All
Book club no.32 was hosted by Sophie at her residence last Sunday 1st
November. The text before us was Kurt Vonnegut’s 1969 anti-war novel,
“Slaughterhouse-Five”. Present were Sophie, Owain, Ed, Pete and Andy.
Sustenance was provided by a delicious oriental feast, including edamame
beans, duck, stir-fry and lashings of ice cream.
Discussions ranged widely over this most intruiging of texts. Pete
argued that the crux of the novel was whether Vonnegut approved or
disapproved of the Tralfamadorians’ fatalism, while he also explored the
book’s “radicalism” or otherwise. Ed posited that the book’s success or
failure should be judged in its own right, not as an “anti-war novel”.
Owain was incisive on the fate of Billy Pilgrim in the world of
post-war, corporate America. Sophie discussed how the time travelling
was portrayed (Ed also commented wisely that the time travel was a form
of memory rather than necessarily a science fiction motif). And Andy
controversially suggested that Billy Pilgrim’s own fatalism made him not
just an anti-hero, but a villain.
All in all the discussion was a triumph and the participants agreed the
book itself was an enjoyable, thought provoking read.
The baton is passed on to Camilla for book club no.33. Let’s see if we
can squeeze it in before Xmas.
Pete
