Kurt Vonnegut?

JCDenton

A friend recently recommended I take a look at Slaughterhouse 5,
I was wondering if anyone could tell me if this is worth reading, if he has written better books or if they should all be steered clear of?

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

read slaughterhouse 5.

it's the only one of his books I've read myself, but it's amazing.

echomadman

Slaughterhouse5 is excellent.
Cats Cradle is good too, and Player Piano, breakfast of champions is funny but very offbeat.
from your tone "I was wondering if anyone could tell me if this is worth reading, if he has written better books or if they should all be steered clear of?", you dont seem all that enthusuastic.

Read Slaughterhouse5 and go from there.

JCDenton

It's not that I'm not enthusiastic, it's just that I've never really heard many people talk about this book,
From what I've heard it's a strange hybrid of catch-22 and the hitchhikers guide to the galaxy?

That sounds like a strange mix - but I'll try anything once

I'll give it a shot, thanks for the replies!

themole

i have only read skaughter house 5 myself, and its good as said previously.

just wanted to let eveyone know

theCzar

I'm just now reminded i downloaded it off a nefarious website, must give it a read when i have the time

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

From what I've heard it's a strange hybrid of catch-22 and the hitchhikers guide to the galaxy?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH


read the damn book

dudara

It's brilliant, really well worth reading. Then follow it up with "Galapagos". The man's a genius

Tusky

Ive read a couple of his books...I dont really like his style of writing but 'Slaughter House 5' is a v.good book and he is an excellent writer.

Cheez

Vonnegut is a great writer, very humble way of writing or something. He has interesting ideas in his stuff. Check out Philip K. Dick aswell. His books Ubik and Man in the High Castle are supposed to be good(havent personally got round to reading them myself yet). They're bringing a out a film based on his book "a scanner darkly" which is a good book. The film stills look cool aswel, its done in a cool real looking animation style. Hmmm im babbling, damn hangover.
So it goes

plastic paddy

Try 'Cat's Cradle' as well & if you like the theme, try Thomas Pynchon. 'Gravity's Rainbow' probably has the weirdest plot of any book ever, certainly any that I've ever read.

dudara

I was talking to someone recently about Vonnegut, because I'm reading "The Sirens of Titan" at the moment, and they were of the opinion that he was a man of great ideas, but just not quite good enough a writer. But his great ideas more than compensated.

What you think?

Amazotheamazing

It's sad that someone who could write Slaughterhouse 5, a great book, could also write Cat's Cradle, an awful book.

BossArky

Slaughter house five is pretty good. No idea about the rest but will read them for info over the next while. Damn, the pile grows :rolleyes:

TheFredJ

slaughter house and champions are the only two of his i've every really enjoyed (and champions the only one i enjoyed enough to read again). v is one of those guys you admire, but don't want to have to read. there's something about his current polictical writing which, while i agree with his ideology, just gets on my tits.

Blush_01

I've only read Slaughterhouse 5 too. It's wonderful. Funny and touching without sop.

Tusky

Cheez wrote:

Check out Philip K. Dick aswell. His books Ubik and Man in the High Castle are supposed to be good(havent personally got round to reading them myself yet). They're bringing a out a film based on his book "a scanner darkly" which is a good book.
So it goes

You seem to have left out a book called "Do androids dream of electric sheep" by Philip K. Dick. Was made into a little film you may have heard of, Bladerunner!

The_Minister

I also read only "Slaughterhouse 5". It is one of my favorite books.

Attractive Nun

Slaughterhouse 5 is a good book, I would say, but well overrated. Interesting, if nothing else, with a few touching moments.

Posy

dudara wrote:

I was talking to someone recently about Vonnegut, because I'm reading "The Sirens of Titan" at the moment, and they were of the opinion that he was a man of great ideas, but just not quite good enough a writer. But his great ideas more than compensated.
What you think?

Basically, Vonnegut's character Kilgore Trout is how he sees himself.. great ideas but difficulty with the actual prose. In Slaughterhouse 5 someone is reading Trout's books, raving about what a genius he is then exclaims "God, if he could ONLY WRITE!" This is Vonnegut's opinion of himself. :rolleyes:

elivsvonchiaing

Slaughterhouse 5 I would rate in my top 50. I would rate Joseph Heller's worst book "Closing Time" before this...

Demetrius

Closing time was diabolical. How could he follow up Catch-22 with that?

On topic, Slaughterhouse 5 is one of the strangest books I've ever read. It's very hard to seperate the real from the surreal. Oh, and I particularly liked,

"So it goes." Great technique!:D

darkflower

Demetrius wrote:

Closing time was diabolical. How could he follow up Catch-22 with that?

On topic, Slaughterhouse 5 is one of the strangest books I've ever read. It's very hard to seperate the real from the surreal. Oh, and I particularly liked,

"So it goes." Great technique!:D

that's the beauty of it. the man could really mix it pretty well.