My year in five Vonnegut novels and some shitty pop-fiction

[not_jason]

While not tremendously impressive to most of you, I'm sure, I am proud to announce that I read and completed 12 books this year, not counting some miscellaneous short stuff.  I've had more productive reading years, but I've also had much less productive reading years.  I'll take it.  Short reviews follow.

1.  Ender's GameDecent science fiction.  I

Comments

[erotophobic]

SHIT SANDWICH?!

[not_jason]

You heard me. I have sort of a complicated sub-section to that criticism though, which is that I sort of liked book one and two independently. I didn't love them, but they were tolerable and they kept me reeled in well enough to slog through them. It was only at the end of the last book that I truly came to hate all three of them. The story just crashed into a wall and wrapped up in a way that made absolutely no sense and didn't work.

[erotophobic]

Though I didn't think they were that great, I still really enjoyed them. She lost me in the third book too, but I did admire the fairly realistic portrayal of a trauma response.

Do you use goodreads?

[luxisle]

I've been really wanting to read more Vonnegut after recently learning that all his books were set where I live. Either I had no idea, or I forgot, but it kinda blew my mind. So it's coincidental that you posted this!

I've been also eyeing that shit sandwich, but haven't made it there yet.

[not_jason]

Where do you live? I feel weird asking you that, but I have lost track in the last few years. Vonnegut is one of those great writers who has constructed a whole universe that most of his books take place within. He doesn't necessarily always stick to one town, but he definitely has a few go-to locations, which familiar reference points and peripheral characters that pop up over and over again.

[luxisle]

I live in Troy, NY. Apparently Ilium is inspired partly by Troy and partly by Schenectady, where Vonnegut lived (and where I work) although they both also get separate mentions in his books as well so who knows. All I know is from what my friend told me, and also from Wikipedia (:

[riocarmine]

Jason, I'm so happy you loved "Mother Night." It's my favorite Vonnegut book, and his most criminally underrated.

[not_jason]

I've always been a Vonnegut fan, but until this year, my reading habits have been crimes of opportunity. This year I got a kindle, and very systematically raided the bookstore. "Mother Night" was a title that I'd never come across in bookstores, so I had zero expectations going into it. Little did I expect it to be one of his best. There's a long passage towards the end, when he talks about the nature of insanity, likening it to clockwork with broken gears, which was one of the best sections of writing I've ever read. I wanted to highlight it, but I would have ended up highlighting the entirety of like three consecutive pages.