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Βίλα ινκόγνιτο
Φανταστείτε τρεις Αμερικανούς αγνοούμενους που προτίμησαν να παραμείνουν αγνοούμενοι, μετά τον πόλεμο του Βιετνάμ.
Φανταστείτε τέσσερις γενιές δυναμικών και όμορφων γυναικών που έχουν κάτι σαν μυστηριώδη σύνδεση με μια αλλόκοτη φιγούρα του ιαπωνικού φοκλόρ.
Φανταστείτε τα αυτά (μην προσπαθήσετε καν να φανταστείτε την ιστορία αγάπης που αφηγείται ο συγγραφέας) και θα έχετε μια γεύση από το όγδοο και ίσως πιο καλογραμμένο μυθιστόρημα του Τομ Ρόμπινς -ένα έργο τόσο σύγχρονο όσο οι διεθνείς συγκρούσεις του καιρού μας.
Σε ένα επίπεδο, αυτό το βιβλίο αναφέρεται στην ταυτότητα, στις μάσκες και στις μεταμφιέσεις -"το ψεύτικο μουστάκι του κόσμου". Όμως, ούτε η καταχνιά του Λάος, ούτε τα καυσαέρια της Μπανγκόγκ, ούτε τα σύννεφα του Σιάτλ, ούτε η ομίχλη του Σαν Φραντζίσκο, ούτε οι ζοφερές δραστηριότητες των μυστικών υπηρεσιών, ούτε οι μασκαράτες του τσίρκου δεν μπορούν να επισκιάσουν τους γλωσσικούς σπινθηρισμούς που φωτίζουν τις σελίδες της "Βίλας Ινκόγκνιτο".
Φανταστείτε τέσσερις γενιές δυναμικών και όμορφων γυναικών που έχουν κάτι σαν μυστηριώδη σύνδεση με μια αλλόκοτη φιγούρα του ιαπωνικού φοκλόρ.
Φανταστείτε τα αυτά (μην προσπαθήσετε καν να φανταστείτε την ιστορία αγάπης που αφηγείται ο συγγραφέας) και θα έχετε μια γεύση από το όγδοο και ίσως πιο καλογραμμένο μυθιστόρημα του Τομ Ρόμπινς -ένα έργο τόσο σύγχρονο όσο οι διεθνείς συγκρούσεις του καιρού μας.
Σε ένα επίπεδο, αυτό το βιβλίο αναφέρεται στην ταυτότητα, στις μάσκες και στις μεταμφιέσεις -"το ψεύτικο μουστάκι του κόσμου". Όμως, ούτε η καταχνιά του Λάος, ούτε τα καυσαέρια της Μπανγκόγκ, ούτε τα σύννεφα του Σιάτλ, ούτε η ομίχλη του Σαν Φραντζίσκο, ούτε οι ζοφερές δραστηριότητες των μυστικών υπηρεσιών, ούτε οι μασκαράτες του τσίρκου δεν μπορούν να επισκιάσουν τους γλωσσικούς σπινθηρισμούς που φωτίζουν τις σελίδες της "Βίλας Ινκόγκνιτο".
288 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2003
431 people are currently reading
5219 people want to read
About the author
Tom Robbins
82 books7,284 followersThomas Eugene Robbins was an American novelist. His most notable works are "seriocomedies" (also known as "comedy dramas"). Robbins lived in La Conner, Washington from 1970, where he wrote nine of his books. His 1976 novel Even Cowgirls Get the Blues was adapted into the 1993 film version by Gus Van Sant. His last work, published in 2014, was Tibetan Peach Pie, a self-declared "un-memoir".
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 838 reviews
February 10, 2025
Just because you’re naked
Doesn’t mean you’re sexy,
Just because you’re cynical
Doesn’t mean you’re cool.
You may tell the greatest lies
And wear a brilliant disguise
But you can’t escape the eyes
Of the one who sees right through you.
In the end what will prevail
Is your passion not your tale,
For love is the Holy Grail,
Even in Cognito.
So better listen to me, sister,
And pay close attention, mister:
It’s very good to play the game,
Amuse the gods, avoid the pain,
But don’t trust fortune, don’t trust fame,
Your real self doesn’t know your name
And in that we’re all the same:
We’re all incognito.
Doesn’t mean you’re sexy,
Just because you’re cynical
Doesn’t mean you’re cool.
You may tell the greatest lies
And wear a brilliant disguise
But you can’t escape the eyes
Of the one who sees right through you.
In the end what will prevail
Is your passion not your tale,
For love is the Holy Grail,
Even in Cognito.
So better listen to me, sister,
And pay close attention, mister:
It’s very good to play the game,
Amuse the gods, avoid the pain,
But don’t trust fortune, don’t trust fame,
Your real self doesn’t know your name
And in that we’re all the same:
We’re all incognito.
December 17, 2012
This is probably the worst Tom Robbins I've ever read. Which isn't to say that it isn't funny. It is. It is very funny, with lots of excellent lines and clever little observations. The problem is that the characterizations, even for parody, even for humor, are flat and contrived, the philosophy espoused is pedestrian, even for a college freshman (seriously, can't people just get over their realizations that Columbus didn't "discover" the Americas? Is it really so profound that you have been told a lie of fact even as you are being told a truth of consequences?), and the political commentary is so incensed that it lies down on the traintracks of talking head babble.
Tom Robbins is better than this. I found myself agreeing with all of his views and disagreeing with nearly all of the ways that he said things. Gone from this novel is the depth of characterization and the complexity of the absurdity of the situations. Here things mostly just happen, largely to characters that end up not mattering at all, almost entirely for reasons that are arbitrary. Coincidence is fine when it brings to a head a point or a revelation of character, but herein there is coincidence simply to move things forward (the greatest sin there is), and while a mystic refusal to answer questions can create a sense of deeper intellectual exploration, here it is simply a refusal to ask or answer the questions that could have been posed. As it is, these unanswered mysteries are simply just things that happen.
In honesty, it is a novel worth reading, if you like these kind of novels, because it is funny and because it is fun (I enjoyed it all of the way through). The problem is that it is empty where it is trying to be full, leaving the reader, in the end, feeling likewise.
Tom Robbins is better than this. I found myself agreeing with all of his views and disagreeing with nearly all of the ways that he said things. Gone from this novel is the depth of characterization and the complexity of the absurdity of the situations. Here things mostly just happen, largely to characters that end up not mattering at all, almost entirely for reasons that are arbitrary. Coincidence is fine when it brings to a head a point or a revelation of character, but herein there is coincidence simply to move things forward (the greatest sin there is), and while a mystic refusal to answer questions can create a sense of deeper intellectual exploration, here it is simply a refusal to ask or answer the questions that could have been posed. As it is, these unanswered mysteries are simply just things that happen.
In honesty, it is a novel worth reading, if you like these kind of novels, because it is funny and because it is fun (I enjoyed it all of the way through). The problem is that it is empty where it is trying to be full, leaving the reader, in the end, feeling likewise.
August 23, 2020
Ο Τανούκι ήρθε στον πλανήτη μας πέφτοντας με αλεξίπτωτο απο τον Άλλο Κόσμο, τον Κόσμο των Ζωοπρογόνων. Είχε ανθρωπομορφική διάθεση και ήταν πότης και διαφθορέας γυναικών. Παράξενο πλάσμα, μα ο αναγνώστης με ευλύγιστη οξυδέρκεια, απο αυτούς που δεν επιβάλλουν ανθρώπινους περιορισμούς ή στενές αντιλήψεις ομοιομορφίας στην Θεϊκή αρχή, θα έχει σίγουρα την νοητική ευλυγισία να αντιληφθεί ότι πρέπει να είναι ταυτόχρονα μονοθεϊστής και πανθεϊστής ώστε να έχει τα χρειώδη εγκεφαλικά επισυναπτόμενα για να δεχθεί χωρίς πρόβλημα την παράδοξη ουσία του μικρού μας φίλου, του Τανούκι των τανούκι.
