"Still Life with Woodpecker" by Tom Robbins

"Still Life with Woodpecker" by Tom Robbins, is a book that I would most definitely suggest to other readers. It is very well thought out and extremely complex. Although it is a fantastic read it is definitely one for adults. Not because of it's content but solely because it is very philosophical and hard to grasp. In reading this very poetic and thought provoking book you may find yourself to be confused but it is ultimately an extremely enjoyable novel. The book is placed in the 1980's and features a deposed European royal family. The daughter, Leigh-Cheri is living now with her family in Seattle, but dreams of making the world a better place. Leigh-Cheri, a former cheerleader who got pregnant in high school, recently had a miscarriage and promised not togged pregnant again. She is a redheaded, vegetarian who travels all the way to Hawaii in order to partake in "Care Fest". Along the way she meets Bernard, a pyromaniac who is also known as "The Woodpecker". He is a self-proclaimed outlaw and the two almost immediately fall in love. When they return together back to Seattle, Bernard is finally caught by the police and Leigh-Cheri is distraught. So she locks herself in her attic in order to further connect herself to Bernard. In the attic she does a lot of thinking. With her pack of Camel cigarettes, Leigh-Cheri thinks about things such as aliens, consumerism, being redheaded, building bombs, the moon, her cigarette pack, conspiracy theories with pyramids and redheads and Thomas Jefferson, along with the repeatedly asked question of "How to make love stay". This book brings many social issues together, in making them a couple, through an act of love, and even through karma.

 First of all, when Robbins pairs Leigh-Cheri and Bernard together, many issues are mentioned or even just present. With Leigh-Cheri breaking her celibacy pact and them addressing anti-pregnancy methods that is just one half of the social issues. "The first time that she spread her legs for him it had been like opening her jaws for the dentist." Clearly, breaking her pact to god must have been hard for Leigh-Cheri but if she found herself in a situation where she felt loved then she could have broken that pact with almost anyone. This shows that even back then teen pregnancy was a problem and so was underage sex. With her present struggle it also suggests that because Bernard was older than her she was very uncomfortable at first. On the other hand, Bernard, who is wanted in all fifty states of America considers himself not a petty criminal but an out law. He most definitely takes pride in that. "Sharks are the criminals of the sea. Dolphins are the outlaws." This comparison shows how he imagines himself as a graceful beautiful creature, so to speak, whom everyone wants to watch but not all can find, versus a shark who no one wants to come into contact with or even just look at sometimes. It also shows how he separates himself from who he considers is petty, like regular criminals. Another way he shows himself as superior even though he has done considerably horrible things, mainly involving explosives and the death of innocents, is comparing petty cops and criminals to an infestation. "Society had a crime problem. It hired cops to attack crime. Now society has a cop problem." Clearly even when he got caught, Bernard is somewhat insane. He puts cops beneath him when they are the ones who protect people like his beloved Leigh-Cheri and the ones who have now successfully imprisoned him. This shows people's arrogance and inconsideration in the world, even if they are just a little mental

Secondly, Leigh-Cheri's act of love portrays the lengths people will go to in order to have love. It also reveals a bunch of theories and the thoughts other people can place in your head. When she locks herself away with only a hard mattress, a chamberpot, and a pack of cigarettes, Leigh-Cheri doesn't feel regretful and she starts to think. "I'll follow him to the ends of the earth,' she sobbed. Yes, darling. But the earth doesn't have any ends. Columbus fixed that." This shows how far people will go for something such as love. It also kind of shows how naive people really are. Just because you would go so far for someone doesn't mean they would go that far for you. Another way she felt during this experience is somewhat satisfied, like she didn't need to be with Bernard just connected to him somehow. "Funny how we think of romance as always involving two, when the romance of solitude can be ever so much more delicious and intense." Clearly, just thinking about Bernard and if he was doing as she was, made Leigh-Cheri feel good. Perhaps it was just the endless possibilities of thought but no one really thinks of love in this manner. This is an interesting perspective on how to feel because even though she was isolated, Leigh-Cheri definitely didn't feel isolated.

 Lastly, by incorporating Karma and ironic situations, Robbins addresses even more issues that really are present in the world. For example, Gulietta who was the former royal family's sort of caretaker went on strike after discovering cocaine and realizing if the family didn't start paying her for her work she couldn't get more. During her strike the families house was in peril without her help but they still refused to pay her. Sometime after Gulietta was found to be a secret heir and inherited a fortune. This shows how we should always treat people with a kind-hearted attitude because even if they are addicted to something like cocaine, they may be able to help us in the future. This story also shows that drugs are an ever present problem in the world and no one seems to really care about their recreational use. In terms of an ironic situation throughout the book, Leigh-Cheri so often "asks about how to make love stay". This is ironic because throughout the book she so often loses love even though she has already found someone that would stay in love with her until their demise.

 Overall, Tom Robbins so effortlessly adds in many social issues throughout this complex novel. He addresses love, drugs, outlaws, redheads and many more hidden topics. His characters are very original and complicated, all representing different social issues (Leigh-Cheri= sex/pregnancy, Bernard= Outlaw/pyromaniac, etc.) This book really makes you think about the kinds of people out there and how perspective really is everything. Can you make love stay?