Cat's Cradle

by Kurt Vonnegut

Cat's Cradle

published	July 1st 1999 by Penguin Books Ltd
first published	1963
binding	Paperback
isbn	0140285601 (isbn13: 9780140285604)
pages	192
description	Cat's Cradle, one of Vonnegut's most entertaining novels, is filled with scientists and G-men and even ordinary folks caught up in the game. Th...more [close] Cat's Cradle, one of Vonnegut's most entertaining novels, is filled with scientists and G-men and even ordinary folks caught up in the game. These assorted characters chase each other around in search of the world's most important and dangerous substance, a new form of ice that freezes at room temperature. At one time, this novel could probably be found on the bookshelf of every college kid in America; it's still a fabulous read and a great place to start if you're young enough to have missed the first Vonnegut craze. [close]
date added	02-21-07 edit book

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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 18831)

Lorenzo

Lorenzo rated it:

(review of isbn 038533348X)

10/14/07

bookshelves: 2007-readings

There are two voices inside my head. Let's call them Lore and Enzo. At the moment L & E are quarreling on Cat's Cradle.

(...)
L) Oh come on! This books is wonderful. Perhaps it's the best novel Vonnegut has ever written.
E) Are you kidding me? Have you read the whole of it?
L) Of course I've read it from its first word to the very last one.
E) And haven't you noticed anything strange?
L) What are you talking about?
E) I mean, you know, it's a discontinuous novel. I can't deny it ha...more

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Jeff Scott

Jeff rated it:

06/14/08

bookshelves: sony-reader

Read in May, 2008

This is a strange book. The main character (Jonah), sets off to write a book called The Day the World Ended. It was to be about the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. It wasn't to be about the bomb or the background to it, but about what everyone was doing that day when the bomb was dropped. It was also about the main who invented the bomb. A Felix Honniker. During this exploration he is severly sidetracked by people who knew felix. It leads him to a third world country where honneker's c...more This is a strange book. The main character (Jonah), sets off to write a book called The Day the World Ended. It was to be about the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. It wasn't to be about the bomb or the background to it, but about what everyone was doing that day when the bomb was dropped. It was also about the main who invented the bomb. A Felix Honniker. During this exploration he is severly sidetracked by people who knew felix. It leads him to a third world country where honneker's children live like kings and queens thanks to honneker's invention, ice-nine. Ice nine can make all liquid freeze at extremely warm temperatures. Its purpose was to prevent the army from marching in the mud. It would freeze the mud. The honnerker's have another weapon on their third world country island of San Lorenzo, Bokonism. Bokonism is a religion of nothingness. Vnnegut uses this religion as a commentary on the human condition. The need to have an extreme good and an extreme evil to bring balance into the word. It rings of stories like 1984 with the concept of the forever war and fighting the eternal enemy. The government is always searching for Bokonin, and never finds him. The story is laced with referrals to this faith. In the end the book is never finished and becomes the book you are reading, although the title of the book comes true.

Great passages:

"If I were a younger man. I would write a history of human stupididty, and I would climbe to the top of Mount McCabe and lie down on my back with my history for a pillow, and I would take from the ground some of the blue white poison that makes statues of men, and I would make a statue of myself, lying on my back, grinning horribly and thumbing my nose at You Know Who."

"We are gathered here friends, he said, to honor ok goonyerachamactorz rut zemocratys (Day of the One Hundred Martrys to Democracy), children dead, all dead, all murdreed in war. It is customeary on days like this to call such lost children men. I am unable to call them that for one simple reason, that in the same war in which ok goon moratoozrz tut zamoo crazya died, my own son died. My soul insists that I mourn not a man, but a child"

...less

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Jesse

Jesse rated it:

(review of isbn 038533348X)

07/14/08

Cat's Cradle is basically a unique and creative look at the end of the world. To me, Vonnegut is arguing that the dizzying progress of science and technology in the last century has made the total destruction of life on earth a frightening possibility, and it's not just the "bad guys" who threaten humanity with annihilation: an equal threat comes from the well-intentioned but short-sighted, from the lonely or downtrodden, from the greatest superpower to the tiniest and poorest island n...more Cat's Cradle is basically a unique and creative look at the end of the world. To me, Vonnegut is arguing that the dizzying progress of science and technology in the last century has made the total destruction of life on earth a frightening possibility, and it's not just the "bad guys" who threaten humanity with annihilation: an equal threat comes from the well-intentioned but short-sighted, from the lonely or downtrodden, from the greatest superpower to the tiniest and poorest island nation.

