Villa Incognito [Anglais] [Broché]

Donald Barthelme once said, "Those who never attempt the absurd never achieve the impossible." Robbins (Still Life with Woodpecker; Jitterbug Perfume; etc.) has made a career of attempting and achieving both, and in this, his eighth novel, he pulls it off again. Here we have weirdness personified, a quirky, outrageous concoction that is a joy to the imagination. The novel begins with the story of Tanuki, a badgerlike Asian creature with a reputation as a changeling and trickster and a fondness for sake. Also part of the cast is a beautiful young woman who may or may not have Tanuki's blood in her veins (but definitely does have a chrysanthemum seed embedded in the roof of her mouth), and three American MIAs who have chosen to remain in Laos long after the Vietnam War. Events are set in motion when one of the MIAs, dressed as a priest, is arrested with a cache of heroin taped to his body. In vintage Robbins style, the plot whirls every which way, as the author, writing with unrestrained glee, takes potshots at societal pillars: the military, big business and religions of all ilks. The language is eccentric, electrifying and true to the mark. A few examples: "The afternoon passed more slowly than a walnut-sized kidney stone"; "He crooned the way a can of cheap dog food might croon if a can of cheap dog food had a voice"; "Dickie's heart felt suddenly like an iron piano with barbwire strings and scorpions for keys." While the ending is a bit of a letdown, this is delectable farce, full of tantalizing secrets and bizarre disguises.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --Ce texte fait référence à une édition épuisée ou non disponible de ce titre.

Once upon a time, a satyr-like Japanese badger-spirit seduced and impregnated a mortal. Many generations later (two or so years into the present century), an infant descendent arrives in the U.S., promising a more joyful, mystical, nature-loving future for all Americans. This is the story of how the child/creature got here with the unwitting help of three Vietnam-era Army deserters living in the title Laotian villa, where they traffic illegally in medicinal heroin. These nefarious smart-asses are heroes, according to our author, who invests them and his narrative with mischievous, sexy, and subversive humor. Crisp-toned Barrett Whitener totally buys into the romp, unintimidated by the overrich vocabulary and mystical esoterica. He does an astonishing job impersonating the Asian characters. When the text runs out of steam near the end, he perks it up. Thanks to Whitener, staying tuned through the end is a pleasure. Y.R. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine --Ce texte fait référence à une édition épuisée ou non disponible de ce titre.

Robbins opens with a folkloric tale, set in Japan, of a tanuki--a raccoonlike wild dog with enormous testicles and a thirst for sake--who marries a woman and sires a daughter before angry gods break up the union. Jumping to the present, the arrest of a drug-smuggling priest in Guam--actually an MIA American who disappeared on a bombing run over Vietnam--threatens to blow the cover of his flight crew, who chose to remain incognito in Laos after the war had ended. The two stories are linked by a circus performer who may be the descendant of the original interspecies romance. While the flyers are featured players, the supporting cast includes an earthy military intelligence officer, a cold-blooded CIA spook, and a woman with a sexual attraction to clowns. The largest theme centers on the nature of identity, but there's a lot swirling around the kitchen sink, including a fleeting incorporation of the events of 9/11. It's a fun read, although the things about Robbins that his fans love--clever wordplay, nudging asides, and political and philosophical digressions--are the same things that infuriate the nonbelievers, and for them, this short work may seem slow. He remains something of a poor man's Vonnegut, lacking the careful measure necessary to bake his notions into a cake that won't fall. Keir Graff
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --Ce texte fait référence à une édition épuisée ou non disponible de ce titre.

Dans son nouveau roman, Tom Robbins, l'auteur culte de Même les cow-girls ont du vague à l'âme, moins " politiquement correct " que jamais, s'attaque à l'Amérique de Bush. Irrésistible et jubilatoire ! Après la guerre du Vietnam, trois pilotes américains en délicatesse avec la hiérarchie militaire ont décidé de se faire passer pour morts et de disparaître au Laos. Installés à la Villa Incognito, au cœur d'un petit village perdu dans la montagne, ils ont vécu une existence de rêve entre
philosophie zen, trafic d'opium, de rubis, et concubines multiples. Mais lorsque l'un d'entre eux se fait arrêter à Guam, à la veille des attentats terroristes du 11 septembre 2001, et qu'un agent de la CIA psychotique décide d'enquêter sur ce trio infernal, ils vont devoir en découdre avec leur patrie d'origine. Qui a bien changé depuis leur départ... --Ce texte fait référence à une édition épuisée ou non disponible de ce titre.

"Robbins...is to words what Uri Geller is to spoons: He bends sentences into playful escapades....Bottom line: Another bedside attraction."--People

"Brilliantly offbeat satire."
--The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

"A delectable farce, full of tantalizing secrets and bizarre disguises."
--Publishers Weekly (starred review)?

Imagine that there are American MIAs who chose to remain missing after the Vietnam War.

Imagine that there is a family in which four generations of strong, alluring women have shared a mysterious connection to an outlandish figure from Japanese folklore.

Imagine just those things (don’t even try to imagine the love story) and you’ll have a foretaste of Tom Robbins’s eighth and perhaps most beautifully crafted novel--a work as timeless as myth yet as topical as the latest international threat.

On one level, this is a book about identity, masquerade and disguise--about “the false mustache of the world”--but neither the mists of Laos nor the smog of Bangkok, neither the overcast of Seattle nor the fog of San Francisco, neither the murk of the intelligence community nor the mummery of the circus can obscure the linguistic phosphor that illuminates the pages of Villa Incognito.

A female fan once wrote to Tom Robbins:
“Your books make me think, they make me laugh, they make me horny and they make me aware of the wonder of everything in life.”

Villa Incognito will surely arouse a similar response in many readers, for in its lusty, amusing way it both celebrates existence and challenges our ideas about it.

To say much more about a novel as fresh and surprising as Villa Incognito would run the risk of diluting the sheer fun of reading it. As his dedicated readers worldwide know full well, it’s best to climb aboard the Tom Robbins tilt-a-whirl, kiss preconceptions and sacred cows goodbye and simply enjoy the ride.


From the Hardcover edition. --Ce texte fait référence à une édition épuisée ou non disponible de ce titre.

Surnommé " l'écrivain le plus dangereux du monde " par Il Corriere della Sera, Tom Robbins réside à Seattle. Villa Incognito est son huitième roman. Traduit en vingt et une langues, il est apparu dès sa sortie aux Etats-Unis sur la liste des best-sellers. --Ce texte fait référence à une édition épuisée ou non disponible de ce titre.

Tom Robbins, maverick author of eight juicy, daring and sagacious novels, is one of those rare writers who approach rock-star status, attracting SRO crowds at his personal appearances in Europe and Australia as well as in the United States. He lives primarily in the Seattle area.

From the Hardcover edition.