Cat's Cradle

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Summary: Vintage Vonn, or so I hear
Review: An apocalyptic satire of some of the institutions most easily satired-government, religion, military. But Vonnegut is wholly original, as always. His satire holds up today, and there is nothing expected about this book, which involves, among other things: the midget offspring of one of the inventors of the atomic bomb, a form of dangerous ice with the power to freeze people, a tropical island with natives exploited by Americans, and a made-up religion that is just weird enough to be believable. My only criticism, if any, is that although I found the characters interesting, hilarious at times, I wasn't emotionally attached to any of them. I didn't enjoy it as much as Vonnegut's Breakfast of Champions, but it was a good read nonetheless.

Rating:
Summary: A Classic for a Reason.
Review: A few months ago I finally had enough of my best friend's raving about the brilliance of Kurt Vonnegut and his literary works. So I turned off my X Box and picked up a copy of Cat's Cradle. Two days later after finishing the book I was the one who couldn't stop the excessive raving. I realize that this book was written in response to the events taking place around Vonnegut in the 60's, but I can't help relating it to the events of today. The satirical/horrific/amusing, and utimately realistic themes used by Vonnegut spans generations and the novel is a definite must-read.

Rating:
Summary: Meoooooww
Review: For those that like humor (think McCrae in his "Bark of the Dogwood") and great writing, (think Toole in "Confederacy of Dunces") then you'll enjoy this book. This was a great read and definitely keeps the mind going. It is a little hard to get into at first but stick with it because you will be sucked in before you know it! I couldn't stop turning the pages and have thought about many of the concepts since putting it down. Every one should be required to read this book but it that was the case then no one would want to I guess.

Rating:
Summary: You'll Dig It!
Review: In Vonnegut's novel, a Manhattan novelist has decided to write a novel about what people were doing on the day that the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, which brings him into encounters with some quintissentially Vonnegutian characters- a bicycle store owner and his Hoosier wife, the children of the man who had the chief say in designing the atomic bomb (one of whom is a midget,) a refugee lounge-singer who has created his own religion (named "Bokonon,") the maniacal dictator who opposes him, and a whole host of colorful minor characters, each of whom fits into the same "karass" (the Bokonon term for a group of people that influence the outcomes of each other's fates.) Many of the twists of the story center around another creation, Ice-Nine, of the famed inventor of the atomic bomb (Felix Hoenekker,) which ultimately causes the destruction of the world (a.k.a. "The day the world went 'whoomp.'") giving itself a nice little niche in the genre of "Theater of the Absurd."

Vonnegut's novel satirizes everything about modern life, from the Cold War-era fear of the world ending with a doomsday weapon, to our scorn of avant-garde art, epitomized by the destruction and desecration of the narrator's Manhattan apartment by an up and coming artist. With the central theme that everything in life is interconnected- everyone is part of their "karass"- Vonnegut analyzes the relations between religion and government, sanity and insanity, life and death, and just about any two subjects that oppose each other. This book's wonderfully rich prose, biting criticism, and incisive black humor make this what is considered Vonnegut's best work. Cat's Cradle rules! Another book I want to recommend is The Losers' Club by Richard Perez -- not Vonnegut but very, very entertaining nonetheless.

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Summary: Cat's Cradle - Best Sellers Review
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and believe it is one of Vonnegut's best. He displays the folly of human nature and all around stupidity of our race perfectly, and in a very humorous way. My favorite part of this book deals with the religion of "Bokonism". The first line presented to us regarding this hypocritical and ironic religion (presented to us through the writings of Bokonon hismels) is, "All of the true things I am about to tell you are shameless lies" (Vonnegut 5). Vonnegut again utilizes minimalism and modernism to create a wonderful blend of relatively upbeat and humorous literature.

Rating:
Summary: Four Stars from a Non-Believer
Review: This isn't my type of genre, but I found this book lying around the house and since I'll read just about anything, I gave it a go.

Vonnegut is a genius at dead-pan humour and sardonic wit, and yet again provides a relevant critique of contemporary society that holds true decades after publication. Absolutely a fantastic read, much better than the over-hyped "Slaughterhouse Five" in my opinion.

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Summary: ...It Might Have Been....
Review: This is a wacky, swift, many charactered Vonn book, wrapped around his frequent theme of human ridiculousness.

Jonah is the narrator, a man fascinated by the day the Hiroshima bomb was dropped, who sets off to investigate one Feliz Hoenikker, noted scientist and possible "father" of the bomb. What ensues is a funky, quirky, Vonnegutian swirl of synchronicity, and faux Taosit/Existential philosophy, born as Bokononism.

Cat's Cradle is a quick read, featuring 127 chapters, some a page long, few beyond three pages long. Including Jonah there is Newt, a midget, Mona, the most beautiful woman in the world, the mysterious Bokonon, gruff, crude American's, scientifically bizarre ice-water, a statue lover, a Ukrainian spy, an ex-pat ex-convict major domo, a frozen dog, and the possible end of the world, among others.

Truly a trip through Vonnegut. Through it all though, the essential foolishness and gullability of man is turned up to light.

"Of all the words of mice and men, the saddest are 'It Might Have Been.'"

Rating:
Summary: Truly thought provoking!
Review: I had to read this book for my ethics class, and it was chalked full of metaphors and symbolism in regards to society and what people tend to believe is important. The story is a fast-paced page turner, and even though it has been decades since its publication, the issues it brings up are still very relevant today.

Rating:
Summary: I see no damn cat! I see no damn cradle!
Review: My father is a Vonnegut fanatic so this book came highly recommended to me. Having finished it a few days ago I feel that I can make a fair assessment of the book.
I have read one of Vonnegut's other works before Breakfast of Champions having read that and now this I notice a trend of Vonnegut's style of writing. You almost get a feeling that he is stalling, not inserting any action. In Cats Cradle nothing exciting happened until there were 30 pages left in a 200 page book. It wasn't even as if he had built up the anticipation for something to happen either. Vonnegut just keeps reintroducing more and more information for you to swallow. He even goes so far as to make up words for his Bokonism religion. The words were often times hard to remember which was which, presenting discontent. However the book was not all bad. The book provides a very radical insight of the world and makes one truly question their beliefs. However it's a very pessimistic view, as is common in most of Vonnegut's work. After finishing the book I felt very depressed and didn't enjoy my reaction to the conclusion to the book. Vonnegut depicts how the human race will inevitably destroy itself. All and all this book is okay if you're on vacation and get to read it everyday. Otherwise you forget some details on the religious words and what have you. That is why I give this book 3 out of 5 stars.


Rating:
Summary: WOW!
Review: Who else could combine a newspaper journalist, the apocolypse, a midget, an invented religion complete with its own tennents, terms, and texts, and the father of the atom bomb into a fun and thoughtful novel. NO ONE! A fun a thrilling novel that you will need to read twice!