Click here if you want to read a sample of the novel
This one was my second approximation to Vonnegut’s literature, but the first time I obliged myself to read a full novel by him; though I consider it a novella, due to the fact there are barely two hundred pages and more than one hundred and twenty chapters, something completely unexpected in a story of this nature. However, too many things seem to happen in the novel. Vonnegut takes us on this weird roller-coaster from one place to another, from the United States to a fictional island called San Lorenzo ruled by a dictator who threatens his people with a giant hook. The whole cast of this crazy infernal tale seems to be composed by characters from a circus: scientists, journalists, retired marines, people who are obsessed with finding a bond with others and a too-perfect woman who feels she belongs to everyone else. Yet, we can affirm Cat’s Cradle is an apology to human stupidity, an allegory to the missile crisis between Cuba and the United States and a reflection on the perils of the Cold War.
Our hero is an everyman who becomes extremely interested in knowing more about the life of the scientist considered the father of the atomic bomb: Felix Hoenikker (of course a fictional character), so he contacts his children to know more about their father’s role in the ending of Second World War and what he was like. He realizes the Hoenikkers are a set of fantastic characters that look like taken from a fairy tale story: a midget who wanted to be a medical doctor, a very tall dull blonde who had to be the mother of his brothers and his own father, and a nerdy character who despite his lack of qualifications get an important government job in the island of San Lorenzo.
Later in the story, we realize that there is more than meets the eye, such as the existence of a very dangerous substance called Ice Nine that has got the power to freeze almost everything that comes in contact with it, and a religion called Bokononism devised by an ethereal character who appears in the aftermath of catastrophe.
In the end, everything is desolation and we humans have caused our own sad demise. Cat’s Cradle seems to be a story of hopelessness and desperation, but at the same time, is a satire full of funny jokes and some others that I would not consider any humorous, at all. Cat’s Cradle is a hard novel to read. The story develops quickly, in a rush, but at the same time it seems to be too slow for my liking due to the fact there are major characters in the novel that do not appear until the very end.
Cat’s Cradle is not the kind of story I would recommend everyone, you must absolutely be a very reflective reader to make the most out of it. By the time the novel reaches its end, we are not so sure about what has just happened. We are not even sure if it was worthy spending a couple of hours going through it. Vonnegut’s style is not exactly what I would call my cup of tea. I have always been more of a Philip K. Dick’s fan, possibly because Dick tends to be a bit more visual, but at the same time elaborate in the worlds he created. Anyway, this novel is considered a classic in the catalogue of the most important stories of science fiction, and I was fortunate enough to pay for a cute paperback edition published by Penguin. Now I have got to find something interesting to read. American Gods or the second volume of Dreamsongs? Eenie meenie miney mo…
No comments:
Post a Comment