In other words, truly destructive technologies, once they exist, become a danger to the entire world regardless of the "good" or "bad" reasons for which they were created, and regardless of whether they fall into the hands of the "good guys" or the "bad guys." Vonnegut seems to be saying that scientific advancements cannot exist in a moral vacuum, that scientists should take responsibility for what they're creating. The need for extreme care in creating such destructive technologies is made all the more pressing because, according to Vonnegut, we as human beings are addicted to classifying ourselves into nations and religions and political parties, and then killing and dying for these classifications.

Perhaps this is the importance of Vonnegut's invention of Bokononism, the religion of the island nation of San Lorenzo: if Bokonoism offers one real truth to its followers, it's that the entire religion is made up, a "shameless lie." The result is that, instead of striving to live Bokononism as the only possible truth, Bokononists are easy going; they realize from the start that Bokononism itself is just another example of the uniquely Bokononist notion of "foma," i.e., "harmless untruths that make you brave and happy and kind." If that's the case, there's no reason to kill others who disagree with you; instead you can focus on what really matters, which for Vonnegut seems to mean creating satisfying connections with other people.

Cat's Cradle, then, is not only Vonnegut's plea for responsibility in the development of technology, but, perhaps even more fundamentally, it's the story of how we ought to simply learn to get along with each other. Luckily, it also happens to be a wildly funny, perfectly crafted piece of fiction. Great book. ...less

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Laura

Laura rated it:

12/15/07

Read in August, 2007

To begin with, did I like the book? I certainly did, as it was entertaining, delightfully light-hearted and irreverent, with an interestingly outlandish plot and equally absurd characters.

How about the quality of the writing? Call me a purist, but the use of fabricated dialects and invented vocabulary left a bad taste in my mouth. On the up-side, Vonnegut’s use of poetry as comic relief was novel and amusing, and his self-mocking aphorisms are definitely quotable. I took pause to thi...more To begin with, did I like the book? I certainly did, as it was entertaining, delightfully light-hearted and irreverent, with an interestingly outlandish plot and equally absurd characters.

How about the quality of the writing? Call me a purist, but the use of fabricated dialects and invented vocabulary left a bad taste in my mouth. On the up-side, Vonnegut’s use of poetry as comic relief was novel and amusing, and his self-mocking aphorisms are definitely quotable. I took pause to think of how fun it would be make up a religion in a work of fiction, and liked the idea immensely. In the midst of this novel, I also asked if there were too many things going on, and if there weren’t enough ideas for multiple books. I wondered why I was bothered here and not when reading Palahniuk, whose writing is similar but with more repetition and rhetorical tricks to tie a story together. I particularly began to worry around chapter 105, at which point I feared that Vonnegut was on the verge of losing me. I generally preferred the stories surrounding the main characters to the science-fiction elements surrounding ice-nine, a scientific doomsday device threatening human existence. I would much rather hear more about the creator of the atomic bomb and how much he loved to play with toys, or about the midget love affair that ended with a Russian spy fleeing the country.

What else is there to consider when judging Cat’s Cradle? Did I think this novel was a politically, socially, intellectually or in any other way a significant work, thus rendering Vonnegut a significant author? No, I don’t believe so. Nothing revolutionary here. Similarly, I didn’t feel the sting of his social commentary and feel compelled to denounce the sins of the world as he outlined them. Perhaps I am not the target audience, a young reader in the 21st century rather than the masses of the late 1960’s.

