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keen23's review against another edition
2.0
OK, so the misogyny is pretty strong with this one. I mean, yeah, it was written in the 70's, but really, the character Chameleon is so insulting. She's the "perfect woman" because she's constantly changing and Bink won't get bored with her. But, I'll probably give another book in the series a go, because I did like the world building.
natalie_is_reading's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 - entertaining and nostalgic! I remember reading Xanth books at my grandmas house when I was little, my dad had recommended them. One of them - Ogre Ogre - was definitely one of my favorite books for a while. When I came across them in the library the other day I decided to check them out again. This is the first one (I looked up the list and there are still Xanth novels being published?!?! It’s been 50 years??) and I wasn’t sure if I had read it before. I’m leaning towards yes because it felt so familiar, I was surprised how many names I recognized, plot lines I knew, but also the other books build on it so I mostly remembered like once the characters were older and had gotten together and were telling their stories. Anyways very magical. But oof. The sexism. This book was written in the 70s and you can tell. Bink, the main character, comments on every single woman’s appearance and how attracted he is to them, being a man. All of the female characters only exist to push male characters storylines further. Most things about Chameleon. A trip. Definitely old. And bad even for then. It’d be interesting to read the new ones. But still enjoyable! Feeling tempted to grab a few more from the library!
adamkull's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
novelette's review against another edition
3.0
I forgot the beginning to the series. Excited to get back into it
rattledragons's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
elbinho's review against another edition
1.0
Ich hatte die Xanth-Reihe als relativ nichtssagende Fantasy im Kopf, die in erster Linie als Vehikel für Wortspiele des Autors dient, also eine angenehme und entspannte Lektüre, wenn es mal ganz wenig episch sein soll. Ich hatte keine Erinnerung mehr an das seltsame toxische Frauenbild.
Kurz: Nein! Einfach Nein!
Eventuell schaue ich mir ein paar andere Bücher der Reihe nochmal an, aber erstmal muss ich mich lange duschen.
Kurz: Nein! Einfach Nein!
Eventuell schaue ich mir ein paar andere Bücher der Reihe nochmal an, aber erstmal muss ich mich lange duschen.
katymaryreads's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
heidi_may91's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
ketutar's review against another edition
1.0
DNF
So... I was getting very uneasy at the beginning, about how they talked about Samantha, and all the bullying (I mean... people getting physically hurt, even potentially killed, and no one does anything about it? ), so I went to find out what the book was about, and I read some 1-star reviews. Ew. No, thank you. Seems like this is one book I should have read when I was a kid. I really don't want to read it. Maybe I'll give it another chance in the future, but right now - no.
I gave this a new chance in 2023. I finished it. *sigh* It just isn't good.
Yes, everyone has heard of sexism. Every female character is described as being pretty or ugly. If they are pretty, their body is talked about and often repeated. Bink managed to put his hands on the centaur's breasts and noticed how the naked mermaids' breasts were supported by the water making them appear fuller.
Sure, Bink behaves like a perfect gentleman and doesn't have sex even when the opportunity comes (and it comes surprisingly often), but... it feels like virtue signaling. We are supposed to think Bink is a great, moral guy.
He really isn't.
For some reason, there can only be a king to rule the kingdom, even though he's in a way democratically elected - buy a handful of chancellors from the strong wizards of the kingdom. (There are practically just a couple of those at any given time.) In fact, the only reason Bink rejects a powerful sorcerer's aspiration to become the ruler is that she is a woman. The ruler can only be a man. The sorcerer has a plan - she can make Bink appear to have magic, strong magic, and so they'll make him the king, and she as his wife will become the queen. Bink says he doesn't want to be a king, and the sorcerer says that he doesn't need to do any of the ruling, she'd do that, but that goes against Bink's ideas of what a woman's place is, so no deal. The sorcerer mentions some things she'd do as the ruler, and there's nothing wrong with those things. Piers doesn't really give any reason why she would be a bad ruler, but, no, the council should choose the king, and that's it.
Well, hello, the council only chooses among the strong wizards, and there is only one right now in the country, and he doesn't want to be the king! So why not let someone be the king who wants to be the king, even though she is a woman and wants to be the king because she wants power? There is nothing to say she'd abuse the power.
