distinct campy flavor to it, as if there was not put alot of effort into the book. On the other hand, the story was well connected to itself and the plot flowed very smoothly. As usual, the book was incredibly amusing and entertaining...but this one had the added plus of being ultimately naughty. The book showed us even more of Anthony's playful side.
Each section was well written and entertaining, and the characters all had a presence that was impossible to ignore. It was hard not to be enchanted with a succubus, demons, venereal disease-healing smegma, detatchable penises of a variety of forms, wanton sexual exploits and abundant ejaculations of creativity.
Highly recommendable!

Pornucopia is a combination of fantasy and erotica. Piers Anthony only sells this book to persons over 21 years of age.

It is the story of a man who finds he holds a cure for venereal disease on his, um, genitalia (sp?). Because this is so important, his genitalia is/are removed and he is given a substitute. The rest of the book details his quest to get his genitalia back.

The premise of this book is so outlandish and ludicrous that it is enjoyable to read. I did a lot of laughing and eye-brow raising. However, it is not for the conservative or faint of heart.

If you are an adult and a diehard Piers Anthony fan, I would recommend this book. Especially if you are open-minded. Otherwise, you probably won't enjoy the story. It's pretty darn wierd. I'd have to say that I've never read anything quite like it.

Basically, I enjoyed reading this book but it did not hold my interest or spark new thoughts as many of Piers Anthony's books do when I read them. The author apparently likes to explore sexual subjects (see his book Firefly) and explore taboos (see some of his other series other than Xanth). Nothing wrong with that but I would never want someone who loves the Xanth series to get the wrong idea. The basic story of a man placing too much emphasis on the size of his genitalia is easy to catch hold to and most of the book is easy enough to follow but it does not leave you wanting more. Although it is sexually graphic, and has some odd scenes, it is not overly pornographic, like a letter to a men's magazine. If you need a book to soak up a little time and something without much weight or thought needed, this is good. If you want to be intellectually challenged, you may want to look elsewhere (like Piers Anthony excellent Incarnations of Immortality series). Because this book is usually out of print, it can be a collector's item.

If you like Piers Anthony and you aren't offended by radical departures from traditional mores, you'll love this. Very funny, though not as thought provoking as Heinlein's material on the same subjects. It was a little less tightly written, from a plot perspective, than Piers' more traditional fantasy and sci-fi

The reviewer who said he/she wasn't uptight, but that the book is about orifices, ...I suspect is uptight. THE REST OF THE REVIEWERS NEED TO LEARN TO CONVEY A SENSE OF THE BOOK WITHOUT GIVING AWAY PLOT ELEMENTS.

Well I finished this one this morning. I am hesitant to write any kind of review for fear it would sound like pornography. There is very little I can say about this book without getting into details and that is something that I just can't do. Suffice it to say that it is fantasy, erotica at the highest level and definately NOT for everyone. It gets quite weird in most of the book. Things happen quickly and there is a tendency to almost lose track of what you are reading. The basic premise (although toned down drastically by me) is that a man meets a succubus/Incubus on a beach. He is constantly thinking about his private area and how small it is. The succubus brings him to a kind of Dr. who performs surgery on him while he is drugged. It all spirals from there. We have people laying a type of demon egg and we have a Mountain of Ice cream. I am sorry but this book was just too weird and out there for words. The writing style was good, it fit the book, it is just the story was well . . . WAY out there with a huge amount of sex not normal sex - WEIRD sex. The author explains at the end of the book the many trials he went through to get this published. Most publishing houses wouldn't touch it. I understand why.

Piers Anthony holds true to his Xanth novels in this bit of fun erotica. Puns are everywhere. I read this book years ago, actually before I read any Xanth novel, but it was such an INTERESTING bit I still remember it well. I recommend it to anyone who is adult enough to see the humor in weird places (including a... hmm... multi-attachment... er.. groin). A must have for Piers Anthony fans.

As a kid I really enjoyed the Piers Anthony Xanth series, so I figured I would probably enjoy the writing style of this book. Unfortunately I think my tastes have changed in 20 years. While the book was entertaining for the most part, I have to agree with the other reviewers: It was written for children, or probably more specifically, "the child in all of us". It was also a very quick read. Parts of the story, including a major plot feature (I won't spoil it) felt very tacked on (and as it turns out, that feature was tacked on, according to the author's notes at the end). I give it 2 stars: It did cover unusual sexual territory, as promised, but fell quite short on actual adult entertainment.

I can't imagine anything good to say about this book. Really I can't. The pacing is horrid. The plot has no sense of purpose and the characters are tissue-paper thin. It's nice Piers decided to let go and write something as dirty as he obviously wanted to (Read Wielding a Red Sword for a good example) but he did so poorly.

Well Iwas hoping for something better than this despite the title. While accepting the strong sexual content as Antony's style the story seemed too tongue in cheek for my taste, hope for something a little more profound