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Another Roadside Attraction

by Tom Robbins

Average based on 1 comment. Synopses & Reviews Read an Excerpt Customer Comments (1) ISBN13: 9780553349481 ISBN10: 0553349481 Condition: Standard All Product Details

 

 

Excerpt

The magician's underwear has just been found in a cardboard suitcase floating in a stagnant pond on the outskirts of Miami.  However significant that discovery may be—and there is the possibility that it could alter the destiny of each and every one of us—it is not the incident with which to begin this report.

In the suitcase with the mystic unmentionables were pages and pages torn from a journal which John Paul Ziller had kept on one of his trips through Africa.  Or was it India?  The journal began thusly:  "At midnight, the Arab boy brings me a bowl of white figs.  His skin is very golden and I try it on for size.  It doesn't keep out mosquitoes.  Nor stars. The rodent of ecstasy sings by my bedside."  And it goes on:  "in the morning there are signs of magic everywhere.  Some archaeologists from the British Museum discover a curse.  The natives are restless.  A maiden in a nearby village has been carried off by a rhinoceros.  Unpopular pygmies gnaw at the foot of the enigma."  That was the beginning of the journal.  But not the beginning of this report.

Neither the FBI nor the CIA will positively identify the contents of the suitcase as the property of John Paul Ziller.  But their reluctance to specify is either a bureaucratic formality or a tactical deceit.  Who else but Ziller, for God's sake, wore jockey shorts made from the skins of tree frogs?

At any rate, let us not loiter in the arena of hot events.  Despite the agents of crisis who dictate the drafting of this report, despite the spiraling zeitgeist that underscores its urgency, despite the worldwide moral structure that may hang in the balance, despite that, the writer of this document is no journalist, nor is he a scholar, and while he is quite aware of the potential historical importance of his words, still he is not likely to allow objectivity to nudge him off the pillar of his own perspective.  And his perspective has its central focus, the enormity of public events notwithstanding, the girl: the girl, Amanda.

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satin worship, September 25, 2008 (view all comments by satin worship)
I just finished this book, and I have to say Tom Robbins delivered another excellent read. It was a little less cohesive and scintillating than the other works by him I've read.
The story follows Amanda, a very interesting character, as well as a few other characters that are caught up in the world with her. The first half of the story is about Amanda's overly colorful world and the cast of characters in it (and one really huge hot dog). The second half deals with the question: What would you do if you had the corpse of a very powerful figure in your pantry?
It makes some very poignant statements about the world, that are just as true today as they were when he wrote the book.

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Product Details

ISBN:

9780553349481

Author:

Robbins, Tom

Publisher:

Bantam

Location:

New York :

Subject:

General

Subject:

Literary

Subject:

Fiction

Subject:

Second advent

Subject:

Humorous fiction

Subject:

Second Advent -- Fiction.

Subject:

Literature-A to Z

Copyright:

1990

Edition Number:

Bantam ed.

Edition Description:

Trade paper

Series Volume:

Nr. 7

Publication Date:

19900431

Binding:

TRADE PAPER

Grade Level:

General/trade

Language:

English

Illustrations:

Y

Pages:

352

Dimensions:

8.30x5.22x.77 in. .58 lbs.

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Related Subjects

Fiction and Poetry » Literature » A to Z
History and Social Science » American Studies » Popular Culture

Another Roadside Attraction Used Trade Paper Tom Robbins

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Product details 352 pages Bantam - 2002-09-29 English 9780553349481 Reviews:

"Review" by Los Angeles Times., "Written with a style and humor that haven't been seen since Mark Twain...it is a prize."

"Review" by Rolling Stone, "Hard to put down because of the sheer brilliance and fun of the writing. The sentiments of Brautigan and the joyously compassionate omniscience of Fielding dance through the pages garbed colorfully in the language of Joyce."