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Aug 02, 2011

Stephen rated it:

5 THINGS I KNOW I learned from reading Sirens of Titan

1. Kurt Vonnegut was a brilliantly insightful GENIUS whose brain waves were ever so slightly out of phase with our universe making complete comprehension of his work by the rest of us impossible;
2. In the hands of a master, literature can be both incredibly entertaining and soul-piercingly deep;
3. Vonnegut had a rock hard MAD on the size of a Dyson Sphere against Organized Religion;
4. Winston Niles Rumfoord is a More...

16 comments like (67 people liked it)

Jun 27, 2009

Manny rated it:

I'll start with a roundabout introduction. Garry Kasparov was not just one of the best chessplayers of all time, he was also one of the best analysts. Even as a teenager, he was always coming up with the most amazing ideas. Chessplayers often prefer to hoard their ideas; it can be worth a lot to surprise your opponent in a critical game, and there are many stories about grandmasters keeping a new move in the freezer for years, or even decades. Kasparov asked his trainer if he should be hoarding More...

15 comments like (29 people liked it)

Dec 17, 2009

Jeff rated it:

The Sirens of Titan is a rare masterwork, a novel with broad and varied powers. It is an elusive book that seeks you out, a panorama of arresting images, a cosmic drama played out across the galaxy and set in the devices of the future but capturing eternal beauty as though in indestructible stone. At its simplest, it is the story of Malachi Constant, who despite his egotistical intentions, endures mental and physical suffering, isolation, and the loss of his own identity in order to be reunite More...

0 comments like (8 people liked it)

Oct 28, 2011

Lorenzo rated it:

Kurt Vonnegut at his best.
I've bought this book at Shakespeare & Co. in Vienna. Actually I was looking for "Cat's cradle" but there the bookseller -I guess he was Canadian, by the way- has suggested me to take this one. It has been a bit difficult to find this novel among the highest shelves of that small and cosy bookshop but I've managed to. Standing on the old wooden ladder of Shakespeare & Co. I've risked to fall down twice. Anyway, I'm safe and sound.

And I've got More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Apr 03, 2007

Mary rated it:

Vonnegut takes the reader through an emotional space-coaster ride as he convinces us life is full of good and bad luck, life is meaningless, God is indifferent, we are pawns in mundane tasks for other worlds, and finally, the reason that we are all here (I won't give it away, though).

He was able to create characters that we sympathized with while we disliked them. In fact, I don't think there is anyone in this book you will outrightly like. But the closest you will come is fe More...

0 comments like (5 people liked it)

Dec 16, 2009

Taylor rated it:

I was wary of picking up Vonnegut for a long time, because even though he's such a well regarded author, his plots are so science fiction based, and I have little to no interest in science fiction. After asking for book recommendations for my trip to Europe, my friend Amanda recommended this to me and I trust her taste, so I figured it was time for me and Vonnegut to get together. And I am so glad that we did.

As anticipated, yes, the plot was a bit ridiculous and very science fiction More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Sep 17, 2011

Lori rated it:

Vonnegut is my new God. I can't believe I haven't read anything else by him after reading Galapagos back in 85. For real? I do remember really liking it, being quite enthused, but it seemed like his other big book was Slaughterhouse Five, which I didn't want to read. Isn't it about a prison camp for captured soldiers? Or something like that? I don't like reading stories like that, there's enough horror in real life.

But what was I thinking? I guess at the time I was too busy trying to More...

4 comments like (8 people liked it)

Feb 07, 2012

Kedar rated it:

Do you read a Vonnegut book, or does the book read you? Does it expose your thoughts to the most detailed analysis of humanity, human behavior, and human mind and then tells you to not give a damn? Except that it also seizes the phrase 'to not give a damn' from your control. Leaves you hanging midair. Questioning.

So what to do? What is to be done? Apart from whatever has already been done?

You go beyond the story. See Unk staring at you pointedly with a hazy gaze. Figure o More...

4 comments like (8 people liked it)

Jan 01, 2011

Matt rated it:

If I told you that there was a writer out there that blended the witty satirical edge of the American legend Mark Twain with science fiction elements such as foreign worlds and strange alien beings, you should probably be excited. You should also probably all ready know that Kurt Vonnegut is that man.

