Conversations with Tom Robbins

Since the publication ofAnother Roadside Attractionin 1971, Tom Robbins (b. 1932) has become known as the principal voice of American countercultural fiction. His cult celebrity was further solidified by the success ofEven Cowgirls Get the Blues(1976) andStill Life With Woodpecker(1980). RobbinsÂ's mix of vivid language, ribald humor, philosophical musings, controversial commentary on religion and sexuality, and concentration on female protagonists and feminine consciousness has marked almost all of his fiction, as well as his short writings.Despite his undeserved reputation as 1960s hippie icon, all of RobbinsÂ's work remains popular and in print, and his later novelsÂ--includingJitterbug Perfume(1984),Skinny Legs and All(1990),Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas(1994),Fierce Invalids Home From Hot Climates(2000),Villa Incognito(2003), andB Is for Beer(2009)Â--engage thoroughly with current politics, mores, and trends.Conversations with Tom Robbinsbrings together more than twenty interviews with the acclaimed author, from the mid-1970s to the present. Throughout the volume, Robbins discusses his working methods, his fusion of Eastern and Western philosophical traditions, the need for wit and humor in serious fiction, and the ways living in the Pacific Northwest has fueled his work.

Liam O. Purdon is professor of English at Doane College. His work has been published in Studies in Philology, Philological Quarterly, Medievalia et Humanistica, Papers on Language and Literature, English Language Notes, and other periodicals. Beef Torrey has edited Conversations with Thomas McGuane, Conversations with Hunter S. Thompson (with Kevin Simonson), and Jim Harrison: A Comprehensive Bibliography, 1964-2008 (with Gregg Orr).