Sombrero Fallout: A Japanese Novel


Sombrero Fallout: A Japanese Novel is Richard Brautigan's seventh novel, completed in 1975 it was published the following year.
Sombrero Fallout is a novel which follows two stories. The first revolves around a humorist in San Francisco in 1972 trying to cope with the recent loss of his Japanese lover, which includes various dreams the ex-lover is having. During a particular fit, the author becomes dissatisfied with a story he had just begun about a sombrero falling from the sky. This story eventually takes on a life of its own, including a heroic cameo appearance by Norman Mailer.

Publication history

  • 1976, US, Simon & Schuster,, Pub date Sep 1976, Hardback
  • 1977, UK, Jonathan Cape,, Pub date Mar 1977, Hardback
  • 1978, US, Simon & Schuster,, Paperback
  • 1978, UK, Macmillan,, Pub date Nov 1978, Paperback
  • 1987, UK, Arena/Arrow,, Pub date 02 Apr 1987, Paperback
  • 1998, UK, Rebel Inc,, Pub date May 1998, Paperback
  • 2001, UK, Rebel Inc,, Pub date 02 Jun 2001
  • 2012, UK, Canongate,, Paperback
The 2012 Canongate edition includes an introduction by Jarvis Cocker who chose the book to accompany him on BBC [Radio 4]'s Desert Island Discs in 2005.