Customer Reviews

Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

I picked up this book while staying at a friend's loft in NY and only had enough time to read the first twenty-five pages before I had to leave. I was so engrossed I wanted to take it home with me. Yes, it was so brilliant I actually considered stealing from a friend. The first thing I did when I got back to LA was buy the book. I had read some Robbins as a kid and after reading this fun, brilliant, provocative book, decided to reread all of Tom Robbins books. With so many crappy, stupid, uninspired, poorly written books these days, Robbins is a breath of fresh air. Not only is he a truly great writer, a master and lover of the written word but he is a writer with something interesting to say and the smarts to back it up. Robbins knows how to construct plot and character, while mixing in so many interesting ideas without being didactic or arrogant. There is nothing cliche in what Robbins writes and he shares in an entertaining way his knowledge of so many topics. This is a man who thinks, is interested in the world seen and unseen and paralays the information into the most imaginative and fun stories I've ever read. His creativity is astonishing, his style flawless and his ideas provocative. I recommened all his books to anyone who wants to be reminded what literary genius is all about.

I don't read Tom Robbins for meaning, story, plot, characterization, or any of the other things I might look for in conventional fiction. I suspect he would scoff at the notion that he is somehow presenting a philosophy. I read Tom Robbins for his exquisite word play and his unending ability to fuel my sense of the absurd.

C'mon. Who else would define "rapscallion" as a hip-hop onion?

Given the two reasons I read his work, this book scores on both counts.

I, like many others, have read most of Tom's books and while some of his main characters have been slightly annoying (Still Life with Woodpecker, anyone?), Matti takes the cake. Don't let her character dissuade you from reading the book. Her character is a money-grubbing stockbroker containing no true love or passion for life. She is intended (I believe) to represent the consumer in all of us, albeit the worst parts. She is not supposed to be likable. A likable Matti would have taken away this stories point: how even the most vile, egotistical, greedy person can transform, or should I say be pushed to transform when the stakes are raised high enough. The story begins at the start of a four-day weekend, just after a major stock crash. Matti is in jeopardy of losing her job, she can't even make the payments on her new Porsche, boo-ho! Moreover, the boyfriend that she's been dating because of his giant paycheck has decided to give it to charity. On top of everything, his monkey gets loose (did I mention that this monkey was trained to steal jewelry and that the aforementioned boyfriend has taken it upon himself to convert the monkey to Christianity?) and may be heisting peoples belongings. Craziness!

As always, Tom's writing is spectacular and you'll be learning arcane bits of knowledge on every page. Some of his ideas are crazy, but deep down are not all ideas crazy?

I received 'Half Asleep In Frog Pajamas' as a birthday present from a Tom Robbins fan. Having never read any of his works previously, and having heard friends extolling his brilliance, I began reading the novel with a great deal of expectation. Robbins places the reader in the role of a stockbroker called Gwen who finds herself in trouble after a market crash exposes her illegal dealings. She is a character that doesn't warrant much empathy as she is materialistic and selfish, and it's almost insulting that Robbins places you in her shoes through the second person. After approximately 50 pages (my cut-off point for any book that hasn't grabbed my attention) I came within a gnat's nose-hair of giving up. It was only with the introduction of the eccentric and somewhat vulgar Larry Diamond that my interest increased. Larry offers Gwen an alternative look at life, away from the capitalist, yuppie-broker lifestyle she is immersed in. Things become slightly wacky when a rampaging born-again monkey and a missing psychic enter the plot. The novel gets progressively better and although entertaining, is not the literary tour-de-force I expected. It appears from the other reviews below that his other novels are far better so I'll certainly give them a try.

... I do believe that Tom Robbins' work is like strawberry ice cream; either you like it or you don't. Robbins has once again managed to juxtapose the most eccentric of characters, the strangest of personalities and somehow make them fit together. That's one thing I love about this author. His sense of sarcasm is unparalleled. But it isn't only sarcasm and dry humor for the sake of poking fun at life that makes this book worth reading. Tom Robbins uses these characters and their outrageous situations to teach, editorialize and explore life on all levels in a way that will make you laugh and cry about your own state of existence. The question I ask is "Do I take myself more seriously, or should I take myself less seriously?" This is a question Tom challenges me to look at. Take it with as many grains of salt as you wish, but be prepared to look at the world through the colored lenses of Mr. Robbins mind.

