God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater

Kurt Vonnegut's 5th novel and to this point in his illustrious career he has let the satire and sarcasm take off big time in what is in my opinion the best novel he has produced so far.
The obvious and major theme is the use of inherited wealth.

Should one be generous with that inherited wealth? Protagonist Eliot Rosewater is certainly generous. His father is sure he should not be and is outraged by that so questions his sanity.
Eliot does have a breakdown of kinds as he tries to help all that he comes into contact with that need assistance. Or is he driven to the edge by the pressures of his father and his class, and those that have an eye on his wealth for other purposes than humanitarian? Is it his philanthropy that is a pressure in itself adding to his breaking down? His guilt as to his part in the death of innocents in WW2?

The purposes of philanthropy run deep in this novel. Should one help those in need of assistance if they have the money to do so or if one is in a position of political power should one; for example, bring in legislation to curb the viewing of bodily hair as an attempt to curb pornography to assist helping the poor and morally degenerate work harder to rise above their station in life and be more than “people that have no use”.
Vonnegut writes in such a way that either side of the questions could be answered in the affirmative or negative. It all depends on ones view.


As I have got older I personally think that political debate is the same old thing, it isn't much different than it was in my teens, thematically it never changes. This satire from 1965 to me makes fun of the same political divide we talk about today and will do so into the future. Life is the same old same old with technological advancements changing the surrounds. First there is birth and then there is death and just luck as to how one gets to live out their life in-between. This is an excellent satire and far better than I recall in my youth. A character in the book, a highly ambitious lawyer has a poster on his wall of a Roy Cohen who I had no recall of. His wiki made quite a read and if anything made me agree with my own feelings about political debate being the same old thing then it is the life of Roy Cohen. Cohens life reads as a Vonnegut satire.


This is a wonderful book and stands the test of time. It is a read that is far better than I recall from my youth and is highly recommended for its timelessness on the topic.


In order of publication and my reading of Vonnegut's novels.

My review of number 1 Player Piano here.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6205354368
My review of number 2 The Sirens Of Titan here. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6267103559
My review of number 3 Mother Night here.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6287961968
My review of number 4 Cats Cradle here.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/231371451

Good book. The plot was confusing at times.

Vonnegut's ninth novel. I enjoyed it – I've never met a Vonnegut book I didn't like – but this is somewhat different from the style I've noticed in his others I've read.

There is nothing fantastical here – no Ice-9, no aliens, no time travel. Hardly a requirement for a Vonnegut novel, of course. I didn't realize this until after, but there's another common Vonnegut motif absent here, the description of common objects in accurate-yet-alien terms.

This is, instead, a fairly straightforward morality play, a biting satire about charity, loving thy neighbor, and how people ought to act. Eliot Rosewater, drunk and heir to the Rosewater fortune, suddenly reverses course from most of his family, and begins using his fortune – as well as the rest of himself – to set up shop in his nominal hometown in Rosewater County and begin helping everyone there. With anything.

I don't sound enthusiastic about this, but I did like it a lot, and I consider it a thoughtful, clever, worthy addition to Vonnegut's catalog.

It was an interesting listen. It wasn't so compelling for me that I couldn't put it down. I mostly listened to it driving to and from work, it was good for that, but it didn't inspire those “driveway moments” where you you sit in the car listening for just a few more minutes.

Yeah, I didn't love this so much. It was random and odd, but not in an endearingly Vonnegutian way.

Not Vonnegut's best, but it's Vonnegut so it's awesome.

Another extremely enjoyable book from Vonnegut. Deals very interestingly with the nature of money and giving, and also with mental illness. I would place it above Cat's Cradle but below Breakfast of Champions.