Cat's Cradle

Religion and war going wrong serves as a fascinating and depressing backdrop to Cat's Cradle. While touching on important topics like the arrival of the atomic bomb, the storytelling was what really drew me in at times. Not all of the story, but for parts of it I was mesmerized by the multiple lines of thought being weaved and brought back together in a very short period of time. It's a technique of story writing I haven't seen too often but would love to learn.

Religion and war going wrong serves as a fascinating and depressing backdrop to Cat's Cradle. While touching on important topics like the arrival of the atomic bomb, the storytelling was what really drew me in at times. Not all of the story, but for parts of it I was mesmerized by the multiple lines of thought being weaved and brought back together in a very short period of time. It's a technique of story writing I haven't seen too often but would love to learn.

“Beware of the man who works hard to learn something, learns it, and finds himself no wiser than before. He is full of murderous resentment of people who are ignorant without having come by their ignorance the hard way.”
― Kurt Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle

Damned if you do. Damned if you don't. At the end of the day John, almost Jonah, got swallowed whole.

Vonnegut's ability to convey profound ideas in simple packages that make you laugh is precious.

Firstly, I wasn't particularly impressed by Cat's Cradle at all. I slogged through it and when it was finally finished I breathed a massive sigh of relief. I'm sure people will tell me I just didn't get it, or I wasn't open minded enough but in my pathetic opinion the book boils down to a long-winded discussion that suggests that humanity's search for purpose and the rational structures it creates to this end are ultimately futile and pointless; just like a game of Cat's Cradle. We therefore must learn to tolerate ambiguity and the absurdity and contradictions of life.

I identified these themes in the book:

1. How can the religion presented in the book, Bokononism, declare itself to be based on a lie but galvanise such devotion? Vonnegut suggests that the purpose of religion is to give the lives of its followers the illusion of meaning and purpose. Its needed because science can't provide all of the “keys to life”, which one of Felix's colleagues suggests is merely a protein: a conclusion which means nothing to people; so religion steps in and fills a perceived void.

2. Felix was indifferent to his actions concerning not only his children but also the consequences of his work too. For example, he is more concerned about playing Cat's Cradle than pondering what the effect his “pure research” will have. His pursuit of knowledge is an end in itself and his apathy and trivialisation of how his weapons (the atom bomb and ice-nine) are used does not equate to him being an innocent actor: science may have discovered how to cure many of the world's diseases but it has also discovered how to wipe out all of humanity.

3. Felix's children are perhaps a representation of all of humanity? They want happiness but have been given the power to destroy all life, suggested directly and indirectly in the book, for example in the model which is built or the insect filled bottle.

4. The Crosbys highlight the risks of holding narrow-minded religious and nationalistic views. Both of these group people together in a somewhat arbitrary manner and lead to entrenched world-views resulting in conflict and unhappiness. The book submits that people and nations have a damaging craving for power and arrogantly believe that other people should conform to their particular ideals, especially if those other people are weaker and less privileged then they are. Additionally, this irrational grouping of people generates an illusion of collective identity which is used a yardstick for determining so-called unpatriotic behaviour (think of McCarthyism): should governments take a totalitarian approach to conformity of its own “disloyal” citizens?

And that's it!

So in summary this was a disappointing read for me. Perhaps you'll enjoy it more? Good luck!

Loved this one - Bokononism is definitely my favorite fictional religion.

My Amazon review -

http://www.amazon.com/review/R1QOQCKC1VDS4I/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm

Vonnegut satires man and his obsessions and believes. A fast read, entertaining but certainly weird. If you a Vonnegut fan or satire fan you will love this.

“Tiger got to hunt,
Bird got to fly;
Man got to sit and wonder, “Why, why, why?”
Tiger got to sleep,
Bird got to land;
Man got to tell himself he understand.”

It just might be a good book, very well written, but damn its boring! The main character is interviewing the son of one of the creators of the atom bomb. The story is well told, with some peculiar details that made this scientist come alive.

I did not finish reading the book, although I know that latter the some interesting concepts would come up (the ice 9 military weapon?), but I expect so much more of a science fiction book.

