Rating: 
Summary: Amazing
Review: Cat's Cradle is the type of book that I personally love. A amusing story full that is easy to laugh with or at but chills to the bone at the same time for the relizations that it helps you make about how life can be just as ridiculous. This book amazes me and frightens me every time I read it.
Rating:
Summary: Some say the world will end in fire, and some with ice
Review: While "Slaughterhouse Five" is considered Vonnegut's masterpiece, I think "Cat's Cradle" shows the author at the height of his powers.The crazy plot involves a new religion, Bokanonism and its xylophone-wielding prophetess Mona. There's an evil plot to destroy the world, and a hapless, slightly stupid hero. What I enjoyed the most were the concepts introduced by Vonnegut; the "granfalloon" which is an association of people that is meaningless--being on a bus, joining the Shriners. My dad used to play bridge with Vonnegut in Indianapolis years ago--that pretty much defines it, a connection between people with no deeper meaning. For "deeper meaning" you need to look to your karass, a group of people you ARE related to in some meaningful fashion, but which is not revealed to you until after your death. And then there's the special karass, the "duprass" consisting of two and only two people. If a married couple, they will perish within minutes of each other, and even their children, if any, don't belong to their karass. These and other concepts (Ice-Nine, a molecular arrangement of water that differs from the ice in your drink) show Vonnegut's incredible creativity and also his ironic sense of humor. If you haven't read any Vonnegut, this is a great novel to start with.
Rating:
Summary: Just as good today
Review: I don't need to tell anyone how good this book is. What suprised me, however, is that re-reading Cat's Cradle a few weeks ago, after 15 years, was as good and meaningful "today" as it was then. It was way ahead of its time when it was published. What the story says about journalism is cutting--then, now--perhaps forever. A timeless book.
Rating:
Summary: Very strange, but very appreciated
Review: I just read the entire book a couple of evenings ago. It's a school assignment that's not due to be finished for weeks, but once I started reading I couldn't stop. I suppose that's because there isn't a single facet of this book that isn't at least somewhat intriguing. I'll outline the plot without giving much away:
John or Jonah (it doesn't matter, since his name isn't used beyond the first paragraph anyway) is a devout Bokononist (religion founded by a normal guy, based on obvious and plainly admitted lies), writing from some unspecified time, trying to relate the story of his writing of a book about the day the atom bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. He begins by contacting Newton Hoenikker, son of scientist Felix Hoenikker, main creator of the atom bomb. Newt's response offers some insight into who his father was, but the author needs more, so he heads off the the elder Hoenikker's former stomping grounds, a laboratory in Illium, NY. An anecdote told by Felix's main partner about a hypothetical "ice-nine," which could freeze all water on earth below 115 degrees F, is what really gets the story going. The thread of Bokononism seems to tie the main themes together, and it's this clever satire on religion that I appreciated the most. This book also has a great ending, so you have that to look forward to. This book is brilliant and very accessible, so read it already.
Rating:
Summary: Mystical
Review: This is my favorite book that I have ever read. And I have probably read over 3,000 books to date.Although the author states that his book is completely made up of lies. I found it to be a collection of brilliantly expressed truths.I especially enjoyed his insights concerning religion and mysticism.