Δεν ήταν συνηθισμένο ζώο, περπατούσε όρθιος, είχε γοητευτική προφορά, εξωτική συμπεριφορά, αυτοπεποίθηση και ανησυχητικό χαμόγελο.
Κατά τη διάρκεια του μετασχηματισμού του σε ανθρωποειδές ον υπήρξε μία χειμωνιάτικη νύχτα απο τις πολλές που χρειάστηκαν για να τον βρει η Σελήνη μεθυσμένο, τόσο μεθυσμένο που και το ποτό του είχε μεθύσει, ενώ το χαμόγελο του μονομαχούσε με το φεγγάρι.
Τότε μάλλον με κάποια μικρή βοήθεια απο ένα άλλο πονηρό ζωάκι κατανόησε ότι μόνο οι αφελείς λένε στους ανθρώπους την αλήθεια. Θρηνώντας μια φοβερή αποτυχία που είχε ως επίδοξος εραστής έμαθε ότι οι άνθρωποι τυλίγονται καλά με μόνιμα συστήματα ψευδαίσθησης. Θρησκεία. Πατριωτισμός. Οικονομία. Πολιτική. Μόδα. Κράτος. Έμαθε επίσης πως αν θέλεις να κερδίσεις την εύνοια της δίποδης ράτσας πρέπει να ψεύδεσαι ασύστολα και να σαμποτάρεις τις ψευδαισθήσεις τους, μετατρέποντας τις μπαγιάτικες αυταπάτες τους σε δυνατότητες για τη φυλή τους. Πάντως το βασικότερο όλων ήταν το απλό συμπέρασμα πως επιβάλλεται να λες ψέμματα στους ανθρώπους και να δρέπεις όποιες ανταμοιβές διατίθενται αλλά δεν πρέπει ποτέ, μα ποτέ να λες ψέμματα στον εαυτό σου.
Κάπου πιο μετά στην πορεία προς την βίλα ινκόγκνιτο μπήκε εμβόλιμα στην αναγνωστική μας παθογένεια ο Παράγοντας Του Πεπρωμένου και της Αλλαγής που ελέγχει τα πάντα. Αν το πιστέψαμε ; Όχι βέβαια. Δεν είμαστε κουτορνίθια γι’αυτό και τα φορτώσαμε όλα στον Άμυαλο Μεθύστακα του Τυχαίου. Όμως με όποιον τρόπο και αν διαμορφώνεται η Ειμαρμένη, είτε γράφεται απο τη θεϊκή μοίρα, απο το τυχαίο ή απο τη δύναμη της θέλησης, είναι προφανές πως το ένα πράγμα όντως οδηγεί, έστω και ακούσια στο άλλο.
Η Villa Incognito" θα μπορούσε να παραφραστεί ως "Asian Adventure" όπως είμαστε μάρτυρες και μοναχοί περιπατητές της Μπανγκόκ, Το Λάος και τα περίχωρά του μέσω της καλειδοσκοπικής του μελάνης. Ένας από τους μεγαλύτερους σύγχρονους συγγραφείς της Αμερικής Τομ Ρόμπινς. Συνδυάζει το παράξενο με το κανονικό για να παράγει ένα έργο που θα σας κάνει να γελάσετε, να γεμίσετε το ντεπόζιτο της ψυχής σας με ανιμισμό να ψάξετε ενδόμυχα τον κόσμο που υπάρχει πίσω απο αυτόν τον κόσμο, αλλά ταυτόχρονα να εξετάζετε την πιθανότητα του μυστικιστικού.
Το σεξ, η μυθολογία, η ιστορία και οι απίθανες σχέσεις ... τα κάνει όλα ξανά, αλλά με μια νέα αίσθηση σκοπού.
Τι γίνεται με την αγάπη ;
Αυτό το ξελιγωμένο και ξεχειλωμένο ερώτημα της αισθητής μας ύπαρξης διοχετεύεται συνεχώς σαν αεράκι που περνάει απαρατήρητο σε κάθε αλλαγή εποχής του χρόνου μέσα στην ψυχεδέλεια του παρόντος.
Και η σοφία, η ηδονιστική απόλαυση της φιλοσοφίας του Ρόμπινς στη ζωή ενός ατόμου, μια αισθητική ευαισθησία είναι τόσο πιο αυθεντική και πιο αξιέπαινη από μια πολιτική ή θρησκευτική. «Αυτό μου φαίνεται σαν μια πιο ζεστή, βελτιωμένη εκδοχή του βαθύτατου ενδιαφέροντος αλλά ψυχρού αφορισμού του Νίτσε από το« Η Γέννηση της Τραγωδίας »,« Μόνο ως αισθητικό φαινόμενο υπάρχει και ο κόσμος δικαιολογείται ».
«Ποιο από τα δύο: Είναι ο άνθρωπος μια από τις γκάφες του Θεού ή ο Θεός μια από τις γκάφες του ανθρώπου»;
Στην θερμή αγκαλιά του παρανοϊκού εκλαϊκευμένου ημίθεου συγγραφέα κουλουριάζεσαι με αφόρητη και αθώρητη αιώρηση όνειροφαντασίας, δέους και τρομακτικού παραμυθένιου ρεαλισμού για να κοιτάξεις με υπεροψία την ψυχρή κοσμοθεωρία του Νίτσε.
Το αποτέλεσμα είναι απλό, επεμβατικό, επαναστατικό και μη αναστρέψιμο. Μια ιερή οντότητα που ίσως να υπάρχει όχι μόνο πάνω αλλά και μέσα στον σταυρό, μπορεί να το διανοηθούμε όταν σαν δακτυλοδεικτούμενοι τρελοί αγκαλιάσουμε ένα δέντρο σαν μια ακραία εκδήλωση πρωτόγονης δεισιδαιμονίας. Μόνο οι άνθρωποι έχουν ψυχή ή είναι και αυτό μια βιβλική οξύμωρη σοβινιστική και ναρκισσιστική αυτοκολακεία με παραφυάδες εξουσιαστικές.
Μέσα στην βίλα ινκόγκνιτο βρήκα αυτή την τρυφερή και άβολη αγκαλιά και άρχισα να ακούω μάλλον να διαβάζω πόσο συναρπαστική ιδέα θα ήταν αν η θεότητα μπορούσε να ειναι πολλαπλή. Να υπήρχαν δαίμονες, πνεύματα, ανόργανη νοημοσύνη, χαζή εξυπνάδα, ψυχές που ποτέ δεν ήταν ανθρώπινες και καθώς κρεμάω ένα κουδούνι στον Θεό του καπνού και των διαφημιστικών καθρεφτών ή των πολυδιάστατων εικόνων βρίσκω κάτι θεμελιωδώς πιο ουσιαστικό πιο ανεξήγητα εξηγήσιμο και δεν ξέρω, αλλά τώρα που άρχισα να συνδέομαι με αυτή την ιδέα της ερευνητικής δουλειάς απο ανοιχτόμυαλους ανθρώπους, λέω να μείνω μέσα σε αυτή την αγκαλιά.
Είναι κρίμα να φύγω.
Είναι γεγονός πως θα με αποσπάσουν βίαια απο εκεί οι μονοθεϊστές αβανταδόροι για να καλύψουν με κέρδος την ισχύ τους, μετατρέποντας όλη την πλούσια, ζεστή, ζουμερή, απολαυστική και αδάμαστη φαντασμαγορία σε μια σφιχτόκωλη ( θεωρητικά) μικρή παράσταση για έναν μόνο ρόλο στο κοινωνικό τους τσίρκο.
Όταν ταξιδεύεις στο ιν Κόγκνιτο
Ένα προαίσθημα σου σώζει τη ζωή
Ρουφάς ζεστή διαίσθηση για πρόγευμα
Και τρως κρύα παράνοια για φαΐ.
Μοναδικέ Τομ Ρόμπινς σε αγαπώ.