It seems that I do not like the author stories (Sloughterhouse-five). They're porpously ordinary tales of some uncommon event where the sci-fi bit is just a detail. Like the scientist never existed and the ice-9 weapon was never really made.

AND SO IT GOES...
Every once in a while you are introduced to an author that many consider iconic and yet somehow you have never heard of. And when you finally read it you almost instantly fall in love with the style and can't get enough of.

This was my experience with Vonnegut and I am very happy that I started with Cat's Cradle. I went on to read multiple other books by him, but this probably has remained my favourite (closely followed by Sirens of Titan).

Incredibly interesting scientific (ice-9!!), anthropological (Papa Monsano!) and theological (Bokononism!!!!) concepts, unique literary style and just fun. I can easily recommend it to anyone. 

For a detailed review, go to SFF Book Review.
What a surprise. There I was, thinking after Slaughterhouse Five I'd never warm to Vonnegut and then he hits me with a novel like this! I won't say anything about the plot, it's too good not to read it yourself.
The themes and ideas in this novel are as breathtaking as they are believable - even though the whole thing is, at the same time, batshit crazy.

I love it when a book leaves me unsure about how to classify it. This book meshes history, religion, politics, and a dash of science fiction. No damn cat, and no damn cradle!

I think that the sense of absurdism is exactly what makes this novel so good (and deeply profound in its own way). If Vonnegut had gone about this book in a way that favoured the serious, heavy approach over the witty, seemingly effortless and light, satirical approach, we would have had another boring old story full of rights and wrongs and and nothing new to offer. It is, instead, irreverent and with liberal helpings of irony and stony, low-key humour. I think that's the greatest thing about Vonnegut: he never takes himself too seriously. And he trusts his readers enough to read into his story without spelling everything out for them.

Of course, I would be a doing this book a disservice by not mentioning Bokononism. It certainly struck me as interesting. I enjoyed the Calypsos, in particular: ‘Tiger got to hunt, bird got to fly; Man got to sit and wonder, ‘Why, why, why?' Tiger got to sleep, bird got to land; Man got to tell himself he understand.' Regarding the philosophy of Bokononism itself, I thought the concept of Fomas - harmless untruths - was a brilliant touch.

In terms of plot, I think the book forgets itself at times and takes liberties on the narrative front. This is partly what makes it much more effective, in my opinion, because that way you're in for several surprises throughout the book. There are things you absolutely do not see coming. We start off with Jonah, and when I first started reading the book I expected it to be about him. But what I found was that the book was more about everything and everyone else - the Hoennikkers and the Castles and Monzanas and Crosbys and Mintons, San Lorenzo, religion, the End of the World - than about Jonah himself. I realised I don't know Jonah at all, except that he loved Mona. And that he was a writer.

The most interesting moments are in the second half of the book, in particular those relating to McCabe and Lionel Boyd Johnson, ‘Papa' Monzano's religion (and that of everybody else in San Lorenzo), and of course, the worms-and-tornadoes-bit - which I absolutely did NOT see coming. At the oubliette part, I was mystified for a moment...Wait, how did we get to this from that?

The End of the World is a topic interesting enough on its own; and, depending on how its handled, a laughably bad or an immensely brilliant basis of the story. This book falls in the latter category: the wonderful thing about Cat's Cradle is that, though the book starts off with the writer documenting the End of the World, it is towards the end that you see the real End coming. And even then, it's not what you would expect.

If you can get over the initial sense of slight incredulity, this book will truly stand out as the brilliant read it is. If you don't take this book too seriously, you will at once get more out of it, and what's more, you will find it profound too. Its deceptively light, not-too-serious tone underlies its real depth and meaning.

‰ЫПWhen the music was done, I shrieked at Julian Castle, who was transfixed, too, ‰ЫчMy God ‰ЫУ life! Who can understand even one little minute of it?‰ЫЄ

‰ЫчDon‰ЫЄt try,‰ЫЄ he said. ‰ЫчJust pretend you understand.‰ЫЄ

‰ЫчThat‰ЫЄs ‰ЫУ that‰ЫЄs very good advice,‰ЫЄ I went limp.‰Ыќ

My favorite Vonnegut book, hands down.