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I have recently finished reading Catch-22 by Joseph Heller, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I found it to be a very witty, clever, humorous and gritty book. One of the things which had caught my eye about this book was the style in which it was written reminds me of one of my favorite authors Tom Robbins. Heller's writing in Catch-22 is like a milder and saner version of Tom Robbins, but they have the same sense of humor. A sharp wit, with a dash of the random thrown in, to make you say huh? I also love the satire which they both offer up ruthlessly.
One of the things I loved about Catch-22, is that behind the humor I think you can still find truth, and in spite of the ludicrous that he salts upon the pages, Heller does not shy away from the cold hard truth and brings a sharp realism to the story.
The book is about WW2 and normally I am not into war stories, but the great thing about this book, is that it was not so much about the war itself, it was not about some great heroic mission, or some historical event. It was about the people, it made the soldiers into real flesh and blood. It told the stories of their lives, featuring the unlikely hero Yossarian. It also reflect in humorous fashion both the incompetence and corruption of the military leaders.
But as I have said, there is a true to life aspect to this book, so Heller does not stray away from the realty of death in the war, so towards the end particularly it does begin to get sad. But the characters are outrageous, and outlandish, yet vividly alive. Some you will love, some you will hate and some you will love and hate.
6:23 PM - 8/10/2008 -
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