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bigenk's review against another edition
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Listen:
Vonnegut is a weirdo. He can be self-indulgent and self-involved. He often subverts expectations for no other than reason than to mess with the reader. I wouldn't fault anybody for not enjoying his writing. That being said; I do enjoy his work.
Breakfast of Champions is written in a way that reminds me of how someone would describe the intricacies of humanity to an alien race. Everything is drawn out, explained with the most basic and detached of descriptions. We learn tiny little details of everybody and everything involved in the story. I can't help but be left feeling just how absurd we are as a species. This book gave me a lens through which to view that absurdity, and laugh. Humor has always been one of Vonnegut's strong points as a writer, which is one of the reasons I tend to be drawn to him. Vonnegut is also a deeply political writer, and it shows especially strongly here. He has a lot to criticize about American values, history, and social structure. He is particularly blunt about his views, which I personally enjoy. I enjoyed the deeply flawed and at times contemptible characters. I especially enjoy Kilgore.
I still don't really know what to think about Vonnegut inserting himself into the story in the latter-half.
I think that Breakfast of Champions is a tad long though. I think that it would've lost little being paired down by 50-100 pages. It dragged for me towards the second half of the book. The short, segmented way in which it is written also prevented me from getting any sort of rhythm while reading, which was frustrating.
Overall, I would say that while Breakfast of Champions is not my favorite Vonnegut work, it's definitely and excellent work of satire and metafiction, that I'm glad to have read a few times in my life.
And so on..
Vonnegut is a weirdo. He can be self-indulgent and self-involved. He often subverts expectations for no other than reason than to mess with the reader. I wouldn't fault anybody for not enjoying his writing. That being said; I do enjoy his work.
Breakfast of Champions is written in a way that reminds me of how someone would describe the intricacies of humanity to an alien race. Everything is drawn out, explained with the most basic and detached of descriptions. We learn tiny little details of everybody and everything involved in the story. I can't help but be left feeling just how absurd we are as a species. This book gave me a lens through which to view that absurdity, and laugh. Humor has always been one of Vonnegut's strong points as a writer, which is one of the reasons I tend to be drawn to him. Vonnegut is also a deeply political writer, and it shows especially strongly here. He has a lot to criticize about American values, history, and social structure. He is particularly blunt about his views, which I personally enjoy. I enjoyed the deeply flawed and at times contemptible characters. I especially enjoy Kilgore.
I still don't really know what to think about Vonnegut inserting himself into the story in the latter-half.
I think that Breakfast of Champions is a tad long though. I think that it would've lost little being paired down by 50-100 pages. It dragged for me towards the second half of the book. The short, segmented way in which it is written also prevented me from getting any sort of rhythm while reading, which was frustrating.
Overall, I would say that while Breakfast of Champions is not my favorite Vonnegut work, it's definitely and excellent work of satire and metafiction, that I'm glad to have read a few times in my life.
And so on..
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism and Racial slurs
Minor: Rape
deroberts15's review against another edition
dark
funny
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Minor: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicide, Racial slurs, and Sexual violence
cms0899's review against another edition
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs and Violence
Moderate: Rape and Suicide
vipsahtanut's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I don't know what to think of this book. I'd recommend cheking the content warnings before reading.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Mental illness, Racial slurs, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Misogyny, Suicide, Violence, Rape, and Sexual violence
whysoserious's review against another edition
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness, Racism, Racial slurs, Violence, and Suicide
Minor: Excrement and Homophobia
sillymaya's review against another edition
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
What a trip, this guy. Love when I’m LOLing several times throughout the book—that’s not common for me so it’s real refreshing. Very weird, very cool. Loved how the descriptions/definitions of seemingly banal ideas/objects turned them into something new. And Kilgore Trout’s stories in his books were fresh. Where can I read me some of those.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs
Moderate: Suicide
msawyer77's review against another edition
challenging
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Racism, and Racial slurs
bowienerd_82's review against another edition
dark
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs
booknug's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs
Minor: Rape
sophiegorecki's review against another edition
dark
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
this is the first vonnegut book i’ve read and i really love his satire and the little drawings he has throughout. he really is a genius at character building and having them all tie together in the end. the references to indianapolis made me happy too :)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Violence, and Racial slurs
Moderate: Death of parent, Alcohol, and Racism