My verdict? More research is required. Inconclusive. But it was an enjoyable read.
...less

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Melia

Melia rated it:

11/26/07

Has a copy to sell/swap — Read in September, 2007

recommends it for: THE WORLD

Briefly, the premise of the book is the following: the narrator is writing an account about the day the a-bomb was dropped in Hiroshima. He manages to track down the offspring of Frank Hoenikker, one of the makers of the bomb, and fill in their accounts of what they remember from the day the bomb dropped. Simple enough plot, but also tied into the plot is the side story of Dr. Hoenikker's invention of Ice-Nine, a substance that will take any fluid and solidify it into ice. Then, there is ANOTHER...more

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Amelia

Amelia rated it:

(review of isbn 038533348X)

02/11/08

Read in February, 2008

There may be some spoiler stuff in here...

Well, it was the same Vonnegut with his amazing descriptions (that sometimes make me laugh).

"My soul seemed as foul as smoke from burning cat fur."

"It was with deep, idiotic relief that I leaned on that fleshy, humid, barn-yard fool."

"My hair stood on end, as though Angela were rolling on the floor, foaming at the mouth, and babbling fluent Babylonian." (Incidentally I met a guy in eharmony who thought he co...more

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7 comments

Lindsey

Lindsey rated it:

01/04/08

bookshelves: favorites

Read in July, 2007

recommends it for: post evangelicals

"I don't know whether I agree or not. I just have trouble understanding how truth, all by itself, could be enough for a person."

"No damn cat, and no damn cradle."

When the music was done, I shrieked at Julian Castle, who was transfixed, too, "My God-life! Who can understand even one little minute of it?"
"Don't try," he said. "Just pretend you understand."
"That's-that's very good advice." I went limp. Castle quo...more

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Chris

Chris rated it:

04/14/08

bookshelves: science-fiction

Read in April, 2008

Nothing in this review is true.

As much as I enjoy reading Vonnegut, one of the nagging little doubts I always have is that I'm missing something. That there's a hidden message in there that I'm not picking up on. Or, on the other hand, that I am picking up messages that just aren't there.

Which is, perhaps, the point of the whole book.

The world is full of lies. Good lies, bad lies and indifferent lies, but lies nonetheless, and we pick and choose the lies that make our lives...more

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Maggie

Maggie rated it:

05/26/08

Read in May, 2008

"There is love enough in this world for everybody, if people will just look."

"I don't know whether I agree or not. I just have trouble understanding how truth, all by itself, could be enough for a person."

"Sometimes I think that's the trouble with the world: too many people in high places who are stone-cold dead."

"...because I was very upset about how Americans couldn't imagine what it was like to be something else, to be something else and proud o...more

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M. rated it:

04/11/08

Read in April, 2008

recommends it for: people who think "too much."

I'm 58 yrs old and never read Vonnegut. I thought I ought to see what all the fuss was about and lo, I see this book on a friend's bookshelf. ("It was supposed to happen.") Seems to me Vonnegut was high--stoned or tripping. It reads like a dream. Five minuetes after finishing it, I couldn't remember the ending. The novel is dark, fatalistic social commentary: "Everything is meaningless. Man is vile, makes nothing worth making, knows nothing worth knowing." [And] "A fat w...more

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Alex

Alex rated it:

01/11/08

Read in June, 2007

recommended to Alex by: Matt Rusteika, of all people, in his living room in Southie.
recommends it for: Josef Stalin

Perhaps Vonnegut's best story. Certainly 'Slaughterhouse 5' is most acclaimed for its historical relevance, and 'Breakfast of Champions' might be the most fun. But here Vonnegut has crafted a tight story of human woe splayed against a scrim of the world's end.
In so doing, he succeeds where other 'serious' sci-fi writers of his time (like Philip K. Dick) often fail. It seems all too easy, one one side, to play up the apocalypse far and away from our protagonist's worries, and easier stil...more

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Tracey

Tracey rated it:

(review of isbn 038533348X)

09/09/07

Read in January, 2004

recommends it for: anyone willing to be open-minded about their beliefs and appreciative of dark humour

As part of my plan to read at least one "classic" a month (and also a desire to read/re-read Kurt Vonnegut's body of work), I picked up Cat's Cradle. I remember writing an essay on this novel for my AP English class; unfortunately, I have no idea what happened to the essay itself, as it would be interesting to see my younger self's impressions.

