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Xanth Series
Xanth ( ) is a series of novels by author Piers Anthony, also known as ''The Magic of Xanth''. Anthony originally intended for Xanth to be a trilogy, but a devoted fan base persuaded the author to continue writing the series, which is now open-ended. He has stated that he has kept the series going as long as he has because the Xanth novels are "just about all that publishers want" from him. The novels are set in the fantasy world of Xanth, in which magic exists and every human has a magical "talent." The books have been noted for their extensive use of wordplay and puns. Since the peak of its popularity in the 1970s and 1980s, the series has been criticized by many scholars and reviewers for what they characterize as misogynist and pedophilic undertones; one reviewer has called it the "most divisive non-media publishing enterprise in all of fantasy." Anthony has downplayed these critiques. The series was optioned in 2017 for a film and TV series. Books As of October 2021, t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
A Spell For Chameleon
''A Spell for Chameleon'' is a fantasy novel by British-American writer Piers Anthony, published in 1977 by Ballantine Books/Del Rey Books. It is the first book of the Xanth series. Plot introduction In this adventure, Bink is exiled to Mundania because he has (inadvertently) broken Xanth law by not having a magical talent. He returns to Xanth with Chameleon, a woman whose intelligence and beauty vary inversely depending on the time of the month, and the evil magician Trent who was exiled 20 years earlier for attempting to usurp the throne of Xanth. Plot summary The book starts with the main character, Bink, in his home village. He must discover his magical talent before he comes of age, or be exiled to Mundania. While on his way to see the Good Magician Humfrey about whether he has a magic talent, Bink runs into three different women, Wynne, Dee, and Iris, as well as Chester and Cherie Centaur, and Crombie the soldier. He finds out from Good Magician Humfrey that he has Ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xanth
Xanth ( ) is a series of novels by author Piers Anthony, also known as ''The Magic of Xanth''. Anthony originally intended for Xanth to be a trilogy, but a devoted fan base persuaded the author to continue writing the series, which is now open-ended. He has stated that he has kept the series going as long as he has because the Xanth novels are "just about all that publishers want" from him. The novels are set in the fantasy world of Xanth, in which magic exists and every human has a magical "talent." The books have been noted for their extensive use of wordplay and puns. Since the peak of its popularity in the 1970s and 1980s, the series has been criticized by many scholars and reviewers for what they characterize as misogynist and pedophilic undertones; one reviewer has called it the "most divisive non-media publishing enterprise in all of fantasy." Anthony has downplayed these critiques. The series was optioned in 2017 for a film and TV series. Books As of October 2021, t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heaven Cent
''Heaven Cent'' is a fantasy novel by American writer Piers Anthony, the eleventh book of the Xanth series. It is the second book of a trilogy beginning with '' Vale of the Vole'' and ending with ''Man from Mundania.'' Plot introduction The protagonist of ''Heaven Cent'' is Prince Dolph, shapeshifting son of King Dor and Queen Irene and younger brother of Princess Ivy. The story begins with Dolph, a pre-teen, setting out on a Quest with his designated Adult Companion Marrow Bones to locate the magician Humfrey, who had been missing since '' Vale of the Vole''. Plot summary The story begins with Prince Dolph lying in his sister, Ivy's, bed watching her magical tapestry which shows images from the past and present of ''Xanth''. Dolph is the son of King Dor and Queen Irene, and he has the powerful talent of being able to shapeshift, giving him the power to change into any animal he chooses. While watching the images of the magical tapestry Dolph begins to think about the disapp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vale Of The Vole
''Vale of the Vole'' is a fantasy novel by American writer Piers Anthony, the tenth book of the Xanth series. It begins a trilogy including ''Heaven Cent'' and ''Man from Mundania''. The novel was written as a satirical jab at the canalization of the Kissimmee River The Kissimmee River is a river in south-central Florida, United States that forms the north part of the Everglades wetlands area. The river begins at East Lake Tohopekaliga south of Orlando, flowing south through Lake Kissimmee into the large, s ... in Anthony's native state of Florida as a result of the effects of the 1947 Atlantic hurricane season. The protagonist of this story is Eskil "Esk" Ogre, only son of Tandy Nymph and Smash Ogre. His talent is to protest; when Esk says "No!" he really means it. Those he directs this talent at literally stop what they have intended to do. Esk goes to ask Good Magician Humfrey how to get rid of the Demoness Metria, who has seemingly threatened his family. Unfortunately ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Golem In The Gears
''Golem in the Gears'' is a fantasy novel by American writer Piers Anthony, the ninth book of the Xanth series. Plot introduction Grundy, a man only a few inches high, is desperate to prove himself and gain respect. He volunteers to ride the Monster Under The Bed to find his friend Ivy's long lost dragon, Stanley Steamer. After many adventures, he rescues Rapunzel from the villainous Sea Hag. It seems too good to be true that she could become any size she wanted! A perfect match, seemingly. But that would have to wait until they shook off the pursuing Sea Hag...and Stanley still needed to be found! Characters *Grundy *Rapunzel *Sea Hag * Snortimer Reception Dave Langford reviewed ''Golem in the Gears'' for ''White Dwarf'' #86, and stated that "Like some legendary D&D campaigns, Xanth is so full of whimsy and casual magic that no situation can threaten for long: the storyline lurches drunkenly from pun to banal pun." Reviews *Review by Bob Collins (1985) in ''Fantasy Review'', ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
A Caustic Yarn
