I just started reading the book, and I can't figure out if the narrator of the story is supposed to be Kurt Vonnegut or not. I mean, there are alot of times authors will narrate their own books and interject into the stories (like saying "but I digress", or "I'll tell you about him some other time), and I can't figure out if Vonnegut was actually in WWII and talking about his actual experiences, or the little "This is mostly real" disclaimer in the beginning of the book is supposed to be the fictional protagonist conversing with the reader. Thanks, Jacob
Vonnegut was in Dresden. He was captured by the Nazis and after the fire-bombing of Dresden he, being one of the few survivors, was forced to sift through the rubble for dead bodies. brad cook
One possibility I've come up with in my readings of this novel is that Vonnegut seems to be making the point that, in hindsight, all of our collective experiences that we store as memories are often distorted fantasy, or at least twisted versions of reality. His seemingly irreverent and scatter brained tone often add to the very important messages that he is striving to express. What you get is a mixture of philosophy, humor, and real life accounts. Take away what you will.
Well I cant comment on how much of the story was his own experiences and how much was made up, but I can say I recomend you read Mother Night after Slaughter House. I enjoyed that one much more, and is along the same style or genre.
I loved Slaughterhouse Five but it was also not my favorite book by Vonnegut. I liked Cat's Cradle, Sirens of Titan and Breakfast of Champions all more than Slaughterhouse Five. brad cook
BTW, they made a movie out of Mother Night that was pretty good. It was reallly the only movie adaptation of a Vonnegut book that I liked. I thought the movie versions of Slaughterhouse Five and Breakfast of Champions were pretty bad. brad cook
/agreed Ive actually only read those two, but I enjoyed Mother Night a lot more. Little more reality based I guess, which I liked.
