Reviews

I don’t know how to feel about this one, parts I loved and parts I was bored out of my mind! I don’t know if Tom Robbins always interrupts the storyline to have philosophical rants, but it kind of got old for me?

llauterj's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

like. didn’t love. hated some of his slur usage. fantastic sub script as usual.

kaleereads's review against another edition

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4.0

it’s been over a month since I finished even cowgirls get the blues and i’m still looking for the right words to describe this reading experience. this book ended up on my radar because i’m currently on a “film girlie” journey, consuming tons of movies and feeling my way through directors and styles and subgenres. this novel was made into a little-seen and widely-hated film in the early 90s by gus van sant, a filmmaker i enjoy. it starred a young uma thurman and keanu reeves as well as john hurt and summer phoenix. when i found out the movie was based on a book, i set out to read it first. and i’m so glad i did. this novel is insane, hilarious, dirty, controversial yet progressive in many ways, and overall a surreal romp. the author has such a distinct voice, such a specific flair that i fell in love with. The novel is definitely dated, perhaps the best highlight of this being one character’s actual name. but I think if you can set your 2023 liberalism aside, and just kind of take this novel for the irreverent insanity that it is, you might come away really really appreciating it. Now all of that is to say that the movie is definitely bad!

moshikami's review against another edition

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2.0

Tom Robbins is a talented author with a strong grasp of the English language, however, he often uses his skill set to follow tangents describing bumble bee rectal temperatures and philosophical ramblings throughout a book about a hitchhiking, white trash girl with long thumbs who just wants to be free, man, and copulates with the various, self-named "cowgirls" of the Rubber Rose Ranch, a women's retreat owned by a flamboyant douche magnate called "The Countess"............ yeah.............

There were a few nuggets of wisdom amidst his scrawling, and the book is refreshingly self-aware at times. For example, after interrupting the story by going on a hippy-dippy tangent about magic, Robbins interrupts himself by stating:

Hmm. The author can sense that Chapter 100 displeases you. Not only does it interrupt the story, it says too much and says it too didactically. Well, a book about a woman with sugar-sack thumbs is bound to be a bit heavy-handed.

Though Robbins is arrogant AF, he is an intelligent author, so I gave this book an extra star. The majority of the book I found to be a slog to get through. I didn't care about the characters or the story, and was constantly annoyed by the author's asides. I don't totally regret reading this book, but I probably would only recommend it to someone well-versed in the American hippie movement.

certifiedmalpal's review

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adventurous funny inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

mikewardevrybdy's review against another edition

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4.0

This book was a struggle to read at various points and glad I finally finished it. It was all over the place, when it was good it was brilliant and when it wasn’t so good it made you keep reading hoping for more greatness to show up soon.

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