I just finished rereading jitterbug perfume by tom robbins and not only did i shed a tear of joy for the rowdy and philosophical magnificence of this book, but there went a second one for the lusty, enigmatic curiosity with which. Dec 05, 2007 all the other story lines were very much on the back burner throughout the entire novel. Though the book opens on these modernday characters lives, they take. Jitterbug perfume is an epic, which is to say, it begins in th. The book follows two interweaving storylines, one in ancient eurasia and one in the present day. Is it really some elixir that leads to immortality. This character is met by the bavarian ruler in india after the ruler flees from a funeral. Everyday low prices on a huge range of new releases and classic fiction. Lets talk about one of my all time favourite authors. The bottle is blue, very, very old, and embossed with the image of a goathorned god. And jitterbug perfume is a novel that features wonky characters like priscilla the genius waitress who was married to a famous south american accordian player and is searching for the perfect taco, alobar a year old chieftain from dark ages bohemia, marcel lefevre a french perfume executive who likes to wear whale masks, and pan the. Jitterbug perfume is an epic, which is to say, it begins in the forests of ancient bohemia and doesnt conclude until nine oclock tonight paris time.
Describing jitterbug perfume to someone who has not read it is difficult. This study guide consists of approximately 45 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of jitterbug perfume. Seattle is a city in the state of washington where priscilla lives. Jitterbug perfume, by tom robbins, is a book about the beets and the bees. It was kind of heart breaking the way he separated kudra and alobar and never really reunited them until the last sentence of the last chapter. Jitterbug perfume is one of those rare stories about life, all of life. It seemed weird for robbins to sort of ignore alobar kudra during the final 20% of the book. Jitterbug perfume is a brilliant faux epic touching on religion, human mortality, and eastmeetswest issues, as well as a lamentation on the loss of classic cultural dimensions in western civilization being a heck of a lot more fun to read than nietzsche, i might add along with a few good englishmajortype fucks all wrapped up in.
Its a book rich with audacious language, glorious detail, expressive whims and fancy, fascinating characters, and takes one a trip through the scientific, the intellectual, and the absurd. There are those who barter it for security, those who repress it for what they believe is the betterment of the whole society, but blessed in the twinkle of the morning star is the one who nurtures it and rides it in, in grace and love and wit, from peculiar. The plot is a little complicated to go into detail here suffice it to say that it involves a bohemian prince, alobar, his lover and partner, kudra, the god pan, and a mysterious, alluring perfume that several characters in the present are near finding the secret. Jitterbug perfume character descriptions for teachers. Jitterbug perfume is tom robbins fourth novel and was listed on the new york times best. I just finished rereading jitterbug perfume by tom robbins and not only did i shed a tear of joy for the rowdy and philosophical magnificence of this book, but there went a second one for the lusty, enigmatic curiosity with which robbins imbues all of his work, plus the man has a knack for simile and metaphor thats.
Their journey leads them to the bandaloops, an ancient tribe who have mastered immortality, as well as the goatgod pan, whose own existence is threatened by more fashionable deities. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides for challenging works of literature. A description of key characters in jitterbug perfume. Tom robbins, jitterbug perfume a sense of humor, properly developed, is superior to any religion so far devised. Home jitterbug perfume by tom robbins discussion guide. Tomatoes are lusty enough, yet there runs through tomatoes an undercurrent of frivolity. With the ap english and chemistry classes being essentially the same roster of brilliant little minds, we had decided to tackle tom robbins wonderful novel, jitterbug perfume, from the twin perspectives of the arts and the sciences. All orders are custom made and most ship worldwide within 24 hours. This is not due to a fear of giving away the plot i am fairly certain i could narrate the ending here and it would make absolutely no sense to someone who had not read the entire book but because there is just so darn much going on in the novel. The radish, admittedly, is more feverish, but the fire of the radish is a cold fire, the fire of discontent, not of passion. Take our free jitterbug perfume quiz below, with 25 multiple choice questions that help you test your knowledge. Jitterbug perfume by tom robbins 64,027 ratings, 4. Jitterbug perfume is a hilarious fantasy tale, revolving around the quest for and questions about eternal life, sex, individualism, and more sex. Eventually alobar and kudra decide to dematerialise themselves in paris and translocate to 20thcentury america, but alobar loses his nerve at the last minute.
