No Phule Like an Old Phule (Phule's Company, #5)

As usual, every villainous being in the universe is seemingly conspiring against Jester and his unconventional company of legionnaires. While General Blitzkrieg -- a bloated commanding officer who is obsessed with dishonoring Jester -- is sending Omega the worst recruits available, he also has his hands in a plot to publicly disgrace the company by sending a rigorous ecological observation team to the planet Zenobia for a surprise audit. The eco-team, fronted by the aforementioned media star Barky, is the least of Jester's worries, however. While dealing with the annoying pooch -- who relentlessly sniffs out pollution and other "dangers to the natural balance" -- Jester must also accommodate a group of powerful high-rollers who have come to Zenobia to hunt native reptilian creatures rumored to resemble predatory dinosaurs. Add to the plot Jester's meddlesome father (who happens to be a billionaire weapons magnate) and a bumbling pair of would-be kidnappers, and Jester has himself one rip-roaring snafu!

The madcap members of Omega Company -- which include Sushi, Do-Wop, Super-Gnat, Tusk-anini, Roadkill, and Chocolate Harry -- are like a cross between the Dirty Dozen and F-Troop. Fans of Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels and Piers Anthony's Xanth series who have yet to experience Asprin's wit should give this laugh-out-loud saga a try. Paul Goat Allen