“Villa Incognito”
by Tom Robbins
Published: April 2004
ISBN: 0553382195

(Updated May 11, 2004.)

I am a Tom Robbins fan. I have read all of his books and my favourite remains “Jitterbug Perfume”.

I guess I like Robbins’ writing because I never know what to expect. He makes characters out of the strangest creatures and objects, often embodying many of life’s "mysteries". And, even though these forces — that push and pull us to do stuff — aren’t (always :o) rational, they so become through Robbins’ words. He always juxtaposes active senses, thoughts and our collective "modern" intelligence (I suppose getting emotions in there was too tight of a fit :o) and weaves us through stories that do indeed "make sense". He puts all of these things together (beside, around and over each other) in such a way that I, in my delight, often wonder how on earth his neurons fire. So/and/but… I struggled with this particular book of his.

Situated mainly in south-east Asia, the main characters are three “missing in action” veterans of the Vietnam war and a female, human descendent of Tanuki. (For a quick reference into tanukis and Tanuki — the real and the mythical — please see here.) And, if I had to sum up the story of this book, I would choose the following quote from it, part of a conversation between Kitsune and Tanuki:

“… As the humans say, only time will tell.”
Again Tanuki snorted. “Time has a big mouth and a small brain.”

The influence Tanuki has on today’s world, the integration of and the reflections on our recent/current history and politics I found less engaging than the “similar” Pan and “longer history” version in “Jitterbug Perfume”.

“Couldn’t wait to get back to it” factor? 1 out of 5.