Sunday, April 22, 2007

41. Slaughterhouse Five


by Kurt Vonnegut
Rated: ★★★★

This book is part of my Great 2007 Reread Adventure and is probably the one in which the passage of time is the most noticable to me in the way the story effects me. I first read this back in the early 1960's and I was really such a silly young girl back then with very little idea of what went on in the world around me. If I had a political opinion back then I sure can't remember it. I hadn't even seen my first MASH rerun yet. Since then the US has been involved in several nasty and disasterous wars and I definately have some opinions now.

Billy Pilgram has come unstuck in time. Vonnegut tells the story of Billy Pilgram, a POW in WWII, based on his own experience as the same. He approches this popular, and sometimes over writen topic with a refreshing, and most human manor. Vonnegut uses emotion rather than plain fact and humor rather than contempt. This book is a must read for anyone interested in the topic of WWII, but not only that, for anyone interested in excellent literature.

This edition also includes an essay by Vonnegut himself discribing his own need to write this book and why he choose to write it in the way he has.