Although I would say that "The Sirens of Titan" is thus far my least favorite of the Vonnegut novels, which I have read about a third of, that is not to say its bad. It is still More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 25, 2008

Nicholas rated it:

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

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

May 13, 2011

Nathan rated it:

Vonnegut's done it again. He consistently manages to wrap deep meaning and sage commentary on the human condition in a context of an absurd-yet-achingly-simple plot. Chalked full of typically whimsical one-liners and witty jokes plugged here and there, Vonnegut tackles an ambitious topic in The Sirens of Titan: what is our position in the universe? Is it deterministic? What role does fate and luck play? Is there someone up there who seems to care about us?

The settings range from the More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 18, 2008

Josh rated it:

"Oh what fools these humans be" is the phrase that comes to mind. Or to quote Lennon; "Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans."

This most definately was Vonnegut's mantra when regarding the human race, and how we plan and scheme in the face of total futility. Whether we put our faith in god, or the total abscence of god, in a well ordered universe, or utter chaos and anarchy, there's ol' Kurt, sticking a saftey pin in everything we think we belie More...

3 comments like (2 people liked it)

Nov 06, 2007

D. J. rated it:

This book, more than any other perhaps, sparked a revolution in my thought. It is almost a cliche for any avid reader to namecheck Vonnegut as a huge influence. That said, "The Sirens of Titan" was and remains essential because it took satire and extended it into the outer reaches of the cosmos. Voltaire certainly paved the way with Micromegas, and Mark Twain was adept at combining satire with what later became Science Fiction; but, it was Vonnegut who fully realized the latent pote More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Aug 03, 2007

erg rated it:

This is my first review so I figured it best to start with a book that I know like the back of my hand. I've read everything that Vonnegut has ever written from 'Player Piano' to 'Man Without a Country' even squeezing in some of his screenplays in the middle such as 'Happy Birthday, Wanda June'. This is my personal recommendation for the Vonnegut book to read if you are only going to read one Vonnegut book (although Slaughterhouse Five, Cat's Cradle and Mother Night are all close to the top of More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 18, 2009

rmn rated it:

I had not read a Vonnegut book in about 15 years until I read this and I found something strangely familiar and inviting in his writing (and to be honest, I may have actually read this book before, so that could be part of it). Vonnegut's genius is in the simplicity of his language and the originality and accessibility of his stories which seek to convey his bitingly cynical and anti-establishment/anti-religion beliefs in the nicest way possible. He likes to tell you how everything sucks with More...

1 comment like (3 people liked it)

Apr 01, 2009

David rated it:

Eh. Vonnegut thinks life is a bitch, and so has bitch-slapped some odd characters. Neither absurd nor insightful enough to be great. Indeed, there's something lazy about this book. And I can't be bothered to pin it down.

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Dec 17, 2009

brendan rated it:

another, from my perspective, but apparently one of the first hits from vonnegut. i loved this book. the ADD method vonnegut attacks his narrative and characters tingles my sensibilities, forcing me into a ball of giggling reader.

read the book with a friend and then drink a hundred cups of coffee and talk about the Universal Will To Become (UWTB) or the politics of the martian army, and hopefully realize that we can all be a Winston Niles Rumfoord, and then none of us need to bea More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 30, 2012

Nathanael rated it:

The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. was an okay book to read. the story line was confusing but I liked how it started out in media res. the twist and turns the book take are fin but difficult to follow. To learn about the chrono-synclastic infundibulum and how it dematerialization and materialization you in random places of the universe.

I would suggest this book to any one that likes a book with twist and turns to keep you on your toes with interest. I will let you enjoy the spl More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Dec 16, 2011

Leben rated it:

My dad gave me a big maroon book that has a collection of 6 of Vonneguts books (Slaughterhouse 5, Cats Cradle, Player Piano, BoC, Mother Night and Sirens of Titan) and it sat in my wardrobe for a couple of months. I hadn't really read anything in a couple of years (since leaving school ). One day something compelled me to pick up the collection and start reading, I started with Sirens

The story itself is fantastic and the characters are do real by the end of the book (despite the very u More...

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Nov 26, 2011

Psheryl rated it:

This is an impressive little bit of writing. It's easy to read, but it's got all kinds of stuff to chew on. It's a bit scattered, like Vonnegut almost went here or there with his story but then didn't. It's one of Vonnegut's earliest works, and maybe he was trying to cram all his ideas in there before he figured he could just write more books to explore all that. For example, for a minute I thought it was going "Harrison Bergeron" on me, but then it never quite did. Then for awhile, I More...

