Catch-22
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I can't get past the first two chapters - is it worth pushing through?!
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by
Martha Elizabeth
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rated it 4 stars
Mar 13, 2013 05:22PM
I had to push through the entire book. I don't think that it is easy to read until the second read through when you know what the hell's going on and who's who. After that, it's amazing.
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I read this as an undergraduate and it's one of the very few books that I've read three times. Obviously I loved it and found it hilarious, maybe because I'm a child of the 60's and there was a lot of this type of satire around. Now I'm 4o years older and plan to read it again. (I suggest that to anyone "of a certain age"; it's amazing what a difference in perspective there is to reread a book after 30-40 years>)
You should push through this book. It is really good and even though it is dry in the beginning it gets a lot better.
You bet! I agreed with Npb
I am not an avid reader. In fact, I downright hate reading. However, I is LOVED this book. It is definately worth reading.
Yes, the book gets much better by the end. If you do stop at least get to the half way point.
Did anyone else think that this book could have inspired the movie and TV series MASH. To me they both make the point that war is insanity and perhaps the only way to get through being in it is our is to joke your way out of having to focus on the terrible situation you are in. I see it as acting crazy so you can get away from reality.
Nancy wrote: "Did anyone else think that this book could have inspired the movie and TV series MASH. To me they both make the point that war is insanity and perhaps the only way to get through being in it is our..."Yes, I saw a few parallels. I am glad you confirmed this for me. Thanks
Definitely worth the read!!
Nancy wrote: "Did anyone else think that this book could have inspired the movie and TV series MASH. To me they both make the point that war is insanity and perhaps the only way to get through being in it is our..."MASH was a novel at first, by the way.
Yes, PLEASE DO CPNTINUE READING! Catch-22 teaches a great amount about perseverance, and about the will and extremes you have to go through to get what you want, and in the end it is all worth it! Plus the topic of rebellion just gets me all fired up!
Dont' continue find another book unless for some reason you are increidbly intrigued already
I agree with Rebecca that this book is as little hard to get through at first. I was a little confused at first. After reading more, I understood many of the jokes and the plot better, allowing me to understand more of the book. I do think it is worth pushing through. Trust me, I think you will be glad you did.
Rebecca, even though this is at the bottom, I cannot recommend that you get through this book enough. It has become my favorite book of all time, and I stopped at 3 chapters in because it felt so lengthy. I decided to give it another go and from then on I found myself unable to put the book down. I absolutely loved it from there. Great for you if you finish it, its a classic.
It is certainly worth pushing through, however it is relatively slow. If after the first 50 or so pages you are just unable to read anymore give it up. It certainly gets much better at the end but it seems to drag on at times. If you are unable to push through that then this is not the book for you.
I felt the reading started out a little confusing to follow, but turned into a good book as I read further.
Yes. It is very much worth pushing through the first two chapters. The plot is very disjointed up until the end, because it is arranged in anachronic order, but you learn to appreciate the insanity the arrangement brings. Soon enough you'll be laughing with the rest of us who liked this novel.
Rebecca wrote: "I'm an avid reader, and not shy of trickier reads, but I just cannot seem to get past the first two chapters of this book. I've tried twice now, and each time I'm left feeling either bored, confuse..."Yes absolutely keep with it. It is satire and may take a little to get the hang of it. A classic work though.
Rebecca wrote: "I'm an avid reader, and not shy of trickier reads, but I just cannot seem to get past the first two chapters of this book. I've tried twice now, and each time I'm left feeling either bored, confuse..."
I re-read Catch 22, after reading it when it first came out. Though I still found it funny, I didn't find it hysterically so. I think this is because, like many trend-setting books, it has been copied and imitated so many times, that it seems a little stale. You have to remember, that there were many anti-war novels written before Catch 22, there were few satires of war written first. War was something you simply did not satirize, especially WW II, which holds such a sacred place in our psyche.
I believe this book was the basis for the TV show "Mash" (along obviously w a movie of the same title) that was popular in the 70's and lived on in syndication history.
Catch 22 is a wonderful book if you are in the mood to feel hopeless, futile, repressed and senselessly frustrated. It is a classic, canonical post World War 2 work of fiction designed to convey the horrors and insanity, the tragedy of endless war to readers with the noble aim of safeguarding future generations from the propaganda and self-assuring absurdity of bureaucracies.
That said, Heller keeps the largely depressing and intentionally repetitive novel moving forward with sheer cleverness and a hilarious cast of misfit characters. Definitely worth trudging through the slower sections and keep in mind that the hopelessness you may feel in general as you read are an intended consequence and a testament to Heller's skill as a storyteller.
It really is an awesome anti-war novel, but the horror is broken up by the dark humor. I still find it extremely wry to say the least, and hysterical if yours is the sense of humor which matches Heller's. I have read some of his other work; it's interesting enough, but none compares to this!