The same thing with the "evil" wizard. Yeah, when he was young he did a lot of stupid things. But it turns out that half of those things were heavily exaggerated, even lies, and the guy is a stellar character, and never does anything bad. Or, at least after they get back to Xanth. He also is totally open and honest about his plans, explains them well, makes sense, but, no, he's "evil", so Bink refuses to listen to him, even when it makes sense. It must be bad because he's "evil". *rolling eyes*
Oh, the times I rolled my eyes reading this book!
Bink is f-ing whiny. He behaves and thinks like a teenager, but he's 25. Piers was over 40 when he wrote this book, and a father of two daughters, the first one he had when he was 22. She was over 21 when this book was published.
Bink constantly makes bad decisions based on really stupid logic and is saved all the time either due to the circumstances or because someone else saves him. Oh, and his magic talent. Yet everyone all the time tells him how smart, strong, and handsome he is. And his response is all the time "it doesn't matter, I don't have magic, so I'm worthless".
Uh. I really dislike this book.
Sure, there are good things here too. Some of the puns were actually funny. I like the magical creatures and world-building, and the magic was kind of nice, too. But, Bink is an idiot and a marysue, and the sexism is really inexcusable. (Yeah, I know it was written in the 70s, but so were a lot of other books that manage to not be sexist, so what's Piers' excuse?)
So... I was getting very uneasy at the beginning, about how they talked about Samantha, and all the bullying (I mean... people getting physically hurt, even potentially killed, and no one does anything about it? ), so I went to find out what the book was about, and I read some 1-star reviews. Ew. No, thank you. Seems like this is one book I should have read when I was a kid. I really don't want to read it. Maybe I'll give it another chance in the future, but right now - no.
I gave this a new chance in 2023. I finished it. *sigh* It just isn't good.
Yes, everyone has heard of sexism. Every female character is described as being pretty or ugly. If they are pretty, their body is talked about and often repeated. Bink managed to put his hands on the centaur's breasts and noticed how the naked mermaids' breasts were supported by the water making them appear fuller.
Sure, Bink behaves like a perfect gentleman and doesn't have sex even when the opportunity comes (and it comes surprisingly often), but... it feels like virtue signaling. We are supposed to think Bink is a great, moral guy.
He really isn't.
For some reason, there can only be a king to rule the kingdom, even though he's in a way democratically elected - buy a handful of chancellors from the strong wizards of the kingdom. (There are practically just a couple of those at any given time.) In fact, the only reason Bink rejects a powerful sorcerer's aspiration to become the ruler is that she is a woman. The ruler can only be a man. The sorcerer has a plan - she can make Bink appear to have magic, strong magic, and so they'll make him the king, and she as his wife will become the queen. Bink says he doesn't want to be a king, and the sorcerer says that he doesn't need to do any of the ruling, she'd do that, but that goes against Bink's ideas of what a woman's place is, so no deal. The sorcerer mentions some things she'd do as the ruler, and there's nothing wrong with those things. Piers doesn't really give any reason why she would be a bad ruler, but, no, the council should choose the king, and that's it.
Well, hello, the council only chooses among the strong wizards, and there is only one right now in the country, and he doesn't want to be the king! So why not let someone be the king who wants to be the king, even though she is a woman and wants to be the king because she wants power? There is nothing to say she'd abuse the power.
The same thing with the "evil" wizard. Yeah, when he was young he did a lot of stupid things. But it turns out that half of those things were heavily exaggerated, even lies, and the guy is a stellar character, and never does anything bad. Or, at least after they get back to Xanth. He also is totally open and honest about his plans, explains them well, makes sense, but, no, he's "evil", so Bink refuses to listen to him, even when it makes sense. It must be bad because he's "evil". *rolling eyes*
Oh, the times I rolled my eyes reading this book!
Bink is f-ing whiny. He behaves and thinks like a teenager, but he's 25. Piers was over 40 when he wrote this book, and a father of two daughters, the first one he had when he was 22. She was over 21 when this book was published.
Bink constantly makes bad decisions based on really stupid logic and is saved all the time either due to the circumstances or because someone else saves him. Oh, and his magic talent. Yet everyone all the time tells him how smart, strong, and handsome he is. And his response is all the time "it doesn't matter, I don't have magic, so I'm worthless".
Uh. I really dislike this book.
Sure, there are good things here too. Some of the puns were actually funny. I like the magical creatures and world-building, and the magic was kind of nice, too. But, Bink is an idiot and a marysue, and the sexism is really inexcusable. (Yeah, I know it was written in the 70s, but so were a lot of other books that manage to not be sexist, so what's Piers' excuse?)