jamaljets's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
kandicez's review against another edition
3.0
My daughter is on a Vonnegut kick, so I am, of course, reading him too. I think to really love Vonnegut you have to encounter him first in adolescence. I did read him a bit at that age, but not enough to fully accept and embrace his strangeness, so now, although I can appreciate his work, I don't love it. I won't ever love it, but that's okay.
Vonnegut is a smart writer. I mean really, really smart. He hides the intelligence inside dry and black humor, but you can't miss it. This one is no exception and the first half isn't even weird. Well, a little weird, but not David Lynch weird. Yet.
John, or Jonah, as he prefers, is enlisted to write about the inventor of the atomic bomb and we follow him through his research. So far, so good. About halfway through, though, when Jonah follows the story to the island of San Lorenzo, it all goes crazy.
There's a made up religion, there's a midget (Vonnegut's word!), a freakishly tall woman and the perfect woman. We get to see the end of civilization through Jonah's eyes and Vonnegut makes it clear that it happens through accident, not intention. That's probably how it's going to happen anyway.
Vonnegut is a smart writer. I mean really, really smart. He hides the intelligence inside dry and black humor, but you can't miss it. This one is no exception and the first half isn't even weird. Well, a little weird, but not David Lynch weird. Yet.
John, or Jonah, as he prefers, is enlisted to write about the inventor of the atomic bomb and we follow him through his research. So far, so good. About halfway through, though, when Jonah follows the story to the island of San Lorenzo, it all goes crazy.
There's a made up religion, there's a midget (Vonnegut's word!), a freakishly tall woman and the perfect woman. We get to see the end of civilization through Jonah's eyes and Vonnegut makes it clear that it happens through accident, not intention. That's probably how it's going to happen anyway.
shirah's review against another edition
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
ksteinbauer47's review against another edition
5.0
At first I wasn’t a fan of the short chapters but I realized how engaged I was with these short snippets of thought from the narrator later on in the book and loved the format. I couldn’t put this book down, loved the religious part of the story and how it was treated by the narrator.
jenn_stark's review against another edition
5.0
a review on the back of my copy says, 'we laugh in self defense'. totally sums it up for me.
goose_reads_03's review against another edition
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.5
jalalslava's review against another edition
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
dfarhany's review against another edition
4.0
it is so weirdly satisfying. It is messy, it is odd, it is all over the place but yet it is so fun to read. I get the impression that this book contains bunch of teasers put together.