I've had this book in my library since it was first published, and finally decided to read it. When I first purchased it, I read the first two chapters and put it down. It was harder to get into than the others. Although the first one-third has some trouble gaining momentum, stick with it. It gets better.

The only trouble I had with it is that there seems to be too much happening for just a weekend in real time. But then again, if Mr. Robbins can convince me that a bulk of human knowledge was a gift from amphibians from space, I will let that one go.

I've read most of his novels quite some time ago, my favorites being Jitterbug Perfume and Still Life with Woodpecker. I read them at a time in my life when I could have been one of the characters. Now that I've gotten older, I found that his work still intrigues me, and I am going to read some of these books again.

It's practically impossible to review a Tom Robbins novel considering that just reciting the plot line in no way describes what actually goes on in the story (sorta like an existential Seinfeld episode). That's what makes it so exciting- you never know what will make you laugh on the next page or what will make you think about life in a totally different way in the next chapter. This is my favorite of all of TR's books (and he's my favorite author so I guess that makes it the best book ever!). I have read it ATLEAST 10 times and buy it for gifts. I'd say this is a good starting place if you are not familiar with TR. It's a little more cautious than some of the others. Of course, being so totally UNcautious is exactly why TR has so many loyal fans. Anyway, HIGH praises for this book. I wish I could give it more than 5 stars.

I loved this book, more than most books I've ever read. However, I did not like it as much as any of Tom Robbins other books. In the story, we watch a mostly unlikeable little ethnic hotty struggle with her life choices, needs, love and lust. We witness a vulgar man enter the hotty's life and address these issues while trying to undress the little brown lust-fish. Love? Maybe that's what happens to them. Understanding? The eight ball says, "unclear". Resolution? You bet your sweet sweetness there's nothing absolute! It's a wild ride. The sentiments are not hard to follow. The wit is easy to see. The sentences follow each other in an understandable pattern. Like Robbins' other works the conclusion of the book sees it's characters embarking on new journeys. Unlike his other books the main character is left with a decision not clearly made. It fits with the confusion inherent in our largely money=worth society. One of his greatest skills is weaving our characters into their time. He is a master at addressing the current societies ills. He equally addresses the counter culture's reaction and/or overreaction to said ills. My only itsy bitsy apprehension is that it is a little departure from his other works. Read the book. If you're a Tom Robbins fan read it once. If you don't like it the first time, wait and try it again. If you've never read Tom Robbins but would like to become a fan, read anything else he's written before you read this book. That's my advice. I honestly may not have loved it if I did not already adore his style.

I am wrapped in unfathomable disappointment, having just finished Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas. I don't know whether this is simply the worst novel Tom Robbins has written, or whether I grew up while waiting around for him to write another book. Perhaps the disappointment is not so much with Robbins, but with the realization that I might have really remained so naïve into my 20's as to accept these rambling philosophies at face value without seeing through the tired old agenda of attacking everything about the culture that produced me. It's like brutally exposing all of your own family's flaws without regard to the fact that the family across the street is no more hip and enlightened than your own....or worse, because Robbins does seem to acknowledge that other cultures are just as flawed, which leads him to either idolize fictional peoples from bygone eras or sink into full-blown misanthropy.

It is ironic that a Google search for the title of this novel, with its central theme of "don't buy, get high", returns only websites selling the novel. No enlightened debates about the theme, no additional information about the factoids he cites, no search for truth and purpose. Just book sales.

Nonetheless, I'm not an aging hippie so this is not central to my disappointment. I was with him until the last 15 pages, where I found myself saying out loud, "WHAT is she DOING?" Perhaps he thought the twist (or lack thereof) at the end was a brilliant device for subverting the reader's expectations and adding a skin of cynicism to the entire theme, but I felt cheated, made worse by the second person voice which insinuated insult as well. The reader is set up to believe this is a story about redemption. After all, the whole thing takes place during Easter weekend, what could be more obvious? And the "born-again" monkey? Or maybe it's just that Gwen is so immoral and exploitive that the reader can't imagine why she's worth reading about unless we are to witness her transformation. But, the monkey turns out not to be born-again after all, just the same old thief. And Gwen isn't born again either, she too remains the same old thief. And there's that second person again, pointing the finger directly at YOU as though to say, "dear reader, you are the Fool in this deck of cards". I don't know what Seattle is like, but I can't imagine where Robbins would get the idea that most of us are self-centered and materialistic, much less incapable of change. Indeed, it is the very transformations that come with age that lead many of his most loyal readers, and I count myself among them, to become disillusioned with his shallow lecturing and formulaic plots. Would it have been too predictable to have his characters change, become better? Perhaps. But it all seems pointless if they don't. Like a hippy who never grows up.

