This is the fifth book in Piers Anthony's Xanth series and the best of those first five by a wide margin. Piers Anthony has a quirky, almost clunky way of unfolding a story, but the deeper structure--the skeleton of his tales--is always sound and well imagined. Some story ideas just naturally stand out or resonate more than others, and this one did. Surely that's why it was the only one of the 30+ Xanth books to get on the New York Times Best Sellers list.Ogre, Ogre is a classic 'beauty and the beast' love story. Smash is half human, half big ugly brutish Ogre. He entirely denies his human side. Tandy is half human, half nymph. Smash feels that something is missing from his life, but has no idea what. Tandy is desperately trying to escape the unwanted physical attentions of a demon who can pass through walls. Their very different quests find common ground when the Good Magician Humphrey sends them out into the wilds of Xanth together to seek their 'answers'.Along the way Smash takes six more female creatures in tow, all of whom also have unfulfilled needs. He fights a dragon and encounters numerous other threats and obstacles, ultimately delivering all six females safely to their various resolutions, one at a time. In the end, it's just Smash and Tandy again, and Smash still hasn't figured out what he's looking for. Of course the reader well knows what's going to happen long before it does, and yet the plot isn't spoiled by the knowing. The reader still wants to find out how and where the 'light bulb' will finally come on.As in all of the Xanth novels up to this point, the hurdles, obstacles, threats and conflicts that the protagonists encounter come thick and fast, one after another, almost always in series. That is, they come one at a time and are essentially dispatched or set aside before the next one arises. In that very general sense the story lines are predictable and simple--there's an over-riding quest and a lot of short-lived impediments to achieving the goal. In most cases there's absolutely no foreshadowing - the majority of the problems arise entirely unexpected, and more often than not they are forgotten just as quickly, unless some lesson has been imparted.This simple writing style, I'd guess, can appeal to readers who are quite young, and not a lot of brain power is required to enjoy the tale. Yet I, as a mature adult didn't feel that my intelligence was insulted, nor was I ever bored. Anthony is good at what he does, and the quality is consistent. It's good light entertainment.
A story about an ogre30 December 2011tWell, I have just discovered that there are 35 Xanth books, but I believe that I only read twelve of them. Here I am up to number 5, so I guess that means that I have another 7 to go to finish my brief comments on the Xanth series, or at least as many as I have read. I guess they must have been popular since Anthony did churn out 35 of them, but then again this does fall into the category of pulp and are mass market paperbacks. I suspect that all he needs to do is come up with a basic plot, and then fill in all the holes.tAs mentioned elsewhere, it does not cost all that much to write and produce a book. Basically you really only have to pay a single person to write the book full time, and even then it is not a salaried position, but a share of the profits. Anthony has churned out quite a number of books though, not just Xanth, but I will be speaking about these series elsewhere.tThis book is about Smash the Ogre who goes on a quest to find himself. While on this quest he meets up with numerous women who follow him around. It seems as if Smash has his own little harem, though remember that Anthony does target the Xanth novels at the teenage market, so sex does not appear in these books (though it does in his other novels). The problem I found with Anthony is that to me he is an author of teenage novels, so when I moved to his more adult novels, it just did not seem the same (at least Bio of a Space Tyrant, which turned out to be very lame).tI should mention a bit about Smash. The friend of mine who originally introduced me to the Xanth novels had a thing for Smash. He even created a roleplaying character modelled around the ogre. Okay, I also liked the stupid warrior type, though I do tend to prefer my warriors to be a little eccentric, or at least skilled in other areas. In this book Smash actually becomes smart, and this disturbs him to no end as ogres are not meant to be smart. Anyway, I guess one of the ideas in this book is about accepting who we are rather than desiring to be something that we are not.
What do You think about Ogre, Ogre (1997)?
Another Anthony book where nothing really happens.Smash the ogre is sent on a quest, with no real goal, other than to escort a girl who was raised underground where, as she gets older, a demon comes into her room nightly and tries to rape her. On this quest, they meet a few other women of various magical races. Smash must employ is ogre strength to save them on occasion. Along the way he learns that he really isn't just a dumb ogre, and-- of course-- the girl falls in love with him.I must admit, that I bought this book in a hardbound version of books #3-#6. My friends who enjoy fantasy literature all highly recommend Piers Anthony but, I find his writing style too simplistic, the plots rather boring, and the humor rather childish. The puns get tiresome after a while. None of the characters have any real depth. Anthony's attitudes towards girls and women are trite and sexist. He does not write a book with any real depth. A kid might love this story, like she might love any Piers Anthony story, if she isn't very bright and hasn't already read better fantasy literature.
—Sam Lackey
I grabbed this because I needed a book that would be easy to hold as opposed to the over 800 page main book I'm reading (Bully Pulpit). However, I think Anthony has done better than this particular title. I got a bit bored when he started repeating themes he's used in other books like having the protagonist enter fantasy worlds within other fantasy worlds to solve an issue. Or maybe those other books copied the idea from this one, this is a fairly old title of his. I loved Smash as a character. There was too much emphasis on how Smash is really a dumb ogre....or is he? Does he need to embrace his half breed heritage perhaps? There were too many needy damsels in the story. I got where I couldn't keep them straight after the Siren entered the picture. The ones after her were mostly a blur. However, this was a fairly fast light read, which was exactly what I was looking for at this time. I do recommend this book; just don't expect it to be more than it is: light entertainment.
—Joan
I dislike the entire series a great deal. In fact, I've started using Xanth as a measurement for how bad other book series are.I managed to get through 5 Xanth books before I couldn't bring myself to continue any more. 5 books before I would rather listen to nothing while driving than be subjected to Piers Anthony's writing any more. It isn't the worst series I've ever read, I only managed 4 Maze Runner books, and 3 Divergent.In truth, it was the Ogre being propelled like a rocket by vomiting Black Licorice horse shit he'd eaten in book 5 that crushed my spirit once and for all.
—Chris Evans
