Paperback, 275 pages
English language
Published Jan. 12, 1999 by Chelsea House Publishers.
Selected by the Modern Library as one of the 100 best novels of all time, Slaughterhouse-Five, an American classic, is one of the world's great antiwar books. Centering on the infamous firebombing of Dresden, Billy Pilgrim's odyssey through time reflects the mythic journey of our own fractured lives as we search for meaning in what we fear most.
Not my favourite Vonnegut though it certainly had moments.
Poo-tee-weet?
Wonderful read
Absurdist classic - that's certainly the best way to describe this book! Kurt beautifully interweaves humor with brutal realities of war, which is aided by the strange storyline of the book. Through the Tralfamadorian philosophy, he points the flaws in us Earthlings' way of living the life. As one of the characters say in the book -
"That's one thing Earthlings might learn to do, if they tried hard enough: Ignore the awful times, and concentrate on the good ones."
Like nothing else AND good. Usually you get one or the other.
My first book by Vonnegut, I only read it because after finishing [b:The Universe Versus Alex Woods|15984268|The Universe Versus Alex Woods|Gavin Extence|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1352436020s/15984268.jpg|21738568] in which the characters create a book group to read the complete works of Vonnegut, I felt I needed to, to fully grasp that book. I can see how that book was heavily influenced by Vonnegut, the same quirkiness and style is there, little bits that get repeated are there too, also being told how the story ends at the beginning is another feature used.
Slaughterhouse-Five is amazing, it quickly drew me in and I had to keep coming back to it, no matter one I was doing the book was there with me. Billy Pilgrim is not an interesting character, he doesn't have much to say but he has lead an interesting life, surviving the Dresden bombing and plane crashes, time travel and space travel. This book …
My first book by Vonnegut, I only read it because after finishing [b:The Universe Versus Alex Woods|15984268|The Universe Versus Alex Woods|Gavin Extence|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1352436020s/15984268.jpg|21738568] in which the characters create a book group to read the complete works of Vonnegut, I felt I needed to, to fully grasp that book. I can see how that book was heavily influenced by Vonnegut, the same quirkiness and style is there, little bits that get repeated are there too, also being told how the story ends at the beginning is another feature used.
Slaughterhouse-Five is amazing, it quickly drew me in and I had to keep coming back to it, no matter one I was doing the book was there with me. Billy Pilgrim is not an interesting character, he doesn't have much to say but he has lead an interesting life, surviving the Dresden bombing and plane crashes, time travel and space travel. This book seems to have a little bit of everything but is very tidily written so that you don't get lost as bits of the story are hinted at and then gradually fully revealed.
I am now definitely a Kurt Vonnegut fan and will be trying out more of his stuff.
A very interesting story. Quite meta throughout. It manages to be different in a way that I don't find irritating (not, say, like Ulysses).
A slow start but once the rhythm kicks in this book becomes as poignant as it is funny. The pitiable but eventually likeable protagonist Billy Pilgrim's journey through the fourth dimension is pock-marked with some beautiful theories on life and death. So it goes.
It's a comparatively quick read. Which is why you should drop everything you're doing right now to read it.
I know I am going to get some shit for this, but I didn't actually find the book hilarious. It is an absurd account of an absurd society. War, religion, marriage...its all there. And it hasn't changed. Maybe that's why I wasn't laughing.
I really liked this book, surprisingly, as I felt kind of "meh" about Cat's Cradle. And as such I realized I really like Kurt Vonnegut. He had a finely tuned sense of the absurd as well as an acute recognition of the profound. Sometimes both in the same sentence. Looking forward to reading more from Mr. Vonnegut.
I can't believe it took me three attempts to finish this book because it was a really great read. I forgot how much fun Vonnegut can be and this book did not disappoint.
Even with the introduction and spoiler as to how the book ends you are thrown into the extraordinary life of Billy Pilgrim. Once you start experiencing Billy's life as he becomes "unstuck in time" the story quickly picks up and works on multiple timelines in Billy's life and is a fascinating experience as you don't know what stage of life you'll join Billy in next.
All this happened, more or less. Everything was beautiful nothing hurt. So it goes.
At about 25% I wrote: So far I am not very impressed. I've read about a quarter of the book and I am still waiting for something to happen. Neither is the writing exceptionally beautiful nor are the characters especially interesting and there isn't an interesting setup for society or technology either. I'd expect all these things of a good fantasy or sci-fi book. I may give this another chance and continue reading next week-end ...
--
It turns out that after reading some exceptionally badly written books before finishing this one, I enjoyed the style of this one much more. Technically it is a good book, well executed and original.
Still I was looking forward way too much to finishing the book so I'll stick with the two stars. I probably am what you call "Kunstbanause" and so I learned a new word today: a philistine ;)
4.5 So it Goes.
Kurt Vonnegut is an absolutely brilliant writer, no doubt about it. In Slaughterhouse-Five the plot intertwines with some of the greater questions of mankind. Free will vs. extreme structuralism being one of the most important ones. Merging that question with the cruelties of WWII in a easy read, rather light-hearted novel is a grand achievement.
