Right Here, Right Now

By NADYA LABI

Ashton Robinson talks for a living--in infomercials, at seminars and on tapes that establish him as the biggest mouth in the self-help industry. But one day, while tripping out on weed and expired cough syrup, he is visited by a shape-shifting Brazilian midget who inspires him to found his own religion. The guru turns his California pad into a temple and teaches his followers to wear Gap clothing, bungee-jump and practice Tantric sex in preparation for their own "disappearance"--nirvana in Robinson's religion. The novel is a patchwork of clever ideas that never quite settle into a story. It's a relief when Robinson finally, inevitably, "disappears."

--By Nadya Labi