A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes''. It is similar in shape to the Ancient Greek letter alpha, from which it derives. The uppercase version consists of the two slanting sides of a triangle, crossed in the middle by a horizontal bar. The lowercase version can be written in two forms: the double-storey a and single-storey ɑ. The latter is commonly used in handwriting and fonts based on it, especially fonts intended to be read by children, and is also found in italic type. In English grammar, " a", and its variant " an", are indefinite articles. History The earliest certain ancestor of "A" is aleph (also written 'aleph), the first letter of the Phoenician alphabet, which consisted entirely of consonants (for that reason, it is also called an abjad to distinguish it f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dragon On A Pedestal
''Dragon on a Pedestal'' is a fantasy novel by American writer Piers Anthony, the seventh book of the Xanth series . This book centers on Princess Ivy, the 3-year-old daughter of King Dor and Queen Irene, the search for her, and the spell on Gap Chasm that caused people to forget it existed breaking apart into "Forget Whorls". Plot summary When the book begins, the Good Magician Humfrey, and his son Hugo, run into the Gap dragon while filling a vial with water from the Fountain of Youth. Humpfrey tells Hugo to douse the dragon with the water, and Hugo does so but accidentally sprays Humpfrey as well. Humpfrey regresses to the age of a baby, as does the dragon. Queen Irene realizes Princess Ivy has wandered off, and begins a quest to find her daughter. Luckily, Ivy comes across Humfrey's 8-year-old son Hugo, and – due to her unknown talent of enhancement – Hugo temporarily becomes smarter, braver, and stronger when she tells him he is. Ivy also manages to enhance the posi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Night Mare
''Night Mare'' is a fantasy novel by American writer Piers Anthony, the sixth book of the ''Xanth'' series . In the book, Xanth is under threat of a barbarian invasion from Mundania. Its only hope is the talents of the Magicians of Xanth and an exiled night mare, sent to the world of waking with the dire message: "Beware the Horseman." Plot ''Night Mare'' centres around Mare Imbrium, one of the night mares charged with delivering bad dreams to the people of Xanth. Imbri carries half a soul, her fee for carrying Chem Centaur out of the void in the previous book. She is unwilling to relinquish her soul, though the conscience that comes with it impedes her ability to deliver bad dreams. The Night Stallion, ruler of the gourd realm, makes Imbri the liaison to the day world and sends her to meet Trent, King of Xanth, with the message, "Beware the Horseman". Imbri leaves the gourd realm and sets out for Castle Roogna with her warning. Along the way she meets a white stallion, whic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ogre, Ogre
''Ogre, Ogre'' is the fifth book of the Xanth series by Piers Anthony Piers Anthony Dillingham Jacob (born 6 August 1934) is an American author in the science fiction and Fantasy (genre), fantasy genres, publishing under the name Piers Anthony. He is best known for his :Xanth books, long-running novel series set in .... Plot introduction Smash the half-ogre (offspring of Crunch the ogre and a human Curse Fiend acting like an ogre) goes to see the Good Magician Humfrey to get his question answered, although he doesn't know what his question is. The magician's answer: Travel to the Ancestral Ogres to find what you seek. His payment is to guard Tandy, a half-nymph, for one year. They travel about the magical land of Xanth, and Smash acquires other young women who travel with him and whom he protects. Along the way, he is infected with the Eye Queue vine, which makes him intelligent (although actually invoking his human half) making him distressed as ogres are not supposed to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Centaur Aisle
''Centaur Aisle'' is a fantasy novel by American writer Piers Anthony, the fourth book of the ''Xanth'' series. King Trent has left Xanth on a mission of trade to Mundania and has left Dor as temporary king. When Trent fails to return after some time, Dor must find a way to rescue Trent. He is informed that the means to rescue Trent lies to the south on Centaur Isle, the home of a tribe of centaurs. Plot Xanth's King Trent has left for dreary Mundania, leaving Dor to practice governing the magical kingdom. Dor's magical talent is communication with the inanimate which for information gathering is very helpful, but for dealing with citizens needing discipline it leaves room for improvement. But when Trent goes to establish trade routes with Mundania, Dor and his friends (a golem A golem ( ; he, , gōlem) is an animated, Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic being in Jewish folklore, which is entirely created from inanimate matter (usually clay or mud). The most famous golem nar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Castle Roogna
''Castle Roogna'' is a fantasy novel by British-American writer Piers Anthony, the third book in the Xanth series. The castle itself is also the residence of the present King of Xanth. Plot summary Dor, a twelve-year-old magician, is next in line to inherit the throne of Xanth. However, his confidence is low because he is bullied by his agemates, including royal princess Irene, because of his power of making unliving objects talk. Adding to Dor's chagrin is his onsetting puberty, which makes him aware of his nanny Millie, a former ghost for 800 years who is in love with a zombie named Jonathan. To teach him the skills he will need to rule the kingdom, and to help him get over his attraction to Millie, King Trent sends him on a mission 800 years into Xanth's past to find the ancient and mysterious Zombie Master, who was the only Xanthian with the knowledge to create an elixir which could return a zombie to life. After striking a deal with the Brain Coral to safeguard his body ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Source Of Magic
''The Source of Magic'' is a fantasy novel by British-American writer Piers Anthony, the second book of the Xanth series. This novel begins one year after the events of ''A Spell for Chameleon'', and describes the adventures of Bink after he has settled down with his pregnant wife, Chameleon. King Trent had appointed Bink the Official Researcher of Xanth at the end of the previous book, and given him the task to discover Xanth's source of magic. According to Popular Science magazine, the book is the first time the word "de-extinction" was ever used. Plot summary On his way to Queen Iris's masquerade ball in honor of Trent's accession to the throne one year before, Bink is attacked by a floating sword, which he deflects using his talent of protection against magical harm. At the ball, he is attacked again by an unseen enemy. Finally, Bink confides in King Trent, who decides to remove Bink from harm's way by sending him out on a mission to find the source of magic of Xanth. T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
