Man from Mundania

"Man from Mundania" is number 12 in Piers Anthony's ever-growing Xanth series, which makes it the third volume of what I think of as the 'next generation' of Xanth novels (the first um, 'trilogy' ended with number 9, "Golem in the Gears"). In a way, it also marks one of the last of the old style Xanth books: although the series continues to be entertaining and amusing, I am less often enraptured by the characters of recent times. Perhaps I'm just getting old. Regardless, "Man from Mundania" remains one of my favourite Xanth novels that I have returned to many times to read and savour.Our heroine for this episode is Princess Ivy, now eighteen and of marriageable age. Being a Sorceress, she must marry a man of similar calibre magic, which presents a slightly awkward situation, since no suitable candidates currently exist in Xanth. Ivy isn't too worried, though- she's in no hurry to get married. Instead, she decides to set off on a Quest: to find the missing Good Magician Humfrey, who has mysteriously disappeared (since volume 10, "Vale of the Vole"). Her quest sends her to that most terrible of blah and boring places, Mundania. Here she meets Grey Murphy, a seemingly ordinary mundane Mundane with hair-coloured hair, eye-coloured eyes and no apparent distinguishing features at all. Grey teaches Ivy about Mundania, while she attempts to convince him about the existence of Xanth, finally taking him back home with her. Along the way, of course (this being a Xanth novel, after all!) they fall in love. And this presents yet another problem, since Ivy must marry a Magician, and Grey is a Mundane who has no magic talent at all- or does he?Ivy and Grey's adventures in the lands of Mundania and Xanth are inventive and entertaining, filled with the sunny good humour of the Xanth series. Characters with a satisfying amount of depth and a well-constructed plot add to the mix to make this one of the best novels in the Xanth series.8.5 stars out of 10

The novel Man From Mundania, by Piers Anthony, follows the journey of an unlikely couple on their quest to find the Good Magician and to save the magical world of Xanth. The Good Magician, also known as Humphrey, has the magical talent of knowing the answer to any question. He mysteriously dissappeared and the land of Xanth is going into chaos without his knowledge. The journeying couple consists of Ivy and Grey. Ivy is a princess and sorceress in the magical land of Xanth and is the one that is originally journeying to find the Good Magician. Grey is a seemingly ordinary human being who comes from the dull land of Mundania. He meets Ivy on her quest and ends up joining her. The couple continue their journey to find Humphrey and instead discover an evil machine's plot to take over Xanth using Grey and Ivy as pawns. I really liked how this story is written and the outcome of the novel is great. I also enjoyed the little puns that can be found throughout the story. All in all, this is a spectacular book and I recomend it to anyone who enjoys a funny, well written novel.

I absolutley love Piers Anthony's Xanth series and Man from Mundania had to be one of the best yet. I started reading it on a Sunday night and by monday evening was done. Anyone who loves Anthony's work should definatley read this book.

This is what, the 11th or 12th Xanth book (out of, now, about 25 or so I guess)...the first 4 were great (Castle Roogna and Centaur Aisle were the best), 5-8 were so-so (Ogre Ogre, Night Mare, Dragon on a Pedestal, Crewel Lye, Golem in the Gears) and 9 and 10 were getting good again (Vale of the Vole, Heaven Cent)...I forget if Isle of View was 11, or if this was. Regardless.....!!Those of you who got bored with books 5-8 (or 5-10, or 2-10) can come back. This was the first really good Xanth book in a long while. It got away, to some degree, from just the sheer silliness of the middle books, and got a little more into characterization than before, which was good.I also happened to like the fact that Ivy is finally grown (growing) up and played a big part, and the new character, Grey, was good too.

This is one of my favorite books, partially because it got me into the world of piers anthony, my favorite author. This book is a humorous fun and pun-filled book by the fantastic author of the worlds greatest series', including the "Magic of Xanth 'trilogy'". Anyone familiar to Anthony or Xanth will love this book