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Nov 24, 2011

Raelyn rated it:

The Sirens of Titan is the first novel I’ve read by Kurt Vonnegut, and I am ready for more! This book is satire at its absolute best. The story follows Malachi Constant, the richest and luckiest man in the world, play out an outrageous prophecy. Winston Niles Rumfoord is the only man from Earth to experience the effect of a chrono-synclastic infundibula, an area in space where all truths can coexist. This experience allows him to see the future, and so he gives Malachi the prophecy that he will More...

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Sep 20, 2011

Scott rated it:

If I had to choose just one Vonnegut work to have (the desert island/Ark scenario), I would have to choose Slaughterhouse-Five since it's outstanding and his Most Important work. In terms of sheer enjoyment and fun, though, The Sirens of Titan is at the top of my list.

Vonnegut's work has such a distinctive tone and approach to life that's pitch-perfect and hasn't lost its resonance. It's worth pointing out the difference between this book and the one before, Player Piano. On writing More...

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Sep 05, 2011

Darrel rated it:

One of Vonnegut's most sustained bits of his signature combination of insanity & satire. In this novel we (the people of earth) are just pawns in the great scheme of things for other planets in the universe. No matter how mundane or cruel the tasks we are at their whim. No need for me to restate what so many have put forth here in previous reviews. Just know this - the most memorable element in the story here is the invention of the Chronosynclastic Infundibulum which, as defined by the author A More...

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Jul 24, 2011

Paul rated it:

I wouldn't say this is among Vonnegut's best work, but there's plenty of interest here if you're a fan of his irreverent, future-farcical style. At the thematic level, TSOT revolves around the impossibility of fulfilling (or even mildly impacting upon) the desires of a theoretical God. As such, Vonnegut presents us with a number of godlike figures (Rumfoord, the Tralfamadorans), all of whom are eventually revealed to be far from omnipotent, and a number of lesser beings (humans, the Harmoniums, More...

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Feb 21, 2011

Aleksandar rated it:

An unexpectedly entertaining book. However, before I shower it with praise I need to get a few things out of the way.

<spoiler>I'm a scientifically inclined person, so it was very difficult for me to just accept some of Vonnegut's impractical inventions. Oxygen pills? Okay, I'll let that slide. Remote-controlled humans? Sure, that's a popular theme. But humans being exposed to the extremes of space with nothing happening to them? Give me a break. I realize this book was publishe More...

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Feb 11, 2011

Valerie rated it:

I am a big fan of Vonnegut, even though this was only the third book I have read of his. Cat’s Cradle and Slaughterhouse-Five are two of my favourite books, but for some reason this Vonnegut book just didn’t reach that standard. I am not saying that this book was horrible, I actually think it’s a good book, I just didn’t devour it like the other two.

Most of the time I was felt like I was reading a Philip K. Dick book (which is not an insult at all!) It was just a lot more sci-fi than t More...

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Feb 06, 2011

Patrick rated it:

A book, almost laughably outlandish, that takes the reader on a journey through both time and the life of Malachi Constant, the "luckiest" son of a gun you'll ever meet. At least until he meets Rumfoord and his dog Kazak. In trying to teach Mr. Constant a lesson that there is no such thing as luck, Rumfoord finds that his own life has been pointlessly wasted, in what turns out to be one of the most heartbreaking scenes in literature. At the end of this book you can't help but feel sorr More...

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Jan 23, 2011

Nick rated it:

Kurt Vonnegut is a mad scientist, to say the least. Between Harrison Bergeron, Slaughterhouse Five, and Cat's Cradle, his books retain a vibe and personality all their own, whether you like it or not. Lets start out with some pros:
-The book is very easy to read. Most science fiction from the 50's tends to scare me off (BIG WORDS!!!), but the books vocabulary is just as modern as any thriller you could pick up today.
-The plot is more convoluted and fun to uncover as any book More...

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 03, 2011

Pvw rated it:

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

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Nov 08, 2010

zxvasdf rated it:

Malachi Constant is a decadent playboy who has done nothing to earn his wealth. He toys with his inheritance and squanders any meaning he holds to the world. He is invited to the Rumfoord estate where a materialization is taking place, of Wilson Niles Rumfoord, Earth's first traveler to be trapped in a chronosynclastic infundibulum. This vortex in space-time has reduced Rumfoord and his dog into waveforms that manifest when it coincides with a heavenly body. Rumfoord is now omnipresent and omnis More...

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