Καλή ανάγνωση.
Πολλούς ασπασμούς.
Δεν ήταν συνηθισμένο ζώο, περπατούσε όρθιος, είχε γοητευτική προφορά, εξωτική συμπεριφορά, αυτοπεποίθηση και ανησυχητικό χαμόγελο.
Κατά τη διάρκεια του μετασχηματισμού του σε ανθρωποειδές ον υπήρξε μία χειμωνιάτικη νύχτα απο τις πολλές που χρειάστηκαν για να τον βρει η Σελήνη μεθυσμένο, τόσο μεθυσμένο που και το ποτό του είχε μεθύσει, ενώ το χαμόγελο του μονομαχούσε με το φεγγάρι.
Τότε μάλλον με κάποια μικρή βοήθεια απο ένα άλλο πονηρό ζωάκι κατανόησε ότι μόνο οι αφελείς λένε στους ανθρώπους την αλήθεια. Θρηνώντας μια φοβερή αποτυχία που είχε ως επίδοξος εραστής έμαθε ότι οι άνθρωποι τυλίγονται καλά με μόνιμα συστήματα ψευδαίσθησης. Θρησκεία. Πατριωτισμός. Οικονομία. Πολιτική. Μόδα. Κράτος. Έμαθε επίσης πως αν θέλεις να κερδίσεις την εύνοια της δίποδης ράτσας πρέπει να ψεύδεσαι ασύστολα και να σαμποτάρεις τις ψευδαισθήσεις τους, μετατρέποντας τις μπαγιάτικες αυταπάτες τους σε δυνατότητες για τη φυλή τους. Πάντως το βασικότερο όλων ήταν το απλό συμπέρασμα πως επιβάλλεται να λες ψέμματα στους ανθρώπους και να δρέπεις όποιες ανταμοιβές διατίθενται αλλά δεν πρέπει ποτέ, μα ποτέ να λες ψέμματα στον εαυτό σου.
Κάπου πιο μετά στην πορεία προς την βίλα ινκόγκνιτο μπήκε εμβόλιμα στην αναγνωστική μας παθογένεια ο Παράγοντας Του Πεπρωμένου και της Αλλαγής που ελέγχει τα πάντα. Αν το πιστέψαμε ; Όχι βέβαια. Δεν είμαστε κουτορνίθια γι’αυτό και τα φορτώσαμε όλα στον Άμυαλο Μεθύστακα του Τυχαίου. Όμως με όποιον τρόπο και αν διαμορφώνεται η Ειμαρμένη, είτε γράφεται απο τη θεϊκή μοίρα, απο το τυχαίο ή απο τη δύναμη της θέλησης, είναι προφανές πως το ένα πράγμα όντως οδηγεί, έστω και ακούσια στο άλλο.
Η Villa Incognito" θα μπορούσε να παραφραστεί ως "Asian Adventure" όπως είμαστε μάρτυρες και μοναχοί περιπατητές της Μπανγκόκ, Το Λάος και τα περίχωρά του μέσω της καλειδοσκοπικής του μελάνης. Ένας από τους μεγαλύτερους σύγχρονους συγγραφείς της Αμερικής Τομ Ρόμπινς. Συνδυάζει το παράξενο με το κανονικό για να παράγει ένα έργο που θα σας κάνει να γελάσετε, να γεμίσετε το ντεπόζιτο της ψυχής σας με ανιμισμό να ψάξετε ενδόμυχα τον κόσμο που υπάρχει πίσω απο αυτόν τον κόσμο, αλλά ταυτόχρονα να εξετάζετε την πιθανότητα του μυστικιστικού.
Το σεξ, η μυθολογία, η ιστορία και οι απίθανες σχέσεις ... τα κάνει όλα ξανά, αλλά με μια νέα αίσθηση σκοπού.
Τι γίνεται με την αγάπη ;
Αυτό το ξελιγωμένο και ξεχειλωμένο ερώτημα της αισθητής μας ύπαρξης διοχετεύεται συνεχώς σαν αεράκι που περνάει απαρατήρητο σε κάθε αλλαγή εποχής του χρόνου μέσα στην ψυχεδέλεια του παρόντος.
Και η σοφία, η ηδονιστική απόλαυση της φιλοσοφίας του Ρόμπινς στη ζωή ενός ατόμου, μια αισθητική ευαισθησία είναι τόσο πιο αυθεντική και πιο αξιέπαινη από μια πολιτική ή θρησκευτική. «Αυτό μου φαίνεται σαν μια πιο ζεστή, βελτιωμένη εκδοχή του βαθύτατου ενδιαφέροντος αλλά ψυχρού αφορισμού του Νίτσε από το« Η Γέννηση της Τραγωδίας »,« Μόνο ως αισθητικό φαινόμενο υπάρχει και ο κόσμος δικαιολογείται ».
«Ποιο από τα δύο: Είναι ο άνθρωπος μια από τις γκάφες του Θεού ή ο Θεός μια από τις γκάφες του ανθρώπου»;
Στην θερμή αγκαλιά του παρανοϊκού εκλαϊκευμένου ημίθεου συγγραφέα κουλουριάζεσαι με αφόρητη και αθώρητη αιώρηση όνειροφαντασίας, δέους και τρομακτικού παραμυθένιου ρεαλισμού για να κοιτάξεις με υπεροψία την ψυχρή κοσμοθεωρία του Νίτσε.
Το αποτέλεσμα είναι απλό, επεμβατικό, επαναστατικό και μη αναστρέψιμο. Μια ιερή οντότητα που ίσως να υπάρχει όχι μόνο πάνω αλλά και μέσα στον σταυρό, μπορεί να το διανοηθούμε όταν σαν δακτυλοδεικτούμενοι τρελοί αγκαλιάσουμε ένα δέντρο σαν μια ακραία εκδήλωση πρωτόγονης δεισιδαιμονίας. Μόνο οι άνθρωποι έχουν ψυχή ή είναι και αυτό μια βιβλική οξύμωρη σοβινιστική και ναρκισσιστική αυτοκολακεία με παραφυάδες εξουσιαστικές.
Μέσα στην βίλα ινκόγκνιτο βρήκα αυτή την τρυφερή και άβολη αγκαλιά και άρχισα να ακούω μάλλον να διαβάζω πόσο συναρπαστική ιδέα θα ήταν αν η θεότητα μπορούσε να ειναι πολλαπλή. Να υπήρχαν δαίμονες, πνεύματα, ανόργανη νοημοσύνη, χαζή εξυπνάδα, ψυχές που ποτέ δεν ήταν ανθρώπινες και καθώς κρεμάω ένα κουδούνι στον Θεό του καπνού και των διαφημιστικών καθρεφτών ή των πολυδιάστατων εικόνων βρίσκω κάτι θεμελιωδώς πιο ουσιαστικό πιο ανεξήγητα εξηγήσιμο και δεν ξέρω, αλλά τώρα που άρχισα να συνδέομαι με αυτή την ιδέα της ερευνητικής δουλειάς απο ανοιχτόμυαλους ανθρώπους, λέω να μείνω μέσα σε αυτή την αγκαλιά.
Είναι κρίμα να φύγω.
Είναι γεγονός πως θα με αποσπάσουν βίαια απο εκεί οι μονοθεϊστές αβανταδόροι για να καλύψουν με κέρδος την ισχύ τους, μετατρέποντας όλη την πλούσια, ζεστή, ζουμερή, απολαυστική και αδάμαστη φαντασμαγορία σε μια σφιχτόκωλη ( θεωρητικά) μικρή παράσταση για έναν μόνο ρόλο στο κοινωνικό τους τσίρκο.
Όταν ταξιδεύεις στο ιν Κόγκνιτο
Ένα προαίσθημα σου σώζει τη ζωή
Ρουφάς ζεστή διαίσθηση για πρόγευμα
Και τρως κρύα παράνοια για φαΐ.
