Yes, I've read it and I think it's brilliant! It's not supposed to be humorous, it's supposed to be weird but also semi-autobiographical. Vonnegut takes a lot of experiences of his own during WWII and is attempting to re-create the feeling of how "out of joint" he felt. That's with the time-slippng parts.

Also I have a sneaking fondness for anyone who quotes Goethe in the original German.

-toni

p.s. don't attempt to shoot the Sheriff of Nottingham around a corner.

What I found disappointing was a) it wasn't weird enough. For all the time-slipping and Tralfamadorian business the central storyline (of the Dresden raid) is told in straight time order, and this made the rest of it seem a bit irrelevant, somehow. b) it didn't carry the emotional punch I expected; the central Dresden sequence left me curiously unmoved (and this from a man who gets choked up very easily). I dunno, maybe my expectations were built up too high, but as an anti-war war story Catch 22 left it standing.



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I am very interested in the Universe. I am specialising in the Universe and everything surrounding it. - E. L. Wisty

mm. I haven't read Catch 22 so maybe that's why but I found the Dresden sequence horrific. Gave me nightmares.

As for not being weird enough, I think the conjunction b/w reality and the weirdness was very compelling. But you know, this was written in the 1960s when this was probably "quite weird enough, thank you!"

Aah, you obviously need to be on some serious drugs to be able to read this particular book, then

I read Slaughterhouse 5 years ago. I have no memory of it. Maybe I should read it again.

I read Catch 22 slightly fewer years ago, and thought it didn't live up to the hype... might try it again sometime.

Oh, whoever recommended Only Forward to me (Dave?) - Thank you! It was fantastic!



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