KV at his best.

To say that I worship at the alter of Kurt Vonnegut would be more mawkish than overstated. He is and will probably always remain one of my all-time, favorite authors. When picking up a book, one can only hope that the author can write; the surprise comes when an author’s contributions transcend what is on the printed page. Such is usually the case with KV. Not only can he write his butt off, he has the absolutely, incredible talent to hold up this mirror for all of us to see the travesty of so much we hold sacred in this American Experience and then laugh at the same time that we cry at our reflection.

About writing itself, KV once said in an interview, “Well, I've worried some about, you know, why write books ... why are we teaching people to write books when presidents and senators do not read them, and generals do not read them. And it's been the university experience that taught me that there is a very good reason, that you catch people before they become generals and presidents and so forth and you poison their minds with ... humanity, and however you want to poison their minds, it's presumably to encourage them to make a better world.” Bottom line for me, that’s what KV’s writings are always about: Humanity.

In 1971 the University of Chicago awarded KV his Master's degree in anthropology for Cat's Cradle. While at first blush that might seem a bit over the top, after reading this treatise on such subjects as science and technology, religion and morality, ethics and law, it becomes quite clear about his critique, KV did his homework. And, the originality of his work is unmistakeable. There are folks out there today such as Al Franken and Jon Stewart for whom KV had to have been an influence. KV was one of the originators of the movement for modern, self-reflection at least in contemporary America. That being said, this is not an unapproachable work reserved for the academic elite. This book is for the entertainment and edification of anyone and everyone: the unread generals, unwashed presidents and your any, off-the-street, Joe Blow, the Plummer. I cannot imagine anyone with a scintilla of humanity not loving this book. You're not into social critique you say. Great, read it just for the fun of it. It is funnier than _ _ _ _, well, it's just plain fun.

The narration could have possibly been done differently and still worked. It's hard to believe that it could have been done better.

60 people found this helpful

Great book, awful recording

I was really excited to find Cat's Cradle, as I am a huge Vonnegut fan. But this recording is old and somewhat garbled, the narrator is dry, and does a poor job defining the characters so it is hard to follow. He really destroys the excitement and mystery of the story, which is too bad. Are there any better recordings out there for this book?

52 people found this helpful

Stupid & vicious as men are, this is a lovely day!

"...for the quotation captured in a couplet the cruel paradox of Bakononist thought, the heartbreaking necessity about lying about reality, and the heartbreaking impossibility of lying about it.

Midget, midget, midget, how he struts and winks,
For he knows a man's as big as what he hopes and thinks!"
-- Kurt Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle


I first read this in 9th grade. The grade my two kids are right now. Life has a way of making you feel both old and insignificant. When I first read this book I was focused on the technology of Ice-9 and the absurdity of weapons of mass destruction. This time, as I read it in a quickly cooling bath.* Seriously, all men over 40 should read this book naked in a bath that is quickly losing its heat, while wrinkles develop on their hands, feet, etc. There is nothing emasculates a man faster than a cold bath, nakedness, age, and Kurt Vonnegut.

Anyway, 28 years after first reading it and I still love this book. It was my first Vonnegut. One of my first exposures to the world of literature as absurdism, dark satire, and the wicked wink of postmodernism. I was hooked.

* with all this damn technology, one would think it would be easy to develop a better system for insulating baths. During the last 60 years, our society has gone from porcelain to plastic. So, now I can't even scratch OR freeze my ass in my tub and remain dignified.

18 people found this helpful

One of the Best Performances on Audible

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I sure would, its a great book and a great performance by Tony Roberts.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I mean this book is hysterical, touching, thought provoking and well written. I would say Hazel encapsulated all elements of this for me, but every character is well done.

Which character – as performed by Tony Roberts – was your favorite?

The Hoenicker's, who really have elements of the story line in their background and characterizations.I cannot say this enough, Tony Roberts does a great job. He is an actor here, not a narrator. His nuances bring out Vonnegut's writing in a terrific way. I think it is the narration I have heard on Audible.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Laugh is not the word. Hysterical, might be more accurate. This is funny and sad at the same time, which makes it so compelling.

Any additional comments?

Vonnegut is an important writer in American literature. This is one of his premier works and Audible does it justice. I enjoyed it thoroughly.