Μοναδικέ Τομ Ρόμπινς σε αγαπώ.
Καλή ανάγνωση.
Πολλούς ασπασμούς.
August 28, 2011
I did it all for Tanuki:
April 27, 2007
This book came to me because the recommender asked what that funny statue was in my living room. I replied, a tanuki. He looked at me strangely, so I spelled tanuki out for him. Then, much to my surprise, he said I read a book about tanukis and I thought they were made up by the author.
Well, Tom Robbins did not make up the story of the tanuki from scratch, but he did embellish on the Japanese legend. Robbins is one of those rare authors where I stop for a second and think, how the hell did he come up with this?!
He is creative without being unbelievable. He writes as if you were having a direct conversation with him and not just merely reading a novel. He doesn't explain every detail immediately, and let's the pieces fall into place as the reader moves along. He is well-versed in current events, mythology, philosophy, and pop culture. In other words, he is a rarity.
The plot jumps back and forth without being overly confusing. You have to trust that the loose ends will be tied up eventually, and it is worth the wait. Everything and everyone is connected, and what at first might seem like happenstance, turns out to be another fork in the road. Suspension of reality may be necessary while reading this novel, but at the time, it doesn't seem out of the ordinary.
Well, Tom Robbins did not make up the story of the tanuki from scratch, but he did embellish on the Japanese legend. Robbins is one of those rare authors where I stop for a second and think, how the hell did he come up with this?!
He is creative without being unbelievable. He writes as if you were having a direct conversation with him and not just merely reading a novel. He doesn't explain every detail immediately, and let's the pieces fall into place as the reader moves along. He is well-versed in current events, mythology, philosophy, and pop culture. In other words, he is a rarity.
The plot jumps back and forth without being overly confusing. You have to trust that the loose ends will be tied up eventually, and it is worth the wait. Everything and everyone is connected, and what at first might seem like happenstance, turns out to be another fork in the road. Suspension of reality may be necessary while reading this novel, but at the time, it doesn't seem out of the ordinary.
August 11, 2025
Herkesin çok sevdiği Parfümün Dansı'nı bir türlü sevemediğim için geçtiğimiz sene Ayrıntı Yayınları bana Tom Robbins külliyatının tamamını göndermişti sağolsun, belki fikrim değişir diye. Ben de çocuklar için yazdığı "B, Bira"yı okuyup epey sevmiştim. O seçkiden bir Robbins daha okuyayım dedim ve Villa Meçhul'ü seçtim. Yine olmadı... Olamadı.
Absürde bayılırım ama bu kadar da değil vallahi ya. Yani ne yazacağımı dahi bilemiyorum açıkçası, pek tuhaf bir metin bu. Bundan birkaç kuşak evvelde başlıyor anlatı, Uzakdoğu mitolojisinden porsuk benzeri yaratıklar olan Tanukilerden biri insan kılığına girip kadınlarla çiftleşiyor, sonra bu iş pek hoşuna gidiyor, bir dizi çocuk yapıyor insanlardan. Sonra ileri sarıyoruz ve günümüze geliyoruz, sene 2001, 11 Eylül'ün hemen evveli. Vietnam Savaşı sırasında kaybolmuş üç Amerikalı askerden biri bir Fransız rahibi kılığına girmiş uyuşturucu kaçırırken yakalanıyor ve kendisiyle kaybolan iki asker arkadaşıyla beraber Laos'ta sadece uçuruma bağlı bir tel üzerinde yürüyerek ulaşılan bir yerde (Villa Meçhul orası işte) yıllardır yaşadıkları ortaya çıkıyor. Kitabın başındaki Tanuki'nin soyundan bir kadının da bu üçlüyle ilişkisi olduğunu öğreniyoruz, olaylar gelişiyor.
Bu karmaşık özet, sahiden de özet yani. Kayıp askerin kız kardeşleri de var hikayede, CIA de, kayıp askerlerin bulunması için uğraşan ailelerin kurduğu örgüt de, 11 Eylül'ü gerçekleştiren teröristler de, yerel polis ve yerel halk da... Aslında epey zıpır ve okurken insanı güldüren bir hikaye bu ama yani tam bir kaos sahiden. Bir yandan militarizm, Amerikancılık, kapitalizm ve bağnazlık eleştirileri de var metinde ama öyle bir curcuna ki yazarın tam ne anlatmaya çalıştığını anlamak sahiden güçleşiyor bir yerden sonra. Sanki böyle bir madde etkisi altında yazılmış ve ayıkken hiçbir şey ifade etmiyor gibi bir garip roman.
Yer yer sevdiğim ve güldüğüm kısımları olsa da, benlik değil maalesef hiç. Allah sevdiğine bağışlasın ne diyeyim. Yine de Tom Robbins okuma girişimlerim sürecek. Bakalım bir noktada sevebilecek miyim kendisini, göreceğiz.
Absürde bayılırım ama bu kadar da değil vallahi ya. Yani ne yazacağımı dahi bilemiyorum açıkçası, pek tuhaf bir metin bu. Bundan birkaç kuşak evvelde başlıyor anlatı, Uzakdoğu mitolojisinden porsuk benzeri yaratıklar olan Tanukilerden biri insan kılığına girip kadınlarla çiftleşiyor, sonra bu iş pek hoşuna gidiyor, bir dizi çocuk yapıyor insanlardan. Sonra ileri sarıyoruz ve günümüze geliyoruz, sene 2001, 11 Eylül'ün hemen evveli. Vietnam Savaşı sırasında kaybolmuş üç Amerikalı askerden biri bir Fransız rahibi kılığına girmiş uyuşturucu kaçırırken yakalanıyor ve kendisiyle kaybolan iki asker arkadaşıyla beraber Laos'ta sadece uçuruma bağlı bir tel üzerinde yürüyerek ulaşılan bir yerde (Villa Meçhul orası işte) yıllardır yaşadıkları ortaya çıkıyor. Kitabın başındaki Tanuki'nin soyundan bir kadının da bu üçlüyle ilişkisi olduğunu öğreniyoruz, olaylar gelişiyor.
Bu karmaşık özet, sahiden de özet yani. Kayıp askerin kız kardeşleri de var hikayede, CIA de, kayıp askerlerin bulunması için uğraşan ailelerin kurduğu örgüt de, 11 Eylül'ü gerçekleştiren teröristler de, yerel polis ve yerel halk da... Aslında epey zıpır ve okurken insanı güldüren bir hikaye bu ama yani tam bir kaos sahiden. Bir yandan militarizm, Amerikancılık, kapitalizm ve bağnazlık eleştirileri de var metinde ama öyle bir curcuna ki yazarın tam ne anlatmaya çalıştığını anlamak sahiden güçleşiyor bir yerden sonra. Sanki böyle bir madde etkisi altında yazılmış ve ayıkken hiçbir şey ifade etmiyor gibi bir garip roman.
Yer yer sevdiğim ve güldüğüm kısımları olsa da, benlik değil maalesef hiç. Allah sevdiğine bağışlasın ne diyeyim. Yine de Tom Robbins okuma girişimlerim sürecek. Bakalım bir noktada sevebilecek miyim kendisini, göreceğiz.
June 20, 2019
Στη βιβλιοθήκη μου έχω τα περισσότερα από τα βιβλία του Τομ Ρόμπινς που έχουν κυκλοφορήσει στα ελληνικά (σκοπεύω να τσιμπήσω και τα υπόλοιπα κάποια στιγμή), ενώ το συγκεκριμένο παίζει να είναι από τα πρώτα δικά του που έχω αγοράσει, σχεδόν δέκα χρόνια πριν! Όμως, το πιστεύετε ή όχι, αυτή είναι η πρώτη μου επαφή με το έργο του συγγραφέα. Αρκετές φορές είχα φτάσει κοντά στο να διαβάσω κάτι δικό του, αλλά πάντα άλλαζα γνώμη, για τον έναν ή τον άλλο λόγο. Όμως προχθές το βράδυ έδειξα αποφασιστικότητα, άρπαξα το "Villa Incognito", και το ξεκίνησα. Μετά κόλλησα με τη γραφή και όλα πήραν τον δρόμο τους.