Still, for all that, I love Robbin's quirkiness, his sense of humor, and his masterful command of language. Only he could delight me with descriptions of Peptol Bismal as the color of "Flamingo diarrhea". There is no other novelist who makes me pause, reread sentences, and spend a moment just reveling in the language.

I also enjoyed the way he managed to articulate for me the real reasons why I'm so annoyed by new age goddess worship (kudos to Q-jo on that one). And just when you think Robbins is shoving stereotypically leftie propaganda down your throat, he comes out of left field with the perspective that to pity and cater to the homeless is to denigrate them further by denying them the power of their own choices. I certainly didn't expect a lecture on personal responsibility, but he did make me think. Too bad this was the only page in the entire novel that did.

I agree with the other reviewers, don't choose this book as your first Tom Robbins novel, and skip it entirely unless you're a huge fan (and even then keep your expectations low). I disagree, however, with reviewers who imply that Tom Robbins is the only alternative to John Grisham or Oprah recommendations; on the contrary, Robbins is no less "pop" as novelists go, and such thinking betrays a serious underestimation of the rich book choices for anyone who cares to look beyond the new releases.

Robbins normally blends the most creative and unlikely characters to form an intriguing story, but in this case what's so weird about a fat psychic? Is there any other kind? A greedy stockbroker? That's cliché, not creative. A presumptuous, pretentious anti-establishment `shroom eater? I've met him (and her) lots of times, and he's never struck me as particularly insightful. A straight-laced Lutheran real estate agent? Am I supposed to think he's wacky just because he owns a monkey? Please. The characters are no more creative than the tired theme trotted out from past novels. You want quirky? Try "The Baron in the Trees" by Calvino. And I just can't get over my hatred for Gwen, from the shoddy treatment of her father to her exploitation of her devoted boyfriend to endangerment of the poor monkey, all of it growing progressively worse in the last pages and all for no good reason other than to force me to walk in the shoes of someone devoid of any redeeming quality other than her looks and her pitiful need for security after her unstable childhood. But, everyone's got a hard luck story.

Well, this book took almost 100 pages until I started being able to adjust to its groove. It's unlike ANYTHING I have ever read. Individually almost each of Tom Robbins sentences is a work of art, so fully wonderful and well crafted. I liked that part right off, but was REALLY having trouble with the almost surreal and convoluted story. However, once I meshed with the book's stride, i took off running. I am loving this. Also, the fact that it is set in Seattle is great fun, reading about my hometown.

This was such a trip to read. I was left, at the end, satisfied, but it took a long time to get there. I've heard that this is more "out there" than many of Robbins' books, so maybe not the best way to be introduced to him, but his style is wonderful. I'm glad I read it.

While flipping through it once last time, I am compelled to copy out my favorite sentence, found on page 121. "The expectant pause is so large that were it a house, Christ and all twelve disciples could live there, although Judas Iscariot would probably have to sleep on the sun porch." *smile*

Still Life With Woodpecker was the first Robbins novel I ever read and owned. Assuming his other novels were equally as decadent, I chose reading Half Asleep before Even Cowgirls...
This book takes some getting used to. The characters aren't nearly as lovable as in Still Life, and if you're not interested in the stock market in the slightest, you can get easily irritated by his rambles on the decline of the Nekkei. I did think he portrayed Gwen's character, a stock broker with her career on the line, very well; her annoying, selfish personality shone through like a sore thumb. She is very convincing and believable. The other characters seemed to lack a bit in substance, Gwen being the obvious main character in a spiral of born-again Christians, African wildlife, strung-out vague junkies, and two very strange psychic and Japanese characters. I'd recommend this for someone with a bit more time on their hands than most of his novels, it takes a bit to get through.