Someone asked me to describe it and i was hard put to do so. Which is to say, it begins in the forests of ancient bohemia and doesnt conclude until nine oclock tonight paris time. Buy jitterbug perfume by robbins, tom from amazons fiction books store. Jitterbug perfume is an interesting and humorous book that will hold the readers interest, almost like a whodunnit will, as the reader wants to know what happens next. The radish, admittedly, is more feverish, but the fire of the radish is a cold fire, the fire of discontent not of passion.
This set of lesson plans consists of approximately 121 pages of tests, essay questions, lessons, and other teaching materials. Using classical mythology as a foundation, and, in particular, providing a loose adaptation of the odyssey by homer, robbins updates and modifies. Robbins touches on potentially controversial subjects like sex, death, religion, and. Alobar consoles a young girl, kudra, who was horrified at the sight of the woman attempting to escape the flames of the funeral pyre. Tom robbins, jitterbug perfume kudra was amused by alobars tentative polka until her eyes fell upon the tumescent protrusion dancing with him. Apr, 2006 as other instances in the book show, robbins handled the perfume motif with great care. May 17, 2016 this was my first tom robbins book and i must admit, i see why he has such a passionate and devoted following. Jitterbug perfume by tom robbins 1984, hardcover for sale. Tom robbins jitterbug perfume quotes archives page 2 of. I had read it years ago, and i remembered that i liked it, and i knew bits of the plot, but after reading a book five years ago, you cant really relate the plot.
I looked forward to the breaks from immortality, but that theme comes back with priscilla and her love affair with the irish dr. The highest function of love is that it makes the loved one a unique and irreplaceable being. Not to be confused with a metaphysical book which explores the inner you and ignores the reality of observable phenomenon around you, this book is still very much placed in the world you live, at least philosophically. Jitterbug perfume what the heck, i may as well pack it in right now. What is the significance of the perfume bottle that priscilla has. This 32page guide for jitterbug perfume by tom robbins includes detailed chapter summaries and analysis covering 4 chapters, as well as several more indepth sections of expertwritten literary analysis. If you would like to participate, you can edit one of the articles mentioned below, or visit the project page, where you can join the project and contribute to the general project discussion to talk over new ideas and. In search of the ultimate love potion the washington post. Why do kudra and alobar quarrel so much over immortality. Jitterbug perfume has a large and exotic cast of characters, all of whom are interested in immortality andor perfume. To some extent the book serves as a vehicle for robbins to express various philosophical. High quality jitterbug perfume gifts and merchandise. How well does the book hold up more than 20 years later. Apr 02, 2012 the connections are obvious and this may be the weakest part of the book, but its told in small pieces between the epic of alobar and kudra.
The writer of jitterbug perfume is an american writer. Of course i still have a few chapters to go in my life. I only mention it because i know the author and i thought he could do with a bit of advertising. Do you think people will still be reading it in another 20 years. Although, i hasten to add, the mysterious man is brilliant, but not quite as brilliant as jitterbug perfume.
Not just a good writer but he is a very good essayist and a short story writer as well. Jitterbug perfume, tom robbins the beet is the most intense of vegetables. This character is one of the wives of the bavarian ruler and is the one the ruler. Even then, their reuniting wasnt what i hoped it would be. The connections are obvious and this may be the weakest part of the book, but its told in small pieces between the epic of alobar and kudra. Jitterbug perfume all i know is that this book grabbed me. I looked forward to the breaks from immortality, but that theme comes back with priscilla and. Tom robbins and jitterbug perfume is not for everyone. Alobar and kudra s love is beautifully written, robbins has a delicious way of making love in the old seem as young as the day they met and not once was i disgusted to realise the rampant sex scenes being described where those of two year old cronies.