Λοιπόν, το βιβλίο αυτό είναι το τελευταίο μυθιστόρημα του Τομ Ρόμπινς (μέχρι το επόμενο ελπίζω, αν και πλέον έχει γεράσει ο άνθρωπος), και θεωρητικά ίσως το πιο αδύναμο, με βάση τις κριτικές δεξιά και αριστερά. Δεν μπορώ να το συγκρίνω με άλλα βιβλία του, γιατί όπως είπα αυτό είναι μόλις το πρώτο του που πιάνω στα χέρια μου, αλλά το "Villa Incognito" μου άρεσε πολύ. Ήταν κάτι το αρκετά διαφορετικό σε σχέση με τα βιβλία που έχω διαβάσει τον τελευταίο καιρό. Γέλασα, χαζογέλασα, πέρασα ιδιαίτερα ευχάριστα την ώρα μου, όσο και αν η πλοκή είχε τις σαχλές στιγμές της. Το θέμα είναι ότι μου άρεσε πάρα πολύ η γραφή, έτσι παιχνιδιάρικη και ανατρεπτική όπως ήταν, με έξυπνο και σε σημεία προκλητικό χιούμορ. Επίσης η ατμόσφαιρα της ιστορίας είναι φανταστική, πραγματικά μου έφτιαξε το κέφι.
Γενικά, δηλώνω πολύ ικανοποιημένος και σίγουρα ψυχαγωγημένος. Μπορεί συγκριτικά με άλλα βιβλία του συγγραφέα να πάσχει σε πλοκή και χαρακτήρες (δεν μπορώ να το ξέρω, αλλά με βάση τις κριτικές μάλλον ισχύει), όμως εγώ το κατευχαριστήθηκα. Η πλοκή μου κράτησε το ενδιαφέρον μέχρι το τέλος με όλες τις τρελές στιγμές της, οι χαρακτήρες αν μη τι άλλο είχαν την πλάκα τους (και ας μην δέθηκα με κανέναν), ενώ η γραφή μου χάρισε ιδιαίτερες εικόνες και πάμπολλα συναισθήματα, με όλα τα γλωσσικά παιχνίδια και τις μεταφορές του συγγραφέα. Οπότε το πρόσημο είναι οπωσδήποτε θετικό. Και θέλω να πιστεύω ότι μέχρι το τέλος της χρονιάς θα διαβάσω και άλλο βιβλίο του Τομ Ρόμπινς.
Λοιπόν, το βιβλίο αυτό είναι το τελευταίο μυθιστόρημα του Τομ Ρόμπινς (μέχρι το επόμενο ελπίζω, αν και πλέον έχει γεράσει ο άνθρωπος), και θεωρητικά ίσως το πιο αδύναμο, με βάση τις κριτικές δεξιά και αριστερά. Δεν μπορώ να το συγκρίνω με άλλα βιβλία του, γιατί όπως είπα αυτό είναι μόλις το πρώτο του που πιάνω στα χέρια μου, αλλά το "Villa Incognito" μου άρεσε πολύ. Ήταν κάτι το αρκετά διαφορετικό σε σχέση με τα βιβλία που έχω διαβάσει τον τελευταίο καιρό. Γέλασα, χαζογέλασα, πέρασα ιδιαίτερα ευχάριστα την ώρα μου, όσο και αν η πλοκή είχε τις σαχλές στιγμές της. Το θέμα είναι ότι μου άρεσε πάρα πολύ η γραφή, έτσι παιχνιδιάρικη και ανατρεπτική όπως ήταν, με έξυπνο και σε σημεία προκλητικό χιούμορ. Επίσης η ατμόσφαιρα της ιστορίας είναι φανταστική, πραγματικά μου έφτιαξε το κέφι.
Γενικά, δηλώνω πολύ ικανοποιημένος και σίγουρα ψυχαγωγημένος. Μπορεί συγκριτικά με άλλα βιβλία του συγγραφέα να πάσχει σε πλοκή και χαρακτήρες (δεν μπορώ να το ξέρω, αλλά με βάση τις κριτικές μάλλον ισχύει), όμως εγώ το κατευχαριστήθηκα. Η πλοκή μου κράτησε το ενδιαφέρον μέχρι το τέλος με όλες τις τρελές στιγμές της, οι χαρακτήρες αν μη τι άλλο είχαν την πλάκα τους (και ας μην δέθηκα με κανέναν), ενώ η γραφή μου χάρισε ιδιαίτερες εικόνες και πάμπολλα συναισθήματα, με όλα τα γλωσσικά παιχνίδια και τις μεταφορές του συγγραφέα. Οπότε το πρόσημο είναι οπωσδήποτε θετικό. Και θέλω να πιστεύω ότι μέχρι το τέλος της χρονιάς θα διαβάσω και άλλο βιβλίο του Τομ Ρόμπινς.
May 24, 2021
Relieved to be done with this one. Sheesh. Tom Robbins does not age well. His brilliant literary skill is overshadowed by his persistent misogyny and tired monologues on “philosophy.” Every male character in this book reads as just another vessel through which he pontificates ad nauseum about the nature of the human condition. If this book were a person, it’d be a disheveled middle-aged white man with a perverse fascination of underage girls, bestiality and Asian culture.
June 11, 2014
Things I learned about myself whilst reading Tom Robbins' Villa Incognito
1.) The word scrotum makes my mouth really uncomfortable. It makes me simultaneously want to giggle and vomit, feelings which - before now - I thought were mutually exclusive.
(The word Gonads, however, just makes me giggle!)
2.) Any mention of Thomas Edison always makes me think of the TV show Student Bodies http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8i3l7...
3.) Bestiality makes me inappropriately snort-chuckle loud enough to be heard by Chris - while showering - in another room!
(Also, I'm mean and like to wait like a tiger to pounce on him when he comes out of the bathroom with quotes that made me laugh like a deranged hyena!)
4.) It's inappropriate to wake someone up with visual aid pictures of how large tanukis balls are! - This isn't something about me, it's just something I learned while reading this book! However, getting back to the mean thing, it didn't stop me from laughing and doing it again :)
Paint me like one of your French girls
5.) I'm perversely happy that these terms exist (If only in Villa Incognito):
-Twin globes of testosterone
-Grand gonadal display
-Bulging nut baskets
June 25, 2007
I really enjoy Tom Robbins very much, but this book just really fell flat with me. I'd read one or two other Robbins books just before this one, so perhaps it was partly just general Robbins-fatigue, but Villa Incognito really felt like a lazy mishmash of generic Robbins themes and humor. When I read this book most of the time my mind was going "Blah blah beautiful prose about drinking and drugs and sex and wacky characters blah blah." I was really just bored with it. I could see how if this was someone's first crack at Robbins' work, it might work for you, but this one really fell flat for me.
February 18, 2014
By standard book standards, I would say that this is a four-star book, easily.
But by Tom Robbins' standards, and he has set the bar for himself rather high I must say, this is just a mediocre three-star book.
It starts off brilliantly and as someone living in Japan who not only runs into pictures of Tanuki, sees them quite often scampering across the highway when driving but also has a statue of one right out front my door, this was right up my alley and something which immediately piqued my interest.
Then, in typical Tom Robbins' style he introduces another story, seemingly unrelated at first glance, but of course you know he is going to weave them both together strand by strand.
While he does this to marvellous effect in other books like Perfume Jitterbug (fantastic) and Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates (brilliantly hilarious), there is something about this narrative that just doesn't quite gel. Don't get me wrong, there are moments of brilliance and very witty comments but to my mind, and I might get sledged by serious Robbins' fans for saying this but.....this reads like a very promising FIRST DRAFT of a novel. It is very unpolished by his standards. If only he had done a little more work on it, it could have been great.