18 people found this helpful

Cat's cradle - Mega Mockery of our societies ...

Kurt's Vonnegut "Cat's Cradle" is one of the most strange books I've ever read.


The plot starts quite innocently with the narrator presenting himself as a writer planning to write a book about the American nuclear bomb inventor. This goal has perfect sense and is aimed at showing how "normal" was the life of those who, by their activity, created means to kill masses of people. In his pursuit, the narrator makes friends within the family and co-workers of the bomb inventor. They may hid the great secret of late father of the bomb - the mysterious Ice-9.
At this stage of the narration a fictional religion of Bokononism is introduced, with is fundamental concept of karass - the group of people, who are working together to fulfil God's will.

The plots goes crazy when the narrator arrives to a fictional island of San Lorenzo. Here, the events spiral quite fast. Shortly after arrival he is offered to become the president of the nation of the island - and he accepts that post, being in love with the women who was destined to be the wife of the president. Just at the moment of his inauguration as the president, the small plane crashed at the rock on which presidential palace stood and that crash ignited the sequence of events ending in the ultimate cataclysm with almost all the population of the island gone and with all water transformed at room temperature into hard ice after the spillage of Ice-9 in the accident.

Through this crazy plot, Vonnegut tells the most ironic refutation of our society, military pursuit, political system, "forbidden fruit" man-made religions and cults. The most important of those is the mockery of man-made religions. Bokononism, invented for the purpose of the novel, reveals so close resamblance to some cults and sectarian groups that we can only marvel about Vonnegut's wit and Machiavellian wisdom...

18 people found this helpful

BABIES FULL OF RABIES

THE SECRET OF LIFE.......PROTEIN
When I was in my twenties I read the hard copy. In my forties I listened on cassette and now in my fifties I downloaded it. I still don't like it.

WHAT IS SIN?
If you are a Douglass Adams fan, you will probably like this. Now that I am older I do find that I understand more of it. I like books with plots and this plot is very thin. It is a thesis on War, Government and whatever else ticks off Kurt. There are some laugh out loud parts, but most of it is meandering POETIC CRAP.

TO BE SOMETHING ELSE AND PROUD OF IT.
The narrator is fantastic. He reads great and does outstanding characters. His timing in excellent, helping the listener to catch some of the jokes, he may not catch while reading.

Most people either love him or hate him. There is not much middle of the road. In my twenties I thought he was silly, in my forties I just did not find him funny. In my fifties, I need a plot.

16 people found this helpful

Not for everyone ...

This novel is typical Vonnegut and requires that you think ... but not too much throughout. If you over think it, you won't understand it ... but if you are expecting to be spoon fed a a story with all the plot lines hilighted for simplicity, then this is certainly not for you.

The narrator gives you the feeling of sitting down around a fire and listening to your grandfather tell a tale of days long past. I actually quite enjoyed it.

11 people found this helpful

narrator was awful

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Love Vonnegut but the narration is brutally bad -had to stop listening and was so bummed.
Loved Ethan Hawke doing Slaughterhouse, but run from this one and read the book.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

He was awful.

9 people found this helpful

A great book, but the reader? Not so much.

What didn’t you like about Tony Roberts’s performance?

Call me spoiled because I've heard Kurt Vonnegut himself read parts of this book, but even so, this guy's voice is is all wrong for this book. He'd be perfect for a Lawrence Block book, say, or a book they made a Bogart movie from.
Sadly, his Jamaican accent comes across as more Irish than anything. And when he "sings" a calypso, he's got the tune all wrong! Why couldn't someone have told him that the tune is the same as Jamaica Farewell by Harry Belefonte? (But I'm sad to say I'm on my way, won't be back for many a day... and so on.)
All in all, this is an amazing book that's been practically ruined by selecting the wrong narrator.

Any additional comments?

I wish this book could be re-recorded using somebody with a smoother voice, maybe somebody who has actually been in love with the book for years. If that were to happen, I would gladly buy it again.

5 people found this helpful

The other side of the coin... MUST READ

A futuristic mind-opening analogy of the pathetic state of humanity in search of meaning through religion. A masterful work of literature from a man who has actually lived through the some of the worst things one can endure during a human experience. Highly recommend.

5 people found this helpful