Yes, it's worth it. A second read is even more so.
Like any novel, or like any
Like any novel, or anything else for that matter, it has to be judged within the context of its time. Catch 22 wasn't just funny, it was groundbreaking in many ways, and a serious work of literature.
I`d have to say it is not pushing through.
Yes, it's a great book! Then read M*A*S*H! :)
You need to read this book at least twice so definitely worth getting through the first time. Once it clicks its masterful.
Sorry to say, I still haven't read it - I am consumed with Atwood and Zafon who are far too addictive!
Rebecca wrote: "Sorry to say, I still haven't read it - I am consumed with Atwood and Zafon who are far too addictive!"Nothing wrong with setting it aside for a few years. Sometimes, it just takes a whole new perspective going into a book like this.
Amazed that so many folks don't seem to get it. Sad,actually.
Rebecca wrote: "I'm an avid reader, and not shy of trickier reads, but I just cannot seem to get past the first two chapters of this book. I've tried twice now, and each time I'm left feeling either bored, confuse..."Brave of you. I could not get past page 32.
I had to read it in high school and hated it. Read it again when my boys had to read it in high school and got the irony then. It is, basically: you have to be sane to fly in combat, but no sane person wants to fly in combat. Hence Catch 22. If you lived through Vietnam, it really did make sense in a nonsensical sort of way.
This is one of those books that when you are done and looking back, and reflecting you realize how important it is. But before that you may wish for his death.
I tried reading this a few years ago, but never finished because I was too much of a jackass to truly appreciate it. I'm glad I finally finished it though, I'll never regret it.
Push! Push! Push! Then rent the movie- it's pretty terrific, too.
It is a long ime since I read the book, but it is worth the endurence. Which is what C22 is all about. The state wanting you to endure 1 more tour, you would be mad if you stayed, so madness is not an escape plan.
I felt exactly the same where I didn't understand what was going on and how it was funny in the first few chapters but when I got to about chapter 6 it was much easier to read. This book is so funny and is worth enduring the first little bit because the dialogue and the ridiculous plots are flipping hilarious and Catch-22 is now one of my favourite books!
Liz wrote: "Amazed that so many folks don't seem to get it. Sad,actually."I find this a little patronising.
Catch 22 made a lasting impression on me, but it took the movie to get me to understand all of what was going on. I did get confused with the flashbacks and the out of sequence narration. What makes this harder to understand is that just before reading Catch 22, I read several of Soroyan's books which employ many of the same narrative techniques. So, for anyone who has trouble with this book, I recommend seeing the movie and then returning the book. Maybe then you will understand why you can't be crazy because if you were you could not be here.
I found it to be the same joke over and over and over. I finally got sick of waiting for the book to do something different and stopped about halfway through.
James, Bertolt Brecht wrote a dramatic adaptation of Good Soldier Svejk which we performed when I was in college. I never made the connection, but it fits. I completely agree.
Rebecca wrote: "I'm an avid reader, and not shy of trickier reads, but I just cannot seem to get past the first two chapters of this book. I've tried twice now, and each time I'm left feeling either bored, confuse..."
Read this a very long time ago (it was just out)but I think this may still be one of my favorite books of all time. It's funny, sad and profound. Heller's most brilliant effort. I know everyone has different reading tastes and capacities but keep on going...
I read "Catch 22" when I was in the army in the 1960s. At first, the humor caught my attention, but the thinking process continued long after the read. During the read, it occurred to me that Heller was writing a military satire, but by the end the satire seemed to be aimed at the free enterprise system and corporate America. Read that story today and while you are reading it - think about the political, military, and economic system we have today. People in power make rules to serve themselves and screw anybody who raises a challenge. If you dig you might find an interview or two where Heller takes such a position. "Catch 22" is about the establishment like the "Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison. You need to read the whole book to see the larger implications and it is as fresh today as it was when first published.
I was reading this book several times in the Polish language, I laughed out loud all the time. I believe that this book is fantastic. In a unique way. Number of observations is always present (immortal). My English is not good to explain all of my emotions, I believe, however, the book is fantastic ,worth reading.
The corporate world tie-in is quite appropriate. Anyone who's seen peers with no special talents leapfrog ahead ahead in the workplace can certainly see the connection to Major Major Major Major.
How about the mindless decisions to further your main objective - profit. Recall where there was a black market operation going on and in order to make a deal for the black market - we bombed our own base for the Germans as part of the deal. How about when Yossarain's friend murders a prostitute and the MPs let him go so they can arrest Yossarian, who is AWOL. We arrest some college kid for having a small quantity of marijuana, and we make up excuses for men in suits that steal billions.he corporate world owns us and does whatever it chooses.
The fact that it takes the military microcosm to reflect on life at large is what makes this a timeless treasure. As relevant now as when it was written.
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