Kurt Vonnegut has died.
Here is where I would say something profound and beautiful about the myriad ways in which he shaped my aesthetic and helped me to become the writer and person I am today.
Let me just say that I read Slaughterhouse Five because my father told me that I should read every book that had ever been banned. I started with Slaughterhouse Five and I became addicted to Vonnegut. So I worked my way through many Vonnegut novels. I learned from him that a book can be funny and make a bold political statement. That it can be imaginative in the largest sense of the word and can say something huge about the way we live.
I think for me this is the first time I have confronted the death of one of my literary heroes. I definitely would not be a writer today if I had never read Slaughterhouse Five. Or Cats' Cradle. Or "Welcome to the Monkey House." My favorite for a while was a sappy little story called "A Long Walk to Forever." It is sappy, but kind of sweet.
Vonnegut is dead. Long live Vonnegut!
5 comments:
Listen.
Lovely tribute.
Thanks for writing this. I just saw the obit and thought of Cat's Cradle and Slaughterhouse Five, which I read at such a young age that they were indelible, for the completely original voice I was hearing.
I read Breakfast of Champions first, because, quite frankly, I was reading anything I could find with sex in it. And along the way, I learned to appreciate complex, satirical narratives packed with irreverent humor.
"Vonnegut died," I exclaimed on set the other day. I was met with some knowing nods and a lot of blank stares. Thank God no one had the balls to say "What's Vonnegut?" or I might have cried.
I think I will read Slaughter House Five over summer break. Just because.
Erin
Post a Comment