Rating: 
Summary: Series has finally lost most of its appeal
Review: '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.
Rating:
Summary: Series has finally lost most of its appeal
Review: '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.
Rating: 
Summary: Swell Foop
Review: Another Xanth addition. This book was pretty good, though, not THE best Piers Anthony book. As always, this book is full and packed with puns and that Piers' "silly humor".
Basically the story is: The Demon Earth has been kidnapped and without him the world of Xanth will be without gravity. The result: Xanth flies off into space and all the Xanth creatures float away. Bad Bad! So the next person to pose a question to the good Magician, will be the person who is given the task of finding the Demon Xanth because only a Non-demon can find a demon. Anyway the person who shows up with a question is a flying centaur named Cynthia and she must find 6 people to help her find the swell foop (the only thing that can control demons).
So overall a good book with quite a few of the recurring characters. Such as the Simurghs son, Sim, and Justin Tree and his beloved Breanna of the black wave. Oh yeah and lots of talk about cleavage and lovely female bodies. (as always) LOL
Rating:
Summary: Swell Foop
Review: Another Xanth addition. This book was pretty good, though, not THE best Piers Anthony book. As always, this book is full and packed with puns and that Piers' "silly humor".
Basically the story is: The Demon Earth has been kidnapped and without him the world of Xanth will be without gravity. The result: Xanth flies off into space and all the Xanth creatures float away. Bad Bad! So the next person to pose a question to the good Magician, will be the person who is given the task of finding the Demon Xanth because only a Non-demon can find a demon. Anyway the person who shows up with a question is a flying centaur named Cynthia and she must find 6 people to help her find the swell foop (the only thing that can control demons).
So overall a good book with quite a few of the recurring characters. Such as the Simurghs son, Sim, and Justin Tree and his beloved Breanna of the black wave. Oh yeah and lots of talk about cleavage and lovely female bodies. (as always) LOL
Rating:
Summary: Not just puns--some adventure and games too
Review: 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).
Rating: 
Summary: For fans of Xanth novels
Review: 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
Rating:
Summary: For fans of Xanth novels
Review: 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
Rating: 
Summary: There's no Place Like Xanth...
Review: I have finished Swell Foop and I can't wait to get Piers Anthony's next book. I have read the Xanth series from the first book (Spell...). I would really recomend any of Piers' books to any one if they love puns and Fantasy. You can start on any book you want, but if you like to read stories that go some where you should start with the first one.
Rating:
Summary: A great Read.
Review: I love Piers Anthony's Xanth novels.This one my favorite next to Demons don't dream and Zombie lover.
Awesome.
Rating:
Summary: Yet another beautiful Xanth novel.
Review: I've read every Xanth novel and his two autobiographies and I just loved this new adventure. I like his punny sense of humor and some may be sexual, but that's only a fraction of them. Xanth is a magical place that you escape to when you read Anthony's book and I can't wait for next year when we get the next grand adventure.
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