Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates

I'm a long time fan of Tom Robbins' writing and although I have thoroughly enjoyed all of his books, this one is my favorite. It is an account of many magical journeys across the planet peppered with strange beings we know as 'humans.'

This is one of those particularly-precious gems whose relatively severe artistry and nuance is guaranteed to be lost on the majority of readers. At its simplest, it's a celebratory exploration of that dichotomy of self endemic to our modern human way of life.Astute intellectuals will appreciate the many layers of deliberate ironies and satire underlying its complex & playful witticisms, as well as their delightful contrast with the stark-raving wisdom and honesty of its meandering-but-resonant critical narratives.Less-astute and/or particularly simple-minded readers will probably be bothered by its "overly-complex" and "tedious" flirtations with "difficult to comprehend" high-level subjects. This isn't Catcher in the Rye.

1) Plot (4 stars) - An ex-CIA agent is sent by his grandma to release a parrot in South America only to become infected by a strange illness whose cure can only be found in an oasis in the Middle East. It's a typical Robbins wacky ride, so don't expect an especially linear plot. That said, it still definitely has structure, mystery, and builds toward a resolution.2) Characters (4 stars) - Switters is the cocksure adventurer. Intellectual, bold, spontaneous. He's a great guy to ride along with on a fun journey. However, there didn't seem to be much room for his inner growth. What did he want to become? Or was he already perfect when the novel began?3) Theme (4 stars) - The central theme seems to be about the power of mindful playfulness ... that joy is wisdom. In addition, there were dozens of other little ideas to keep you pondering--from what makes someone human (humor, imagination, eroticism, spirituality, rebelliousness, and aesthetics, in case you were wondering), to what our inner awareness can show us vs. the awareness brought by ingesting certain plants, to the boundaries and powers of language. Robbins likes his theories, and he sprinkles them liberally in this work.4) Voice (4 stars) - Robbins likes to enjoy himself, and it comes through in his prose. He doesn't just have a proclivity for metaphor, he turns those metaphors into little anthropomorphized stories that have a life of their own. When not supporting whimsical metaphor, his sentences are jaunty and smooth. A fine fine writer, but sometimes it felt like he might be nervous to convey any of life's sadder side--depression, loss, hopelessness. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I want books filled with the sad stuff, just that it exists and perhaps it should get some page time to make things seem more real.5) Setting (4 stars) - Robbins' descriptions of the various locales were always vivid and entertaining. However, the observational distance of his writing sometimes left me feeling a little distant from these places.6) Overall (4 stars) - All 4s equals a 4. I'd recommend it. It was a lively, thought-provoking, zany ride.

This is one of the funniest and most entertaining books I've ever read.And it has the most quotable quotes. Here's a sample:"The two things they all had in common were a cynical suspicion of politico-economic systems and a disdain for what passed for "patriotism" in the numbed noodles of the manipulated masses.""The old 'for reasons of national security' alibi. Heh! I'm a loyal American of long standing, but that doesn't mean I'm so flag-addled I can't recognize our favorite euphemism for 'governmental hanky-panky swept under the rug.'""It had to be good because all around it, in every direction, as far as his eyes could see, the world was as empty and dry as a dummy's condom.""And what is your faith, exactly, Mr. Switters? What do you believe in?""Umm. Well. I try not to""You try not to believe?""That's right. I'm on the run for the Killer B's.""Pardon? What have killer bees to do with?...""B for Belief. B for Belonging. The B's that lead to most of the killing in the world. If you don't Belong among us, then you're our inferior, or our enemy, or both; and you can't Belong with us unless you Believe what we Believe. Maybe not even then, but it certainly helps. Our religion, our party, our tribe, our town, our school, our race, our nation. Believe. Belong. Behave. Or Be damned.""Man," said Switters, "that's a nasty-looking crowd of clouds over there, all rough and raggedy-assed and milling about, like a herd of white-trash shoppers just crawled out of shacks and sheds and trailer homes for the end-of-winter sale at Wal-Mart.""Switters, are you ever, on you own, inclined toward prayer?"He barely hesitated. "When I feel I'm in need of shark repellent, I try to pray. When I feel I'm in need of smelling salts, I try to meditate. I'm not saying that one's necessarily superior to the other -- both are capable of being reduced to a kind of metaphysical panhandling -- but if more people smelled the salts and woke the hell up, they'd find they wouldn't need to be fretting about sharks all the time.""Although he seemed highly intelligent, Switters could detect that his was an intellect of the shrewd variety, the kind that grasped facts and figures and understood virtually nothing of genuine importance; a well-oiled brain dedicated to the defense, perpetuation, and exploitation of every cliché and superstition in the saddlebags of institutionalized reality."

I bought a second copy of this book so I could go to work underlining and dog-ear-ing the pages in an attempt to recall, for future use, the hundred or more glittering concepts I discovered here.Our Hero, Switters, is a walking, talking, breathing, lusting, meditating symbol for the tesserae that make up the mosaic of the sort of life we all either embrace or deny in every moment. He is a pacifist CIA agent, a pragmatic mystic, a part-time adventurer and full-time romantic, and though captivated by the idea of innocence and purity, he lusts after his teenaged stepsister and ultimately finds her affection returned in the most delightful manner imaginable.In one particularly memorable conversation, he tells her, "The more advertising I see, the less I want to buy..." Sounds simple, but taken in context of the moment, it unfolds like a rose, with just as many layers of beauty.The freedom of parrots, a pyramid-shaped head on a South American shaman, Matisse's Blue Nude revealed, Finnegan's Wake, government intelligence policies, the art of stilt walking, renegade nuns and the price we fear we must pay for enlightenment...all these seemingly disparate concepts are not only brought together as a whole, but seamlessly dovetailed to offer an enchanting glimpse of one individual celebrating who-he-really-is by realising that the only price to pay for joy is letting go of fear.

Makes you laugh out loud now and again, well written and slightly naughty …. love it

Excellent service from Awesome Books. Item was indeed in VERY GOOD condition and with a free bookmark (nice touch).

Best book of all time. I love how he weaves storylines together.

Great