''Villa Incognito'' is a novel by

Tom Robbins Thomas Eugene Robbins (born July 22, 1932) is a best-selling and prolific American novelist. His most notable works are "seriocomedies" (also known as "comedy drama"), such as ''Even Cowgirls Get the Blues''. Tom Robbins has lived in La Conner, ...

published in 2003. This brief work shares the style, humor, and underlying cultural commentary of Robbins' better-known novels. It is recognized as a response to 9/11 and as a commentary on the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

Characters

''Villa Incognito'' begins with the story of Tanuki, an ancient Japanese badger-like creature who possesses the ability to

shapeshift In mythology, folklore and speculative fiction, shape-shifting is the ability to physically transform oneself through an inherently superhuman ability, divine intervention, demonic manipulation, sorcery, spells or having inherited the ...

and a penchant for

sake Sake, also spelled saké ( ; also referred to as Japanese rice wine), is an alcoholic beverage of Japanese origin made by fermenting rice that has been polished to remove the bran. Despite the name ''Japanese rice wine'', sake, and indee ...

and women. Tanuki is a "semi-god" with an unusually large scrotum and is portrayed alongside a beautiful young female character, who continues Tanuki's lineage with the use of a

chrysanthemum Chrysanthemums (), sometimes called mums or chrysanths, are flowering plants of the genus ''Chrysanthemum'' in the family Asteraceae. They are native to East Asia and northeastern Europe. Most species originate from East Asia and the center ...

seed embedded in the roof of her mouth, three American

MIA Mia, MIA, or M.I.A. may refer to: Music Artists * M.I.A. (rapper) (born 1975), English rapper and singer * M.I.A. (band), 1980s punk rock band from Orange County, California * MIA., a German rock/pop band formed in 1997 * Mia (singer) (born 1983) ...

s who deliberately remain in

Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...

long after US involvement in the

has ended, and two sisters, who are related to one of the missing American soldiers.

Plot

The novel is set in the present day. Its title refers to a house in Laos inhabited by three American Air Force pilots who have been missing since the Vietnam War. Following the arrest of one of the MIAs, for trafficking drugs while dressed as a priest, the novel depicts American life in a post-

9/11 The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial ...

context through the involvement of the two sisters.

Reception

The novel received generally favorable reviews in major outlets. In ''Publishers Weekly'', despite criticism of a "weak ending" the book is called a "delectable farce" that is "true to the mark." The ''Chicago Tribune'' review terms it a "baffling but wonderful ride."

References

{{TomRobbins 2003 American novels Novels by Tom Robbins Novels set in Thailand Novels set in Seattle Novels set in San Francisco