Tom Robbins

Infobox Writer
name = Thomas Eugene Robbins

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imagesize = 175px
caption = Tom Robbins at a reading of Wild Ducks Flying Backward in San Francisco on September 24, 2005
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birthdate = Birth date and age|1936|7|22|df=yes
birthplace = Blowing Rock, North Carolina), United States
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occupation = novelist, short story writer, essayist
nationality = United States
genre = Fictional prose, Postmodernism
movement =
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website =

Thomas Eugene Robbins (born July 22, 1936 in Blowing Rock, North Carolina) is an American author. His novels are complex, often wild stories with strong social undercurrents, a satirical bent, and obscure details. He is probably best known for his novel "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues" (1976), which was made into a movie in 1993 directed by Gus Van Sant.

Life

Thomas Eugene Robbins was born in Blowing Rock, North Carolina to George Thomas Robbins and Katherine D'Avalon. He also has three younger sisters (two sisters still living).

In 1954, Robbins studied journalism at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia but left after he was ousted from his fraternity for discipline problems. He spent the following year hitchhiking, finally settling in New York as a poet. In 1957 he enlisted in the Air Force after receiving his draft notice and spent two years as a meteorologist in Korea until being discharged in 1959. After he was discharged, Robbins returned to civilian life in Richmond, Virginia.

In 1960, Robbins entered art school at Richmond Professional Institute, which later became Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), and was the editor of the campus newspaper as well as a copy editor for the "Richmond Times-Dispatch". Upon graduation, he moved to Seattle to seek a Masters degree at the School of Far Eastern Studies of the University of Washington. While in Seattle, he worked for "The Seattle Times" and "Seattle Post-Intelligencer".

In 1971, Robbins published his first novel "Another Roadside Attraction". This novel was well received by critics but his next novel "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues" (1976) was considered to be his magnum opus. Robbins has published eight novels, a collection of short stories, and a collection of poetry and his next book to be released is a novella called "B is For Beer" which will be published on April 21, 2009. Robbins' literary career has lasted so far over 35 years.

Personal life

He was a friend of Terence McKenna, whose influence is evident in several of his books. A main character (Larry Diamond) in "Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas" advocates a theory similar to those of McKenna, involving Psilocybin. In addition, there are striking parallels between one of the main characters of "Jitterbug Perfume" (Wiggs Dannyboy) and McKenna. He is also an admirer of Indian mystic Osho. [ [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gq7IUM4lCrs Interview with Tom Robbins on YouTube] ] He is also on the advisory board of the Marijuana Policy Project.

He won the Golden Umbrella award at the Bumbershoot Seattle arts festival in 1997.

Robbins has two sons named Rip and Fleetwood Star and is married to his third wife Alexa D'Avalon and lives in La Conner, Washington and has lived there since 1970.

Partial bibliography

Robbins has written eight novels, and one collection, since 1971. He has also written numerous short stories and essays. [ [http://www.rain.org/~da5e/trbib.html Tom Robbins Bibliography] ]
* "Another Roadside Attraction" (1971)
* "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues" (1976)
* "Still Life with Woodpecker" (1980)
* "Jitterbug Perfume" (1984)
* "Skinny Legs and All" (1990)
* "Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas" (1994)
* "Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates" (2000)
* "Villa Incognito" (2003)
* "Wild Ducks Flying Backward" (2005) — a collection of non-fiction essays, reviews, and short stories.
* "B is For Beer" (to be published on February 9, 2009 [ [http://www.observer.com/2008/ecco-publish-tom-robbins-new-novel-b-beer-fall The Observer: Ecco To Publish Tom Robbins' New Novel 'B' Is for Beer This Fall] ] )

References

Further reading

*cite book | last = Hoyser | first = Catherine | title = Tom Robbins: A Critical Companion | publisher = Greenwood Press | location = Westport | year = 1997 | isbn = 0313294186
*cite book | last = Siegel | first = Mark | title = Tom Robbins | publisher = Boise State University | location = Boise | year = 1980 | isbn = 0884300668
*cite book | last = Gabel | first = Shainee | title = Anthem: An American Road Story | publisher = Avon books | location = New York | year = 1997 | isbn = 0380974193
*cite book | last = Whitmer | first = Peter | title = Aquarius Revisited: Seven Who Created the Sixties Counterculture That Changed America | publisher = Citadel | location = New York | year = 2000 | isbn = 0806512229

External links

* [http://www.aftrlife.com AFTRlife] - A Tom Robbins playground (fansite)
* [http://www.randomhouse.com.au/Authors/Default.aspx?Page=Author&ID=Robbins,%20Tom Tom Robbins at Random House Australia]

;Interviews and articles
* [http://archivesofamericanart.si.edu/oralhist/robbin84.htm A 1984 interview with Tom Robbins]
* [http://www.rain.org/~da5e/trbio.html From Blowing Rock to Windy Cliff: A Tentative Chronology ]
* [http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=5456 A biographical essay] (2003)
* [http://www.sirbacon.org/4membersonly/robbins.htm Basking Robbins Interview] (1985)
* [http://archive.salon.com/people/feature/2000/03/09/robbins/index.html Salon.com mini-bio] (2000)
* [http://www.seattleweekly.com/2000-05-03/news/tom-robbins-my-life-and-work/ Seattle Weekly interview] (2000)
* [http://www.dareland.com/emulsionalproblems/robbins.htm WGA: How to Write Like Tom Robbins]