skip to main |
skip to sidebar
This is probably my least favourite book of Vonnegut's that I have read to date. Although it makes the usual dry, sarcastic observations about humanity, it just does not have the same quirk and brilliance as some others. I am thinking here of Cat's Cradle, Slaughterhouse Five and my personal favourite Bluebeard. The entire way through this book I expected some sort of twist as the ending was made clear several times throughout the book. The twist never came, the pictures drawn to 'aid' the reader were great though.
Some of the book also seemed like an attempt by Vonnegut to expose his philisophical background. Of course, he had probably reached the stage of infamy by then that many of his fans probably loved this part of the book but it just struck me as self-centred and well, sort of lame. Maybe I'm missing the point.
As usual the satire was to a high standard and the humour was forthcoming. As with many of his books the view of human nature was bleak and I was excited to learn more about one of his main characters throughout the books: Kilgore Trout; the largely failing little-known sci-fi writer. His view of humans as machines is also telling.
Not a great read but an interesting, humourous one nonetheless.
I read this quite a few days ago now, so with some Amazon references I will write what I can.
I always enjoy reading Kurt Vonnegut, there is something about the combination of satire, politics, and the war which he combines magically and he writes like no one else in the world quite can. Well, no one I have read anyway.
Jailbird details the story of Walter F. Starbuck, a former advisor (on Youth Affairs) to Richard Nixon who has just gotten out of jail for his involvement (or not) in the Watergate conspiracy. It reminded me in a lot of ways of other Vonnegut books, such as the continual repetition of 'and on and on' and the re-entry of everyone's favourite random guy Kilgore Trout, who Starbuck meets in jail.
As usual, this book also starts as a seemingly normal sort of epic story about a guy who has been through a lot and been shoved back into a world he no longer understands. However, as with Cat's Cradle another Vonnegut book, it suddenly becomes at the same time a political satire and a very unbelievable but magical story. Most everyone Starbuck meets in this story works at the RAMJAC Corporation, a metaphor for the increasingly capitalist and monopolistic world of the time at which the book was written, it also shows the increasing power large corporations have on the state because of their incredible wealth. The main character's surname (Starbuck) also seems to contribute to this metaphor, especially as Starbucks Coffee was moving to all corners of the world in 1999 when the book was published.
Starbuck continues to meet people he knows in some way or another all throughout the book, and all the characters are brought together within Vonnegut's beautiful prose at the end of the book in a way that is difficult to imagine.
That's one thing you can always rely on with Vonnegut, he's never predictable.
