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A Man without a Country
by Kurt Vonnegut
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About This Book
ISBN13: 9781583227138 
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Synopses & Reviews
Publisher Comments:
A Man without a Country is Kurt Vonnegut's hilariously funny and razor-sharp look at life (If I die — God forbid — I would like to go to heaven to ask somebody in charge up there, Hey, what was the good news and what was the bad news?), art (To practice any art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow. So do it.), politics (I asked former Yankees pitcher Jim Bouton what he thought of our great victory over Iraq and he said, Mohammed Ali versus Mr. Rogers.'), and the condition of the soul of America today (What has happened to us?). Gleaned from short essays and speeches composed over the last five years and plentifully illustrated with artwork by the author throughout, A Man without a Country gives us Vonnegut both speaking out with indignation and writing tenderly to his fellow Americans, sometimes joking, at other times hopeless, always searching.
Review:
"In his first book since 1999, it's just like old times as Vonnegut (now 82) makes with the deeply black humor in this collection of articles written over the last five years, many from the alternative magazine In These Times. But the pessimistic wisecracks may be wearing thin; the conversational tone of the pieces is like Garrison Keillor with a savage undercurrent. Still, the schtick works fine most of the time, underscored by hand-lettered aphorisms between chapters. Some essays suffer from authorial self-indulgence, however, like taking a dull story about mailing a manuscript and stretching it to interminable lengths. Vonnegut reserves special bile for the 'psychopathic personalities' (i.e., 'smart, personable people who have no consciences') in the Bush administration, which he accuses of invading Iraq so America can score more of the oil to which we have become addicted. People, he says, are just 'chimpanzees who get crazy drunk on power.' Of course, that's exactly the sort of misanthropy hardcore Vonnegut fans will lap up — the online versions of these pieces are already described as the most popular Web pages in the history of In These Times. (Sept.)" Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)
Review:
"Vonnegut actually proves to be whip smart and razor sharp throughout this thin volume....[And] writes with an assured wit and a layer of doom that is more a resigned warning than a full-on sermon." Oregonian
Review:
"Again and again in this new book, Mr. Vonnegut instructs his readers not to neglect their own minds, to nurture them, indulge them even. The best thing one could say about this book is that it would be a great place to kick off that necessary decadence." Dallas Morning News
Review:
"Vonnegut seems to find renewed fire in our dire situation: the attack on civil liberties, the reduction of social safety nets for those who need it most and the unpleasant spectacle of our nation thuggishly squabbling over fossil fuels even as the world roasts in global warming." San Francisco Chronicle
Review:
"Vonnegut...is either the world's most optimistic pessimist or its most pessimistic optimist, and his new collection of essays...is filled with his usual contradictory mix of joy and sorrow, hope and despair, humor and gravity." Chicago Tribune
Synopsis:
Gleaned from short essays and speeches composed over the last five years and plentifully illustrated with artwork by the author throughout, A Man without a Country delivers Vonnegut both speaking out with indignation and writing tenderly to his fellow Americans.
About the Author
Kurt Vonnegut is among the few grandmasters of 20th century American letters, one without whom the very term American literature would mean much less than it does. His works include Slaughterhouse Five, Galapagos, and Welcome to the Monkey House. He is the author, most recently, of God Bless You Dr. Kevorkian.
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grendel, July 29, 2008 (view all comments by grendel)
Having lost one America's great men of letters just last year (2007), this final volume of Vonnegut's thoughts and musings on early 21st century American life begs to be read by long-time fans and newcomers alike.
What people unfamiliar with Vonnegut's canon will discover is a subtle wit that barely disguises a more scathing critique for the follies of the powerful (the Bush administration is held in particular contempt), and a gentle soul pleading for a more compassionate future. That Vonnegut plainly states such a future is beyond our reach will sadden those who drew hope from his classic fiction, which he generously makes reference to throughout these sharp and unforgiving essays.
Vonnegut often said that his novels purposefully did not contain any villains--and indeed in books like "Slaughterhouse Five", "God Bless You Mr. Rosewater", and "Breakfast of Champions" the bad actions and decisions his characters make are traced directly to the weaknesses and hopeless circumstances of simply being human--but in "A Man Without A Country" Vonnegut clearly identifies and unleashes anger at real-life malcontents he says have destroyed his emotional connection to and affection for the country he fought for during World War Two. (Vonnegut re-visits his tale of surviving the infamous fire-bombing of Dresden as a prisoner of war, an event that eventually resulted in his most celebrated work, but also reveals it was an off-hand comment made by the wife of his fellow survivor and friend that allowed him to write about the incident in an honest manner.)
"A Man Without a Country" is a very honest book, but also a sad one. It reveals a brilliant and funny man left bitter and cynical near the end of his life, longing for the lost virtues of American heroes like Mark Twain and Abraham Lincoln--the latter a man Vonnegut says was a better writer (citing the Gettysburg Address) than he or almost any other he can imagine, despite being a politician and not an author by trade.
This slim volume can be read in nearly one sitting, but you'll find yourself turning to it again and again for the force of its convictions, even as they point to a country that's lost its way and left so many on a morally wayward path.
Product Details
- ISBN:
- 9781583227138
- Author:
- Publisher:
- Seven Stories Press
- Editor:
- Simon, Dan
- Author:
- Subject:
- General
- Subject:
- Essays
- Subject:
- United states
- Subject:
- American - General
- Subject:
- United States - 20th Century
- Subject:
- Form - Essays
- Subject:
- Authors, American
- Copyright:
- 2005
- Publication Date:
- September 15, 2005
- Binding:
- Hardback
- Grade Level:
- General/trade
- Language:
- English
- Pages:
- 192
- Dimensions:
- 8.500 x 5.700 in
