Now, he reaches people through his Web site, where Anthony writes a newsletter detailing the adventures of his grandchildren, the length of his daily jogs and his opinions on matters ranging from gun control (he's in favor) to e-tickets (they make him nervous). He even gives the gory details on his difficulties acquiring a stool sample for his doctor: "I defecated into a plastic bag. As fate would have it, I had a huge cumbersome movement the consistency of hot fudge."

Piers Anthony hears his readers. He responds to them, gives them what they want. Yes, I love Charles Dickens and Jane Austen more than I will ever love Anthony, but they will never write any new novels that will immerse me, say, in the social world of Bath, circa 1800. Even if they were still alive, they wouldn't answer my fan mail or let me influence their writings -- authors of literary fiction rarely do. Series fantasy, and Anthony's Xanth novels in particular, appeal to a different part of me than do "serious" novels. Xanth gives me a history, nostalgia, a regular dose of the familiar, an opportunity to be an active fan.

That he is so incredibly prolific (he's written over 113 novels), and that he delivers his brand of pleasure so consistently, probably accounts for Anthony's poor critical reputation (though the sex jokes and puns shouldn't be discounted, either). Essentially, it is uncool to like him, and uncool to take any series author very seriously, so critics ignore him when in fact there's ample fodder in the novels for speculation and analysis: Anthony has a complicated relationship to feminism, sometimes ardent, sometimes dismissive (women exist to make men happy; rape is a constant threat; the patriarchy is a problem); he tackles issues like biased intelligence testing and racism with a complexity belied by his lightness of tone; and he consistently parodies cultural sexual attitudes and censorship, via the Adult Conspiracy. This is not to say he's Dickens, but that the moral universe of Xanth is fairly complex, and his books warrant rereading because I discover new stuff to ponder each time.

So yes, the Xanth books are pretty cheesy, but fun anyhow. Of course, fun is something comic writers like Dickens and Austen offered their readers, too, but a lot of critically acclaimed contemporary novelists don't seem to concern themselves with it. I believe reading can, and should, be fun. Who cares if it's cheesy? I can return to Xanth as often as I like, and going there feels like coming home.

Maya Angelou reads from "The Heart of a Woman"