Swell Foop (Xanth Novels) [Hardcover]

Piers Anthony (Author)

Book Description

Series: Xanth Novels | Publication Date: October 23, 2001

When Cynthia Centaur journeys to ask the Good Magician Humfrey a very personal Question, she expects nothing more than the usual Challenges and Puzzles, as well as some small sort of Service, in exchange for her Answer. What she doesn't expect is that she will be responsible for the future survival of Xanth itself.
For a peril of immense gravity endangers the enchanted land of Xanth. Or, rather, a lack of gravity. The Demon Earth, who rules our own world, has suddenly and mysteriously disappeared. Without Demon Earth's vast powers, everything on the surface of the Earth and all other worlds, including Xanth, will go whirling weightlessly away into space.

By merest chance, Cynthia Centaur has come to the Good Magician's castle at precisely the wrong moment. For the Muse of History has decreed that the very next Querent who asks Humfrey a Question will be charged with the awesome responsibility of finding the Demon Earth and saving Xanth.

It's whispered that another Demon (with a capital D) has done the dastardly deed. The only weapon that can prevail against such a cosmic being is the instrument known as the Swell Foop. And the only way to handle its awesome power is to locate the Six Lost Rings of Xanth, whose whereabouts are known only to the Zombies.

So Cynthia and five companions-her beloved mate, Che; Breanna of the Black Wave and her fiancé Justin Tree; Sim, the immortal bird who will one day know all the secrets of the universe; and Jaylin, a young human girl from the Mundane land of Hawaii -embark on a quest of utmost danger, to challenge an Unknown Demon for the fate of a dozen worlds.
A harrowing and hilarious escapade that ranges from Earth to Xanth to a galaxy far, far away, Swell Foop is pure magical merriment from the prolific pen of fantasy master Piers Anthony.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

"Do you think the puns will ever run out?" a character asks early in Anthony's 26th funny Xanth adventure. "If they do, Xanth will dissolve into chaos... It is mostly made of puns," another character sagely replies. And so it goes. This fantasy confection is full of puns, clever mathematical and grammatical lessons and some gratuitous sexual innuendo. Cynthia Centaur and her companions must find the Six Rings of Xanth (Fire, Earth, Idea, Water, Air and Void) in order to rescue the Demon Earth from the thrall of the Swell Foop. These rings are the only artifacts capable of locating the Foop. When they are stacked and aligned, a person who sights through them will be able to see the Foop if the stack is pointing the right way, and if that person is destined to use it. The rings also control the six known Regions of Xanth. The ring bearers, who include Jaylin, a Mundanian human girl, as well as five Xanth creatures, must use their creativity and sense of humor to find Demon Earth, or else the gravity needed in Xanth and Earth will disappear forever. Diehard Xanth fans will rejoice at this fast-paced romp, but even they might get a bit tired of the incessant panty humor. Some readers may have raging hormones, but the preteens, who would most enjoy this book, aren't quite there yet, and many older teens are ready to explore more mature issues. (Oct. 17)autobiography, How Precious Was That While (Forecasts, July 23).

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

The twenty-fifth book of Xanth deals with a matter of some gravity. Specifically, the Demon Earth has disappeared, which means that eventually not only some but all gravity will disappear from Earth and Xanth. To solve the mystery and rescue the Demon Earth, the Swell Foop is required. That involves using the six magical rings of Xanth, which need to be found by means of a quest by five old friends of Xanth mavens--Cynthia and Che Centaur, Brianna and Justin Tree, and Sim, the immortal bird--as well as Jaylin, a girl from Mundane Hawaii. The search is fraught with Anthony's usual cargo of puns. A bit longer than some recent Xanths, this is also a bit better, and even those who find it more of the same are likely to enjoy themselves. But starting with Xanth in a late book such as this is less advisable for finding out what the fuss is all about than going back as far as your library's holdings allow. Roland Green
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Tor Books; 1st edition (October 23, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312869061
• ISBN-13: 978-0312869069
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #918,876 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Series has finally lost most of its appeal, October 26, 2003

By 

Gary Riley (Webster, TX United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Swell Foop (Xanth, No. 25) (Mass Market Paperback)

'Swell Foop' is the 25th book in the popular Xanth series. I first read the beginning six or seven books in this series about 20 years ago, and then several years ago started reading them from the beginning again. The early books still have their same appeal, and I would recommend that anyone interested in this series begin with the first book, 'A Spell for Chameleon.' I'm not sure when it began, but over the years the books have changed from stories containing amusing puns to a collection of puns loosely tied together by a story. Reading 'Swell Foop' was in many ways sad. There are so many things that I love about this series, but the recent books have become so formulaic that I get little enjoyment out of reading them.