Secondly, the story ends so abruptly. I felt like he was really building up the plot to take it somewhere special but the ending was rather anticlimactic I must say, in addition to my added frustration of arriving at the last page only to find that someone had torn it out! Yep, that's right. Went to the nearest English bookshop in Tokyo where I could find a copy and read the last page properly in peace. Someone messing with my 'wa' again, no doubt.
I would still say this is worth reading but if you are new to Tom Robbins, definitely do not start here. Start with one of his greater earlier efforts.
A big thank-you, nevertheless, to Larry for lending me his copy. Larry, no more tearing out of last pages of novels please!
But by Tom Robbins' standards, and he has set the bar for himself rather high I must say, this is just a mediocre three-star book.
It starts off brilliantly and as someone living in Japan who not only runs into pictures of Tanuki, sees them quite often scampering across the highway when driving but also has a statue of one right out front my door, this was right up my alley and something which immediately piqued my interest.
Then, in typical Tom Robbins' style he introduces another story, seemingly unrelated at first glance, but of course you know he is going to weave them both together strand by strand.
While he does this to marvellous effect in other books like Perfume Jitterbug (fantastic) and Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates (brilliantly hilarious), there is something about this narrative that just doesn't quite gel. Don't get me wrong, there are moments of brilliance and very witty comments but to my mind, and I might get sledged by serious Robbins' fans for saying this but.....this reads like a very promising FIRST DRAFT of a novel. It is very unpolished by his standards. If only he had done a little more work on it, it could have been great.
Secondly, the story ends so abruptly. I felt like he was really building up the plot to take it somewhere special but the ending was rather anticlimactic I must say, in addition to my added frustration of arriving at the last page only to find that someone had torn it out! Yep, that's right. Went to the nearest English bookshop in Tokyo where I could find a copy and read the last page properly in peace. Someone messing with my 'wa' again, no doubt.
I would still say this is worth reading but if you are new to Tom Robbins, definitely do not start here. Start with one of his greater earlier efforts.
A big thank-you, nevertheless, to Larry for lending me his copy. Larry, no more tearing out of last pages of novels please!
Read
August 8, 2021''...Hem insanlardan şikayet etmekten daha üretici bir şeyler yapabiliriz. Tanrıları örnek almalıyız elbette, yani akıllanana kadar insanları görmezden gelmeliyiz.''
Tanuki tam, Bulut Hisarı'nda ya da Öbür Dünya'dayken insanoğlunu görmezden gelmek kolay tabii diye lafı yapıştırmak üzereydi ki, birdenbire bu dünyada ne gözkamaştırıcı bir gün olduğu gözüne çarptı ve keyiften dili tutuldu.
Tanuki tam, Bulut Hisarı'nda ya da Öbür Dünya'dayken insanoğlunu görmezden gelmek kolay tabii diye lafı yapıştırmak üzereydi ki, birdenbire bu dünyada ne gözkamaştırıcı bir gün olduğu gözüne çarptı ve keyiften dili tutuldu.
August 18, 2008
This has been on my Good Reads shelf for a long time with a two-star rating because I didn't care for the plot or the book as a whole. Today I'm adding a star to my rating because I ran across a whole mess of stuff I'd copied from the book. The story's not that great, but Robbins makes some powerful statements about a lot of issues the planet as a whole is facing, and America specifically.
"Why would they fell trees but leave men standing? Trees are a damn sight more useful than people, and everything in the world knows that except people...Trees generate oxygen; men just breathe it up, stink it up, and generally misuse it. Trees hold the soil in place, men are constantly displacing it. Trees provide shelter and protection to countless species, men threaten the existence of these species. When in sufficient number, trees regulate atmospheric temperatures, men endanger the planet by knocking those regulations askew. You can't rest in the shade of a human, not even a roly-poly one; isn't it refreshing that trees can undergo periodic change without having a nervous breakdown over it? And which has more dignity--the calmer spiritual presence--a tree or a typical Homo sapiens? Best of all, perhaps, what maple or cypress ever tried to sell you something you didn't want?"
"Your country [America] seems to have everything and yet it has almost nothing. It's unbelievable. In that vast, beautiful, powerful land of unprecedented abundance live some of the most unhappy people on earth. Oh, generally speaking they complement all that affluence by being generous and energetic and, except for their ruling class--which is wormy with evil, like ruling classes everywhere--rather decent. But they're chronically depressed and dissatisfied. Chronically."
"Oh, I suppose you can find God's fingerprints in a book, even in an incoherent hodgepodge of myth, genealogies, inventories, poetry, sexual fantasy, and politics like the Bible, but there's a whole lot more divinity in that reef down there. If I thought I had to hunt for God, I'd be looking in a place like that."
"Why would they fell trees but leave men standing? Trees are a damn sight more useful than people, and everything in the world knows that except people...Trees generate oxygen; men just breathe it up, stink it up, and generally misuse it. Trees hold the soil in place, men are constantly displacing it. Trees provide shelter and protection to countless species, men threaten the existence of these species. When in sufficient number, trees regulate atmospheric temperatures, men endanger the planet by knocking those regulations askew. You can't rest in the shade of a human, not even a roly-poly one; isn't it refreshing that trees can undergo periodic change without having a nervous breakdown over it? And which has more dignity--the calmer spiritual presence--a tree or a typical Homo sapiens? Best of all, perhaps, what maple or cypress ever tried to sell you something you didn't want?"
"Your country [America] seems to have everything and yet it has almost nothing. It's unbelievable. In that vast, beautiful, powerful land of unprecedented abundance live some of the most unhappy people on earth. Oh, generally speaking they complement all that affluence by being generous and energetic and, except for their ruling class--which is wormy with evil, like ruling classes everywhere--rather decent. But they're chronically depressed and dissatisfied. Chronically."
"Oh, I suppose you can find God's fingerprints in a book, even in an incoherent hodgepodge of myth, genealogies, inventories, poetry, sexual fantasy, and politics like the Bible, but there's a whole lot more divinity in that reef down there. If I thought I had to hunt for God, I'd be looking in a place like that."
June 19, 2015
A good Robbins book, but didn't love it quite as much as Even Cowgirls Get the Blues or Still Life with Woodpecker. Definitely not the place to start for anyone who's not already familiar with his work, as I found it a little more manic and hard to follow than the others of his I've read. Robbins to me always feels like a ride in a speeding car where the inside has a million video screens and you're trying to follow everything on the screens and everything that blurs by the windows. There are a million pieces that sometimes fit together and sometimes don't, and that's ok - Robbins has a distinct voice and a distinct style, and that always endears him to me even in his weaker moments. Villa Incognito didn't feel quite as glued together and coherent as his other works, but there were still plenty of parts that make it worthwhile and enjoyable for Robbins fans.
October 2, 2015
Pretty disappointed. In fact I couldn't finish it since I had high hopes after reading "Still life and Woodpecker". Humor was missing, narrative was dull and it's clear "Woodpecker" was an enigma in Tom's body of work.
February 7, 2017
ειχε καποια απο τα στοιχεια που αγαπω στα βιβλια του ρομπινς αλλα κατα τα αλλα ενα πολυυυυ βαρετο βιβλιο...
January 1, 2009
i have not encountered Robbins' skill with words in a long long time.
IT IS WHAT IT IS
YOU ARE WHAT YOU IT
THERE ARE NO MISTAKES
some examples of cunning linguism :P.
"if coitus interruptus was a country, then Tanuki's tail would have been its flag."
not many hours later, after the moon had set, when the night was so black not even Michael Jackson's cosmetic surgeon could have lightened its hue."
"Eventually, they started transposing their hunting fantasies onto cave walls in the forms of pictures, first as an attempt at practical magic and later for the strange, unexpected pleasure they discovered in artistic creation. Time passed. Art came off the walls and turned into ritual. Ritual became religion. Religion spawned science. Science led to business. And big business, if it continues on its present mindless, voracious trajectory, could land those of us lucky enough to survive its ultimate legacy back into the caves again."