Rating: 
Summary: Nothing in This Book is True
Review: Vonnegut was trying to make a point with these words at the beginning of "Cat's Cradle," but they're wrong. The events and characters may be foma, but the things that drive this book are all too real. "Cat's Cradle" is the story of John or Jonah and his attempt to write a book about the events of August 6th, 1945, the day of the first dropping of the atomic bomb. His efforts begin weaving his karass with those of the Hoenikker family, children of one of the prime scientists who worked on the bomb. Foma? Karass? These are Bokononist words. While this book is written by Vonnegut, the tale tells that it's been written by John, after the events of the book. He started his book as a Christian, but has since converted to Bokononism, developed by a man named Bokonon, a Buddha in his own right. Bokonon's religion is simple: Make lies, be happy. It is at the beginning of his book that it claims the entire text is foma, or lies. Vonnegut has created an excellent conflict within the politics of San Lorenzo, the island where Bokonon lives, and how it draws John in as a catalyst for events to come. While the end result is not his fault, it's interesting to see how he learns of things that will happen, and since the book is being written by him, he comments on his own thoughts and those of others in the past. This isn't very new, but often first-person narrative books make the character not know what's happened, even if they tell everything in the past tense, even so much as to know how long ago the events took place. Within "Cat's Cradle" and stretching into a few of his other works, Vonnegut has created an entirely new and original religion, one that professes openly that nothing about it is true except it's theme, which is exactly what is true about the novel. Little Newt Hoenikker represents the second best theme, the first having been the religious implications present. His traumatic obsession with the cat's cradle and the fact that he wonders why he can't see the cat, not as a six-year old, and not as an adult, shows that sometimes people are expected to see what they cannot see, and that it's ludicrous sometimes to expect anyone to see it. The most intriuging questions of all lie in what the character Mona says late in the book, after the climax; questions that are sure to have you yourself wondering about things in our world, in the real life posed by this book. Above all, "Cat's Cradle" is an interesting book that will keep you reading. I originally heard of it through the movie "The Recruit," where Ice-nine was used as a code for a computer virus. Ice-nine is something very different here, and its effects are monumental, even when simply discussed hypothetically earlier in the book. While many Vonnegut books are primarily for those who enjoy Vonnegut's dark humor and style, "Cat's Cradle" is a novel that can be enjoyed by pretty much anyone old enough to read it. It is anything but foma. -Escushion
Rating:
Summary: Interesting concept, funny moments
Review: Like a lot of Vonnegut's works, the religious/scientific concepts and the fictional society of Cat's Cradle are more interesting than the story itself. However, this does not make the book in any way laborious to get through. You will chuckle to yourself many times, and probably even laugh out loud a couple of times. Vonnegut's talent for writing comical satire is certainly up there with Joseph Heller and the other greats; and Cat's Cradle lives up to what you'd expect from a master in his field. This book is a quick read (I read it all during a cross-country plane trip) and will both amuse you and also plant some wacky, but nonetheless ingenius, ideas into your head. Another good one by Vonnegut, it's worth it if you're a fan of his style or are just interested in getting acquainted with his work.
Rating: 
Summary: VERY LITTLE WRITTEN, BUT ALOT TO SAY
Review: Cat's Cradle started off well enough and flowed easily, then it took a turn for the silly and outlandish. I must admit that K.V.Jr is a very intelligent man, and behind his somewhat unremarkable dialogue there is a very large message here. This book has the typical anti-establishment theme Vonnegut is known for. I'm sad to say I wasn't a good audience for his words. The concept of the "ice-nine theory was great, but I didn't care for the story three forths of the way through. It ended silly and not what I expected. I didn't cheer for any of the characters, in fact I had no respect for any of them. I will not say it is a bad novel, but it is a bad novel for me at this point in my life. It is a hard novel to grasp, but easy to read.
Rating:
Summary: Very Good Reading
Review: This is a good book. Kurt Vonnegut is a great writer. _Cat's Cradle_ is really indescribable. The plot sounds so ridiculous and ludicrous to an outsider that you might be reluctant to pick up the book, but when you get down to it, it is not ludicrous at all. It is basically about how all of the humans in this world have a connection with other humans, even if they don't quite realize it. Also, it is a blatant attack on organized religion. I am a Christian, but I was not alienated by this book. This is the second Vonnegut novel that I have read. His books are filled with morals and ways that you should live your life. His prose is very simple, and his books are certainly not long reads. However, you will find yourself pausing after many of the short chapters to ponder what you have just read. I am eager to continue reading Vonnegut; I can't see myself stopping anytime soon. I said this in my review of _Slaughterhouse-Five_, but I think that it is very true: Vonnegut's humor is secondary to his moral message. Pay attention to the message, and your reading will be more pleasurable, tenfold.
Rating: 
Summary: Rediculous
Review: Horrible book. Why do these get published? Really?
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