I think the primary downfall of the series has been the inclusion of so many fan suggestions (in 'Swell Foop' more than 100). Almost every chapter has been reduced to 'Character X must solve several puns/puzzles to get item or information Y.' It certainly makes it easier to include suggested puns, but it doesn't make for good story telling, unless you're more interested in puns than plot.

There were a number of other problems with this book. Characters constantly repeat the same information: "Hello, I'm character X. My quest is Y." The story also includes a huge number of characters and locations from prior books in the series, but assumes that you haven't read any of them or don't remember them, so there's an enormous amount of exposition just to recount things that aren't that important to the story. The dialogue at times is just painful.

If you've already read the prior books in this series, you've undoubtably got your own opinion as to whether the stories remain fresh, so decide whether or not to read this book on your own judgement. But if you haven't read the prior books, I strongly suggest you start with 'A Spell for Chameleon,' because I don't think this book really shows the appealing aspects of this series.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not just puns--some adventure and games too, November 11, 2001

By 

booksforabuck "BooksForABuck" (Long Beach, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Swell Foop (Xanth Novels) (Hardcover)

Cynthia Centaur has a simple request for Good Magician Humphrey--but the quest he sends her on is anything but simple. She must find the Swell Foop to rescue the Demon Earth. Before she can even find the Foop, she must first find the six rings of Xanth--rings so powerful that they are hidden to prevent abuse. Even finding the Foop only gives Cynthia a chance. Should she fail, Xanth, the solar system, and possibly the entire universe are at risk.

Cynthia gathers a party of adventurers including the Syn, the bird that will eventually know everything, Zombies, and even a girl from Mundania (Earth as we know it), each of whom must find and control one of the rings.

To the puns and adolescent sexuality that make Xanth run, author Piers Anthony adds some of the games more common in some of his other series (e.g., the Apprentice Adept series), giving SWELL FOOP a bit more complexity and plot than some of the other Xanth series.

In each Xanth novel, Anthony combines a huge number of truly bad puns (is there such a thing as a good pun?) with an adventure. Some of these novels (e.g., A SPELL FOR CHAMELEON and CASTLE ROAGNA) are truly wonderful while others are less so. SWELL FOOP is above average in this hugely popular series.

If you enjoy the Xanth novels, you'll find SWELL FOOP a fine addition to the series. If you aren't familiar with this series, you may start with this novel, but I recommend starting with the first book in the series (A SPELL FOR CHAMELEON).

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars For fans of Xanth novels, October 4, 2001

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Swell Foop (Xanth Novels) (Hardcover)

Cynthia Centaur knows the coast of asking a question of the Good Magician Humfrey, but feels the price is worth the answer. Perhaps she would have reconsidered her pros and cons of visiting Humfrey if she knew that she as his latest visitor is fated to save Xanth (or die trying of course) from total destruction.

She must find the Six Rings of Xanth that only the zombies know anything about. Upon obtaining the six Rings, Cynthia must use them to locate the SWELL FOOP so that she can use that in turn to rescue the Demon Earth from an abductor. Without the Demon Earth, this planet and Xanth will lose its gravity and ultimately vanish forever.

Though action-packed, fast-paced, and loaded with the tons of puns, SWELL FOOP is clearly for those Xanth fans that need word play with every meal. The problem with the tale is that with two worlds at stake and the adventure quite harrowing, the quest seekers spend much of their time exchanging humorous often-sexual barbs (Hans Solo where are you?). Though the jokes are amusing, the plot becomes sidetracked and secondary to the bon mots. This reviewer can understand a shoetree, but the gravity of this story line is too much swill in the soup for those readers who enjoy the simplicity of A SPELL FOR CHAMELEON.

Harriet Klausner