The narrator, John, is a writer wh...more

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Eric

Eric rated it:

(review of isbn 038533348X)

07/27/07

Read in February, 2007

This year we lost one of our most valued satirists. In "Cat's Cradle," Kurt Vonnegut takes the reader on an absurd and by turns hilariously searing journey to a fictious island nation, where the narrator becomes entangled in a web of intrigue and disaster courtesy of the family of a scientist who has invented "Ice Nine," a dangerous substance that freezes any source of water it touches.

On the surface, "Cat's Cradle" sounds like a straight-up sci-fi piece, but...more

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Carlos

Carlos rated it:

(review of isbn 0791071685)

07/05/07

This is the first and only Vonnegut work I've read from start to finish, and I have to agree with his own self-assessment: he is a "major minor writer". A smart book, but not a very good one, I think.

I felt that the story, despite all of its science fiction trappings and self-conscious wackiness, was really simply an essay on Vonnegut's own Bokononism, a flat exposition of a worldview. The book doesn't produce much in the way of emotional depth or rich characterization; instead i...more

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1 comments

Mark

Mark rated it:

07/19/08

bookshelves: reviewed

Read in July, 2008

recommends it for: people who love famous authors, and are uninterested in better science fiction.

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Asit

Asit added it

12/11/07

so i'm stoned, but this is the one that i read.

You Gotta Read It.

now that i think about it.

it will take an afternoonish.

three children receive a gift from the greatest, yet buffoonish scientist ever, who happens to be their father.

he gives them Ice-9.

Bypassing what it is and how it works and whatnot,

Ice-9 has the power to destroy shit.

Like Bom Shiva.

The most destructive poisons and bile to come out of the churnned snake could not be contained -- all the pots w...more

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Alicia

Alicia rated it:

(review of isbn 0791071685)

04/19/07

bookshelves: favorites

Read in March, 2007

recommends it for: everyone

"I reread this right before Vonnegut's death. He's one of my idols, and this was probably the fifth time I've read this book. I got just as much from reading it this time as I did the first time when I was 15 or so. I attribute this partially to my inability to remember details from the books I read, but mostly to Vonnegut's genius. This time around, the most intriguing concept in the book for me was the fake religion, Bokonism. I've always loved the Bokonist concept of a "Karass"...more

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Jessica

Jessica rated it:

11/18/07

bookshelves: 2007

Read in November, 2007

recommends it for: Vonnegut fans, people who like satire

This was my first reading of this book and I'm sure what to say about it. Basically what I got from this book...Don't try to find the "whys" in life because there aren't any. I'm not sure if I agree with that. The "whys" certainly are hard to comprehend...I guess it is something to be pondered.

I would say, in a nutshell, that elements of this book were excellent (Bokononism, Ice Nine, etc.), but the whole of the book came together a little choppy. The characters were ...more

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Katie

Katie rated it:

(review of isbn 038533348X)

07/11/08

This classic contains a perennially useful reminder (excerpted below) in Chapter 45, which is entitled, "Why Americans are Hated":

Clare Minton's letter to the Times was published during the worst era of Senator McCarthy, and her husband was fired twelve hours after the letter was printed.
"What was so awful about the letter?" I asked.
"The highest possible form of treason," said Minton, "is to say that Americans aren't loved wherever they go, wha...more

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John

John rated it:

(review of isbn 038533348X)

12/28/07

Read in April, 2007

recommends it for: Heck yea!

I'd always meant to read Vonnegut but just never got around to it. Sadly it took his death to finally get me into his work. I was going to start with his "famous" one -- Slaughterhouse Five -- but went with his tile on