A journalist investigates the disturbing world of a charismatic shaman and the people who placed their trust in him. In The Ego Trip, by Kimon de Greef, the central figure is Octavio Rettig, who embodies multiple questionable cultural trends: social media influencer, unregulated wellness practitioner, proponent of machista manosphere ideology, dealer in psychedelic substances, and cultural appropriator.
The story begins with the Sonoran Desert toad, an unlikely amphibian that spends most of its life hidden underground in the arid wastelands of the border between Mexico and Arizona. For millions of years it has remained in that region without causing problems. When it rains, the toads emerge from their hiding places to mate, depositing strings of eggs anywhere water has accumulated.