"on the other side of the door, there was silence. then, finally, the familiar sound of water being strangled by a jealous lover. the old-fashioned flush."
"hard times and funky living can season the soul, true enough, but joy is the yeast that makes it rise."
"Religion is little more than a transaction in which troubled people trade their souls for temporary and wholly illusionary psychological comfort--the old give-it-up-in-order-to-save-it routine. religion lead us to believe that the soul is the ultimate family jewel and that in return for our mindless obedience, they can secure it for us in their vaults, or at least insure it against fire and theft. They are mistaken."
"In the end, perhaps we should simply imagine a joke; a long joke that is being continually retold in an accent too think and too strange to ever be completely understood. Life is that joke, my friends. The soul is its punch line."
"Ink is the blood of language, paper is its flesh."
"was Jesus an enlightened being that understood maya (the illusionary nature of the material world) and the folly of seeking happiness through wealth, or was he merely a humourless, undersexed, masochistic proto-communist with an olive branch up his butt?"
"in our declaration of independence we consecrate ourselves a nation to the pursuit of happiness. that in itself is an admission of habitual discontent. one needn't pursue what one already possesses."
"there is no activity in the cosmos more unvarying, more predictable than the rate at which uranium turns into lead. that's a good thing. if the universe clock was based on the rate at which novelty turns into routine, we might never show up at the dentist on time. yet, sooner or later, the 'oh wow' does decay into the 'ho-hum'."
"time has a big mouth and a small brain."
IT IS WHAT IT IS
YOU ARE WHAT YOU IT
THERE ARE NO MISTAKES
some examples of cunning linguism :P.
"if coitus interruptus was a country, then Tanuki's tail would have been its flag."
not many hours later, after the moon had set, when the night was so black not even Michael Jackson's cosmetic surgeon could have lightened its hue."
"Eventually, they started transposing their hunting fantasies onto cave walls in the forms of pictures, first as an attempt at practical magic and later for the strange, unexpected pleasure they discovered in artistic creation. Time passed. Art came off the walls and turned into ritual. Ritual became religion. Religion spawned science. Science led to business. And big business, if it continues on its present mindless, voracious trajectory, could land those of us lucky enough to survive its ultimate legacy back into the caves again."
"on the other side of the door, there was silence. then, finally, the familiar sound of water being strangled by a jealous lover. the old-fashioned flush."
"hard times and funky living can season the soul, true enough, but joy is the yeast that makes it rise."
"Religion is little more than a transaction in which troubled people trade their souls for temporary and wholly illusionary psychological comfort--the old give-it-up-in-order-to-save-it routine. religion lead us to believe that the soul is the ultimate family jewel and that in return for our mindless obedience, they can secure it for us in their vaults, or at least insure it against fire and theft. They are mistaken."
"In the end, perhaps we should simply imagine a joke; a long joke that is being continually retold in an accent too think and too strange to ever be completely understood. Life is that joke, my friends. The soul is its punch line."
"Ink is the blood of language, paper is its flesh."
"was Jesus an enlightened being that understood maya (the illusionary nature of the material world) and the folly of seeking happiness through wealth, or was he merely a humourless, undersexed, masochistic proto-communist with an olive branch up his butt?"
"in our declaration of independence we consecrate ourselves a nation to the pursuit of happiness. that in itself is an admission of habitual discontent. one needn't pursue what one already possesses."
"there is no activity in the cosmos more unvarying, more predictable than the rate at which uranium turns into lead. that's a good thing. if the universe clock was based on the rate at which novelty turns into routine, we might never show up at the dentist on time. yet, sooner or later, the 'oh wow' does decay into the 'ho-hum'."
"time has a big mouth and a small brain."
April 11, 2012
With a heavy heart, I submit to you my least favorite Tom Robbins book. To be fair, it was an interesting story but it just lacked... something. This book is noticeably shorter than any of his other works, probably by about 150 pages, which says something. It felt like this was maybe the outline or an idea that he had and was waiting to dust it with Tom Robbins magic and then... never got around to it. Even the ending felt like "meh, my fingers are tired from typing so I'm just going to say 'the world is a crazy place' and then just end it". There wasn't much resolution, even though the stories were "wrapped up" in a sense but it felt very abrupt.
It also didn't help that I recently read his collection of magazine articles and short stories (Wild Geese Flying Backward) which covered a range of topics -- all of which seemed to turn up in this story. Maybe he was pulling from old notes or just couldn't help himself about waxing philosophical yet again about tomato sandwiches on Wonder bread? But it just felt a little "been there, done that". And instead of ever having that Official Tom Robbins moment where he pontificates about the wonders of the world (think the undergound people in Even Cowgirls Get the Blues), he seems to have written himself as a character in the story who is blustery and yet not enjoyable.
It also didn't help that I recently read his collection of magazine articles and short stories (Wild Geese Flying Backward) which covered a range of topics -- all of which seemed to turn up in this story. Maybe he was pulling from old notes or just couldn't help himself about waxing philosophical yet again about tomato sandwiches on Wonder bread? But it just felt a little "been there, done that". And instead of ever having that Official Tom Robbins moment where he pontificates about the wonders of the world (think the undergound people in Even Cowgirls Get the Blues), he seems to have written himself as a character in the story who is blustery and yet not enjoyable.
July 4, 2015
As much as I wanted to give this one 2 stars because of Fierce Invalids, I'm starting to reconsider my opinion of Robbins. So far it's 2 duds and one brilliant novel: Fierce Invalids Home From Hot Climates
He has great descriptions, but very obviously wanted this to be the style of Vonnegut/Hunter S./Pratchett meets the characters/plot of Catch 22/Confederacy of Dunces/Infinite Jest. I'm a little underwhelmed at how he failed to do any of it at all, aside from a few humorous descriptions, i.e. the novel's intriguingly raunchy opening line of "It has been reported that Tanuki fell from the sky using his scrotum as a parachute."
He has great descriptions, but very obviously wanted this to be the style of Vonnegut/Hunter S./Pratchett meets the characters/plot of Catch 22/Confederacy of Dunces/Infinite Jest. I'm a little underwhelmed at how he failed to do any of it at all, aside from a few humorous descriptions, i.e. the novel's intriguingly raunchy opening line of "It has been reported that Tanuki fell from the sky using his scrotum as a parachute."
May 27, 2018
I literally have no idea why this was published.
September 25, 2019
This dude gives me the heebie jeebies
November 30, 2022
This deserves 0 stars. Misogyny. don’t read it. It’s a waste of time. I only read like 50 pages. Just downright disturbing.
January 5, 2022
3.5 rounded up to 4! Its a good fun read. Tom is a good egg
August 19, 2024
This is my first Tom Robbins book and it just wasn’t my cup of tea. I thought it was pretentious and not as clever as it was trying to be; and I failed to connect to any of the characters. Still, I know this author is a favorite, so I’ll try another of his books one day.
February 3, 2008
His newest book (I think) takes place mostly in SE Asia (Laos and Thailand) and is centered around 3 former Vietnam POWs and the international opium ring they run. It is, however, written by Tom Robbins so there is plenty of sarcasm, beastiality, spiritual dialogue, biblical badmouthing, circuses and tanukis. As always he is fun to read, but this wasn’t as good as Skinny Legs and All. I did enjoy it though and would recommend it.
Good Quotes:
“Trees are a damn sight more useful than people, and everything in the world knows that except people.”
Maybe he had a point. Trees do generate oxygen; men just breathe it up, stink it up, and generally misuse it. Trees hold the soil in place; men are constantly displacing it. Trees provide shelter and protection to countless species; men threaten the existence of those species. When in sufficient number, trees regulate atmospheric temperatures; men endanger the planet by knocking those regulations askew. You can’t rest in the shade of a human, not even a roly-poly one; and isn’t it refreshing that trees can undergo periodic change without having a nervous breakdown over it? And which has more dignity - the calmer spiritual presence – a tree or a typical Homo sapiens? Best of all, perhaps, what maple or cypress ever tried to sell you something you didn’t want?
