Slaughterhouse-Five - by Kurt Vonnegut

This book was quite a surprise. I had always had the impression that the author was “just” a sci fi writer and, whilst that would not mean that I would never read his work, this is a genre that I only dip into from time to time. However, although aspects of this book might be labelled as sci fi, the story as a whole is very down to earth.

I found it s straightforward read and was never confused by wandering in time. So many books nowadays have multiple timelines, that this feels quite normal. I guess it was ahead of its time, as it was written 60+ years ago. I am still not quite sure what to make of Billy Pilgrim, even though his character is examined quite broadly in the book. The story as a whole was thought provoking, looking at “man’s inhumanity to man” type issues and the wider meaning of life (and death) etc. As the author would say, so it goes.