Cat's Cradle

By: Kurt Vonnegut

Narrated by: Tony Roberts

Length: 7 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

Cat's Cradle is Vonnegut's satirical commentary on modern man and his madness. An apocalyptic tale of this planet's ultimate fate, it features a little person as the protagonist; a complete, original theology created by a calypso singer; and a vision of the future that is at once blackly fatalistic and hilariously funny.

©1963 Kurt Vonnegut, Jr (P)2007 HarperCollins Publishers

Read between the lines, it is a rewarding read.

A very rewarding read, you will find yourself focusing more on the genius nuggets of human observations.

This is a book to be read, not listened to

Would you try another book from Kurt Vonnegut and/or Tony Roberts?

I remember being far more engaged with this book when I read it several years ago than when listening to this version.

A change of pace

It's refreshing to hear a story where there is such a great focus on the characters that the plot sneaks up all of a sudden.

Another Kurt classic

A great thought provoking book by Kurt. It follows John, a writer working on a book about great men and what they were doing on the day the bombs dropped on Hiroshima.

This starts his journey to meeting the family of one of the father’s of the atomic bombs Felix Hoenniker.

Though Felix is dead, he gets much insight from his children, and is soon led on a journey to a mysterious island to meet one of Hoenneiker’s sons.

This is where he discovers a new religion, the love of his life, and a series of insane events that will alter the way he sees life forever.

At first I honestly had no clue where Kurt was going with this book. It seemed to be all over the place, but by the end it tied everything up perfectly. It was a fun read, and had some very hysterically funny parts to it.

As a bonus there is an interview with Kurt and Miller at the end of the audiobook that is extremely interesting. You’ll learn a lot about where Kurt came up with his writing style, and sense of humor. Definitely worth the listen.

good

good good good good good I like the book good I like it, 15 word min is bullshit I'll never review another for that reason

Big fan but not my favorite Vonnegut

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

probably not, this is consistent with Vonnegut's style, quirky, but I found it rather slow and not as humorous as others. Always expect generous amounts of allegory, parody, irony, satire....you get the idea...from Vonnegut, but he really hits you over the head with it in cats cradle where, I think, a softer touch would hold up better. A great story that now seems dated and 2 dimensional.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

More of that droll Vonnegut humor. It just seemed that he was in a hurry to get to his next warning about the dangers of modern society of the time.

Original idea about the apocalypse

Love this story, Vonnegut is without a doubt a must read author, his original and unusual takes in his stories spark my imagination

I'm a Bokononist!

Boko Maru: soul to soul! Hilarious book. I can't believe I've never read anything by Vonnegut before

Stupid & vicious as men are, this is a lovely day!

"...for the quotation captured in a couplet the cruel paradox of Bakononist thought, the heartbreaking necessity about lying about reality, and the heartbreaking impossibility of lying about it.

Midget, midget, midget, how he struts and winks,
For he knows a man's as big as what he hopes and thinks!"
-- Kurt Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle


I first read this in 9th grade. The grade my two kids are right now. Life has a way of making you feel both old and insignificant. When I first read this book I was focused on the technology of Ice-9 and the absurdity of weapons of mass destruction. This time, as I read it in a quickly cooling bath.* Seriously, all men over 40 should read this book naked in a bath that is quickly losing its heat, while wrinkles develop on their hands, feet, etc. There is nothing emasculates a man faster than a cold bath, nakedness, age, and Kurt Vonnegut.

Anyway, 28 years after first reading it and I still love this book. It was my first Vonnegut. One of my first exposures to the world of literature as absurdism, dark satire, and the wicked wink of postmodernism. I was hooked.

* with all this damn technology, one would think it would be easy to develop a better system for insulating baths. During the last 60 years, our society has gone from porcelain to plastic. So, now I can't even scratch OR freeze my ass in my tub and remain dignified.

Interesting, Funny. Challenging

Vonnegut is a great author. Not always easy and not always this enjoyable, but definitely great.

This work is less dislinear (my word - get your own if you dont like it) than other Vonegut works than I have read. That makes it a bit easier to live with and maybe a bit more manstream but none the less challenging.

As an exposition of the depths of inadvertant stupidity that man is capable of it is maybe a bit predictable. But the banality of purpose that the characters portray makes the final outcome seem all the more plausible and therefore maybe just a bit more scary. It might just be an important book as well as a very enjoyable one.

The narration is good just because it is pretty much transparent. What characterisation there is is helpful rather than distracting. Overall a first class audiobook.