Kurt Vonnegut

The first book I'm going to read is Salughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut. He was born on November 11th 1922 and he died April 11th 2007. 11. He lived in New York City. He is most famous for his book Cat's Cradle (1963), Salughterhouse-Five (1969) and Breakfast of Champions (1973). Vonnegut’s works are often associated with genres such as satire, gallows humor and science fiction. Vonnegut was honorary President of the American Humanist Association.

Vonnegut was a solider and prisoner or war during World War II. He was imprisoned in the City of Dresden. He witnessed The Fire Bombing of Dresden, which destroyed most of the city. After the war Vonnegut attended the University of Chicago. He also married his childhood “sweetheart” Jane Marie Cox. However, he and his wife separated in 1970. Vonnegut and Cox were not divorced until nine years later. While during those nine years Vonnegut lived with Jill Krementz, who would later become his second wife.

He raised seven children. Three adopted from his sister when she passed away. Three adopted with his second wife. And one biological son called Mark Vonnegut.

Vonnegut described himself as a freethinker, humanist, agnostic, atheist and a skeptic. He disbelieved in the supernatural and considered religion “so much arbitrary, clearly invented balderdash,” and believes that people were motivated by loneliness to seek comfort in religion.

In “The Sexual Revolution”, Chapter 18 Vonnegut grades his own works. He says he is comparing “myself with myself”. The grades are as follows:

Player Piano: B

The Sirens of Titans: A

Mother Night: A

Cat’s Cradle: A-plus

God Bless you, Mr. Rosewater:  A

Slaughterhouse-Five:  A-plus

Welcome to the Monkey House: B-minus

Happy Birthday, Wanda June: D

Breakfast of Champions: C

Slapstick: D

Jailbird: A

Palm Sunday:  C