Piers Anthony, Stork Naked

Stork Naked

Piers Anthony

Tor, October 2006, $24.95

ISBN: 0765304090

Stymey Stork refuses to deliver a baby to Surprise Golem, because in accordance with the dictates of the Adult Conspiracy, she is too young to have a child. Instead, Stymey leaves with the newborn, while a surprised Surprise watches over two little monsters she is baby sitting for and the obnoxious Pet Peeve.

The brats and the bird actually feel somewhat sorry for their warden, so they persuade Surprise that Stymey is unfair, like all know it all adults when it comes to those younger. They always deploy the Adult Conspiracy to keep the next generation in line; Stymey had no right to take her infant away from her, as he was unreasonable. The quartet agrees that a quest is in order to take the child from the stork. As they journey across the Lion Mountain and other locales that are not part of their Xanth, the Adult Conspiracy keeps arising, with everyone telling Surprise and her young cohorts to go home for some adult supervision.

Once again, the latest Xanth quest is obviously for fans of the series who will appreciate the puns, bon mots, and other word games that "accompany" the intrepid foursome on their journey. Pet peeve remains an irritant, while Surprise is a nice surprise, though some might be concerned with a teen having a baby as the underlying theme. Still, die hard readers will root for the quartet to stymie the adult conspiracy by stripping naked the stork.