"For fans of Xanth books"
Cynthia Centaur knows the cost 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
Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted October 4, 2001
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