“Men live by embedding themselves in ongoing systems of illusion. Religion, patriotism, economics, fashion. That sort of thing.”
“…for curiosity, especially intellectual inquisitiveness, is what separates the truly alive from those who are merely going through the motions.”
“Do only human beings have souls, or is that a narcissistic, chauvinistic piece of self-flattery? I mean, can’t we look at that great old teak tree over there or at this gulch, and see as much of the divine as in some ’ol anthropomorphic Sunday school boom daddy with imaginary long gray whiskers and a platinum bathrobe?”
“…every individual has to assume responsibility for his or her own actions, even the poor and the young. A social system that decrees otherwise is inviting intellectual atrophy and spiritual stagnation.”
“We only rise above mediocrity when there’s something at stake, and I mean something more consequential than money or reputation.”
“Ambiguities and contradictions, that’s what biblical guidance is made of.”
“In the life of an individual, an aesthetic sensibility is both more authentic and more commendable than a political or religious one.”
Good Quotes:
“Trees are a damn sight more useful than people, and everything in the world knows that except people.”
Maybe he had a point. Trees do generate oxygen; men just breathe it up, stink it up, and generally misuse it. Trees hold the soil in place; men are constantly displacing it. Trees provide shelter and protection to countless species; men threaten the existence of those species. When in sufficient number, trees regulate atmospheric temperatures; men endanger the planet by knocking those regulations askew. You can’t rest in the shade of a human, not even a roly-poly one; and isn’t it refreshing that trees can undergo periodic change without having a nervous breakdown over it? And which has more dignity - the calmer spiritual presence – a tree or a typical Homo sapiens? Best of all, perhaps, what maple or cypress ever tried to sell you something you didn’t want?
“Men live by embedding themselves in ongoing systems of illusion. Religion, patriotism, economics, fashion. That sort of thing.”
“…for curiosity, especially intellectual inquisitiveness, is what separates the truly alive from those who are merely going through the motions.”
“Do only human beings have souls, or is that a narcissistic, chauvinistic piece of self-flattery? I mean, can’t we look at that great old teak tree over there or at this gulch, and see as much of the divine as in some ’ol anthropomorphic Sunday school boom daddy with imaginary long gray whiskers and a platinum bathrobe?”
“…every individual has to assume responsibility for his or her own actions, even the poor and the young. A social system that decrees otherwise is inviting intellectual atrophy and spiritual stagnation.”
“We only rise above mediocrity when there’s something at stake, and I mean something more consequential than money or reputation.”
“Ambiguities and contradictions, that’s what biblical guidance is made of.”
“In the life of an individual, an aesthetic sensibility is both more authentic and more commendable than a political or religious one.”
March 22, 2018
This feels a bit underdeveloped. Robbins retains his usual wit and inventive and vibrant prose, but the story never caught and took flight. Underdeveloped story, underdeveloped characters, just bleh.
If you've never read Robbins before, please don't start with this one. It doesn't give him a fair shake.
Random things that bothered me throughout the entire book: (1) the Colonel is a 45 year old black man. The book takes place in 2001, which means he was born in '56 and was a teen in the late 70's. So, what's the deal with the way he speaks? His speech is riddled with phrases like: "You jiving me?" "You right about that, brother man." "This cat ain't even hip..." I'm sure this was purposeful? If someone can explain the anachronisms here, I'm all ears. Maybe I missed something.. (2) The sisters of Dern Foley- why the hell were they even in this book? They serve no purpose, only to characterize a simple woman who is especially fond of describing the weather as if she was describing kittens- cute, adorable, etc. And then the other sister who seems more level headed, who finds out she's got a clown kink after working with the circus.
I think I would have oddly preferred the book to just continue with the tanuki and kitsune story line. It could have been much more interesting than what we got.
If you've never read Robbins before, please don't start with this one. It doesn't give him a fair shake.
Random things that bothered me throughout the entire book: (1) the Colonel is a 45 year old black man. The book takes place in 2001, which means he was born in '56 and was a teen in the late 70's. So, what's the deal with the way he speaks? His speech is riddled with phrases like: "You jiving me?" "You right about that, brother man." "This cat ain't even hip..." I'm sure this was purposeful? If someone can explain the anachronisms here, I'm all ears. Maybe I missed something.. (2) The sisters of Dern Foley- why the hell were they even in this book? They serve no purpose, only to characterize a simple woman who is especially fond of describing the weather as if she was describing kittens- cute, adorable, etc. And then the other sister who seems more level headed, who finds out she's got a clown kink after working with the circus.
I think I would have oddly preferred the book to just continue with the tanuki and kitsune story line. It could have been much more interesting than what we got.
November 8, 2013
Holly Laycock (Tin House Marketing Intern): I started Villa Incognito by Tom Robbins after I finished In Cold Blood, and it is just the break from reality that I needed. Tom Robbins’ whimsical world of tanukis and American MIAs at times leaves me scratching my head, enough that I sometimes am not in the mood for it. However, it is the perfect book to get me out of my head, away from my troubles, and when I need a good belly laugh, I read the scattered poetry throughout:
“Meet me in Cognito, baby,
We’ll soon leave our pasts behind us.
The present is always a mystery,
As the future never fails to remind us.
(Those who travel in Cognito
—Their very lives can depend on a hunch.
They eat intuition for breakfast
And sip cold paranoia for lunch.)”
No matter how unlikely the concept of this book, the sheer command Robbins has over language boggles my mind, and I’m intrigued as to how he will tie these separate narratives together. The quote on the front cover says it all: “Impossibly imaginative.”
“Meet me in Cognito, baby,
We’ll soon leave our pasts behind us.
The present is always a mystery,
As the future never fails to remind us.
(Those who travel in Cognito
—Their very lives can depend on a hunch.
They eat intuition for breakfast
And sip cold paranoia for lunch.)”
No matter how unlikely the concept of this book, the sheer command Robbins has over language boggles my mind, and I’m intrigued as to how he will tie these separate narratives together. The quote on the front cover says it all: “Impossibly imaginative.”
May 18, 2021
This was the worst book I have ever read, and I've read Twilight for crying out loud. I considered quitting the book after the first chapter, but thought, 'No, I really like Tom Robbins; it'll get better.'
It did not get better.
I guess if you're a fan of bestiality, tired Asian stereotypes, junior high nutsack humor, characters who lack character, and a story that is relying on 'look at me, I'm such a quirky weird writer; there's a clown fetish for no reason!', go ahead. But I, personally, feel like I'm a few hours closer to death after reading this book. It was so bad, I've recycled all my Tom Robbins books. I hope this one becomes toilet paper.
It did not get better.
I guess if you're a fan of bestiality, tired Asian stereotypes, junior high nutsack humor, characters who lack character, and a story that is relying on 'look at me, I'm such a quirky weird writer; there's a clown fetish for no reason!', go ahead. But I, personally, feel like I'm a few hours closer to death after reading this book. It was so bad, I've recycled all my Tom Robbins books. I hope this one becomes toilet paper.
January 10, 2011
I can't believe I read this whole book. The first chapter was engaging, funny and had some promise. And then the book just turned into a soapbox. All these ridiculous speeches and crap about "Lao" vs "Laotian", US foreign policy, Americans, whatever - you name it - and a really ambiguous plot that had us guessing at what the fate was of more than one of the protagonists. Maybe I lack imagination but reading this book made me question why I thought any of his other books were funny or interesting.
June 22, 2012
I think I liked this one in pieces more than I liked the whole. It struck me as less bizarre than some Robbins work, but still strange enough. I particularly liked the myth sections. However, at some point it just felt like it got done without finishing going anywhere. It managed to wrap up well enough, but I wanted something more. I think that was the difference between being one of the good Robbins books and one of the great Robbins books.
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