Jitterbug perfume part iii, promise her anything but give. Tom robbins, jitterbug perfume our individuality is all, all, that we have. Jitterbug perfume part iii, promise her anything but. Jitterbug perfume was originally published in 1984. In his wanderings, he meets kudra, an indian girl trying to escape her own death, and the two become soulmates. I just finished rereading jitterbug perfume by tom robbins and not only did i shed a tear of joy for the rowdy and philosophical magnificence of this book, but there went a second one for the lusty, enigmatic curiosity with which robbins imbues all of his work, plus the man has a knack for simile and metaphor thats unbeatable. A saga must have a hero, and the hero of this one is a janitor with a missing bottle. This article is within the scope of wikiproject novels, an attempt to build a comprehensive and detailed guide to novels, novellas, novelettes and short stories on wikipedia. In one of the two parallel plotlines here, robbins juggles the separate attempts of various parfumiers around the world to come up with a.
This was my first tom robbins book and i must admit, i see why he has such a passionate and devoted following. He and his soontobewife kudra, a voluptuous hindu widow obsessed with dousing herself in various scented oils, attempt his feat with the help. Perfumes, jitterbugs, and jitterbug perfume perfumes. While i was in borders, i picked up another book by tom robbins, but when i got home, the urge to reread jitterbug perfume poked me. The language is outlandish, metaphors sometimes so much so that they could have been pulled from a bad metaphor list. Tom robbins is a brilliant writer, and jitterbug perfume is his masterwork. At the end of it i found myself wanting a love like kudra and alobars. Tom robbins jitterbug perfume quotes archives page 2. Determine which chapters, themes and styles you already know and what you need to study for your upcoming essay, midterm, or final exam. This 32page guide for jitterbug perfume by tom robbins includes detailed chapter. Jitterbug perfume by tom robbins 1984, hardcover for. It is also about an ancient, tribal bohemian king who was, for a time, einsteins janitor. Tom robbins jitterbug perfume in his 1984 novel jitterbug perfume, tom robbins presents a narrative that rivals the often fantastical tales told in myth. A saga must have a hero, and the hero of this one is a janitor with a missing.
In one of the two parallel plotlines here, robbins juggles the separate attempts of various parfumiers around the world to come up with a perfume upon a jasmine base that will. This is a book that will make you laugh, wonder, and most of all think. Tom robbins jitterbug perfume essay 3119 words bartleby. The first person, priscilla, lives in seattle and spends her nights perfecting the ultimate perfume. Tom robbins jitterbug perfume was recommended to me by a friend who i think was kudra. Jitterbug perfume is tom robbins fourth novel and was listed on the new york times best seller list in 1985. Because who doesnt want to read a book about immortality, perfume, an. Standing alone in front of the wrong class, our little teamteaching experiment now seemed like a huge mistake.
Jitterbug perfume is a novel that starts out with 4 separate story lines. The plot is a little complicated to go into detail here suffice it to say that it involves a bohemian prince, alobar, his lover and partner, kudra, the god pan, and a mysterious, alluring perfume that several characters in the present are near finding the secret recepie to. A roundrobbins on the themes of scent, socalled floral consciousness, and immortalityskipping through time and space, but offering a little oldfashioned storytelling charm along with the usual cutehip doodling. Aug 05, 2005 jitterbug perfume is evidently then, a fantastic love story. Jitterbug perfume is evidently then, a fantastic love story. A bit like another book that i came across recently, the mysterious man. For a book that starts with a beet, jitterbug perfume makes you think an awful lot about life. Others, such as kudra, seek to pry the lid off and hop out. The bottle is blue, very, very old, and embossed with the image of a goathorned. The alobar and kudra story is the living heart of this book. As the tales become more and more entwined one cannot help but marvel at the genius of tom robbins. Tom robbins jitterbug perfume quotes archives famous. More tom robbins quotations by book titles even cowgirls get the blues jitterbug perfume still life with woodpecker.
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