Felt a little weary, honestly - Vonnegut's bleakness is really in full flower here and it bordered on tiring. There are certainly those great moments Felt a little weary, honestly - Vonnegut's bleakness is really in full flower here and it bordered on tiring. There are certainly those great moments of humor (and what a surprisingly timely look at how to treat Nazis in America...) but it's not one of the better ones....more
Late-era Vonnegut is a tough thing. On the one hand, his maturity shows: he's a bit more grounded. On the other hand, I'm not sure I can buy the back Late-era Vonnegut is a tough thing. On the one hand, his maturity shows: he's a bit more grounded. On the other hand, I'm not sure I can buy the back cover line about how humanity is worth saving. If anything, this book is showing a society that the author is clearly thinking is not worth the candle. Still, he has hope - which is, I suppose, the great point and joy of Vonnegut's work: the reminder to continue to hope for the better angels....more
5+ out of 5. "We are what we pretend to be." A good moral, one we all would do well to keep in mind - I know I should. It's easy to pretend to be some5+ out of 5. "We are what we pretend to be." A good moral, one we all would do well to keep in mind - I know I should. It's easy to pretend to be something in public and believe yourself to be another thing in reality... but if you pretend for long enough, if no one sees the other thing, doesn't it become who you are? I'm still ridiculously shy but people rarely believe that: while it comes out now and then, it seems more like a divergence than a usual M.O. because I'm good at pretending I'm not shy. So what does that mean then: am I or am I not? Is Campbell guilty or not? Can someone be both things at once, existing in that dual state? And if this were the only thing Vonnegut was addressing in the novel, it'd be tremendous in and of itself - but he mentions another moral in that intro: "Make love when you can. It's good for you." He isn't just talking about sex, folks - a nation of two, whether it lasts longer than some real nations or for just a short while, can only make the world a better place for the time that it exists. It can give you sanctuary. A book on love and morality, peace and war, all together. How magnificent.
This one is a tough book to read, I have to be honest. The seams show in uncomfortable ways and Vonnegut is grappling with his own mind in a way that This one is a tough book to read, I have to be honest. The seams show in uncomfortable ways and Vonnegut is grappling with his own mind in a way that feels... unseemly. It feels as though we shouldn't see it, you know? Like it's something that society would rather have swept under the rug or off to the side - "oh no, we don't want to see that." Except, of course, the point is that we should see that. Even if it's uncomfortable to look at or to read - because behind that discomfort is reality. It's the reality of a world that was fucked up 40 years ago and remains that way today. Just looks different now. But guns still make holes in people and racism lives on, so maybe we should feel uncomfortable.
A brilliant introduction to a brilliant author. The novel moves along at a steady (although very fast) clip and Vonnegut is clearly having fun. He balA brilliant introduction to a brilliant author. The novel moves along at a steady (although very fast) clip and Vonnegut is clearly having fun. He balances humor with incisive commentary in a way that only the best satirists can pull off - and he manages, too, to hide just how sharp his teeth really are while still sinking them in deep. If you aren't looking for the anger and the ferocity, you might miss them; but they're there, make no mistake. We might not have ice-nine (well, this kind of ice-nine anyway) in the world but that doesn't mean the lesson isn't a worthwhile one. There are so many other things that could tun the sky to worms. And the worms are tornadoes.
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