A life in quotes: Tom Robbins

The bestselling counterculture novelist, whose books included Even Cowgirls Get the Blues and Another Roadside Attraction, has died at 92

Tom Robbins, the bestselling chronicler of the weird, whimsical and off-the-wall, has died at the age of 92, his family confirmed on Sunday.

A prolific writer and editor, Robbins aligned with the hippie sensibilities of the 1960s, writing books under his guiding philosophy of “serious playfulness” – outlandish characters, absurd metaphors and fantastical prose, like a hit of literary LSD. His novels, including Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, Another Roadside Attraction and Still Life With Woodpecker, garnered a cult following, even as they were dismissed by mainstream critics as overwrought.

What I try to do, among other things, is to mix fantasy and spirituality, sexuality, humor and poetry in combinations that have never quite been seen before in literature. And I guess when a reader finishes one of my books … I would like for him or her to be in the state that they would be in after a Fellini film or a Grateful Dead concert.
– to January Magazine, 2000

Minds were made for blowing.
– Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas, 1994

Love easily confuses us because it is always in flux between illusion and substance, between memory and wish, between contentment and need.
– Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, 1976

When we’re incomplete, we’re always searching for somebody to complete us. When, after a few years or a few months of a relationship, we find that we’re still unfulfilled, we blame our partners and take up with somebody more promising. This can go on and on – series polygamy – until we admit that while a partner can add sweet dimensions to our lives, we, each of us, are responsible for our own fulfillment. Nobody else can provide it for us, and to believe otherwise is to delude ourselves dangerously and to program for eventual failure every relationship we enter.
– Still Life With Woodpecker, 1980

The highest function of love is that it makes the loved one a unique and irreplaceable being.
– Jitterbug Perfume, 1984

Love is the ultimate outlaw. It just won’t adhere to any rules. The most any of us can do is to sign on as its accomplice. Instead of vowing to honor and obey, maybe we should swear to aid and abet. That would mean that security is out of the question. The words “make” and “stay” become inappropriate. My love for you has no strings attached. I love you for free.
– Still Life With Woodpecker

Our lives are not as limited as we think they are; the world is a wonderfully weird place; consensual reality is significantly flawed; no institution can be trusted, but love does work; all things are possible; and we all could be happy and fulfilled if we only had the guts to be truly free and the wisdom to shrink our egos and quit taking ourselves so damn seriously.
– to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 2007

Topics

Tom Robbins, literary prankster-philosopher, dies at 92

Tom Robbins, the literary prankster-philosopher who charmed, enlightened and addled millions of readers with such adventures as "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues" and "Jitterbug Perfume," has died
ABC News - 1d
Counterculture author Tom Robbins, known for his irreverent bestselling novels, dies at 92

His first novel, "Another Roadside Attraction," was published in 1971 when Robbins was 39 -- more than three decades after declaring to his parents, at age 5, that he'd be a writer.
Los Angeles Times - 1d
Life on Earth Depends on Networks of Ocean Bacteria

Nanotube bridge networks grow between the most abundant photosynthetic bacteria in the oceans, suggesting that the world is far more interconnected than anyone realized.
Wired - 1d
Tom Robbins, 'Even Cowgirls Get the Blues' author, dies at 92

Author Tom Robbins, whose novels read like a hit of literary LSD, filled with fantastical characters, manic metaphors and counterculture whimsy, died Sunday.
NBC News - 1d
Tom Robbins, comic novelist of US counterculture, dies aged 92

Author of books including Even Cowgirls Get the Blues and Another Roadside Attraction, was known for his outlandish tales of sex, drugs and mysticism. Tom Robbins, whose novels read like a hit of ...
The Guardian - 1d
Tom Robbins, Whose Comic Novels Drew a Cult Following, Dies at 92

He blended pop philosophy and absurdist comedy in best-selling books like “Even Cowgirls Get the Blues” and “Skinny Legs and All.”
The New York Times - 1d
Patrick Mahomes Is on the Cusp of Ending a Debate With Tom Brady

If Kansas City wins the Super Bowl, there’s no question who the greatest playoff quarterback is, a columnist for The Athletic writes.
The New York Times - 2d
NFL insider Tom Pelissero shares intel on Patriots' new coordinators

NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero provided interesting background on new Patriots coordinators Josh McDaniels and Terrell Williams.
Yahoo Sports - 3d
The Artist Alonzo Davis’s Life and Work in Pictures

In the 1960s, he built the Brockman Gallery, a vital venue for Black artists in Los Angeles. Here are glimpses into his life, art and legacy.
The New York Times - 6d

More in World

Campaigner for migrants in Libya says his phone was targeted in spyware attack

Italy-based David Yambio, a critic of Meloni government, helps ICC find evidence of abuse of detainees in Libya. An Italy-based human rights activist whose work supports the international criminal ...
The Guardian - 27m
‘We’ll be brothers forever but business is business’: Sam Burgess on family, infamy and fears for Luke Littler

The Warrington head coach reflects on high expectations, learning from pain and a Super League opener against Huddersfield and his younger brother Thomas. “A lot of pain or adversity can be a great ...
The Guardian - 27m
‘Why can’t it be us?’: Exeter target FA Cup shock and fly fan-ownership flag

League One side with rich cup history are proud to be doing it their own way before Nottingham Forest’s visit. A Tottenham team of Hoddle, Ardiles and Archibald were the opponents that stopped ...
The Guardian - 27m
Dirty water and endless wars: why cholera outbreaks are on the rise again

The number of cases globally has surged since 2021, as war and the climate crisis pile pressure on vaccine supplies. Cholera, the scourge of the Victorian era, is staging a comeback fuelled by ...
The Guardian - 27m
Our four dogs sleep on the bed – so I haven’t had sex with my wife in 10 years

My partner doesn’t seem to care about our sex life or my needs as her husband. Should I have an affair?. I haven’t had sex with my wife for more than 10 years. We have four dogs and she has ...
The Guardian - 27m