Staff Pick
"We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be."
Howard W. Campbell Jr. is an American-born German writer who is awaiting trial in Israel for Nazi war crimes. The problem is, he was acting as a double agent for the U.S. Did he do too good of a job pretending to be a Nazi? Vonnegut explores guilt while ruthlessly satirizing racism, antisemitism, Nazis, and communism. I wish this Vonnegut gem were better known. It's my favorite. Recommended By Amy W., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
Mother Night is a daring challenge to our moral sense. American Howard W. Campbell, Jr., a spy during World War II, is now on trial in Israel as a Nazi war criminal. But is he really guilty? In this brilliant book rife with true gallows humor, Vonnegut turns black and white into a chilling shade of gray with a verdict that will haunt us all.
Review
"A great artist." The Cincinnati Enquirer
Review
“Vonnegut is George Orwell, Dr. Caligari and Flash Gordon compounded into one writer…a zany but moral mad scientist.” Time
Synopsis
"Vonnegut is George Orwell, Dr. Caligari and Flash Gordon compounded into one writer . . . a zany but moral mad scientist."--Time
Mother Night is a daring challenge to our moral sense. American Howard W. Campbell, Jr., a spy during World War II, is now on trial in Israel as a Nazi war criminal. But is he really guilty? In this brilliant book rife with true gallows humor, Vonnegut turns black and white into a chilling shade of gray with a verdict that will haunt us all.
"A great artist."--Cincinnati Enquirer
"A shaking up in the kaleidoscope of laughter . . . Reading Vonnegut is addictive "--Commonweal
Synopsis
In Mother Night, Vonnegut turns black and white into a chilling shade of gray with a verdict that will haunt us all.
Synopsis
Mother Night is a daring challenge to our moral sense. American Howard W. Campbell, Jr., a spy during World War II, is now on trial in Israel as a Nazi war criminal. But is he really guilty? In this brilliant book rife with true gallows humor, Vonnegut turns black and white into a chilling shade of gray with a verdict that will haunt us all.
About the Author
Kurt Vonneguts black humor, satiric voice, and incomparable imagination first captured Americas attention in The Sirens of Titan in 1959 and established him as “a true artist” (The New York Times) with Cats Cradle in 1963. He was, as Graham Greene declared, “one of the best living American writers.” Mr. Vonnegut passed away in April 2007.