Customer Reviews

Heller's Catch-22 (Cliffs Notes)

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I am a high school senior and am currently doing an independent study on American satire. Catch-22, to say the least, is brilliant. It is long and complex, but is a fascinating study of World War II. It is the story of fighter pilots in World War II and the underlying theme is of the insanity of war. Heller captures the very essence of war through his chaotic plot and timeshifts. His characters, especially our lovable protagonist Yossarian, are crazy and yet very real. The book is very humorous, and yet accurately depicts the grotesqueness of war. The book is a challenge, but it is definitely the best book I have ever read. In short, I highly recommend it.

Joseph Heller's work, Catch-22, is an unequivocal satire on postmodern American life, with messages of dissident revolt that were well suited to the decade in which it appears. Heller is almost systematic in the issues he touches: the frustration of the individual up against powerful and faceless bureaucracies; the anticommunist purges of the Cold War and its smug hypocrisies; and strong antiwar issues that dominated postmodern America. In Heller's work, escaping these traps and inconsistencies of government is essential in the pursuit of moral and self-preservation. After all, "The enemy," as Yossarian puts it, "is anybody who's going to get you killed, no matter which side he's on." (Joseph Heller)

After retiring from the United States Marine Corps, I entered college at California University of Pennsylvania and was assigned this book to read in a Lit class. I found myself reading at 2 A.M. and just could not put this book down. After so much time seeing the goodness and insanity of the many places around the world the Corps sent me to, this book had the ability to change my views and attitude towards the many things I had seen and experienced. I could relate to the many actual events and people I had known, and this book, more than any other, truly changed my life. "Man is matter, set him on fire and he will burn, drop him from a building and he will fall..." Continue on reading and find out what man is and what freedom is. After reading this book, get the movie-it is right on line with the book and is great in it's own right. BUT DO NOT watch the movie first-you just will not get it. Trust me-it's a winner and can be a life changer. THE best book I have ever read. Yossarian Lives!!

I love CATCH-22. It and the HOUSE OF GOD are two similar books, in my opinion. Of course CATCH-22 is a true classic and is hilarious. The CLIFFSNOTES here helped me recall some of the points I'd forgotten although I'd reading the book again for the third time.

book received in timely manner - has alot of highlighting in the pages i wasn't aware of -but will serve the purpose for my student in the class -wanted an additional book to keep at home -this works!

"Catch-22" is one of the funniest books I've ever read - it captures the nuttiness of the military very well. The Cliffs Notes, however, comes up with insights and perspectives that just make reading the book a drag. Read the book, skip the notes.

"catch 22" captures the war through the eyes of yossarian- a soldier the wants to be immortal and despises the war.
it starts off very interesting but towards the end it becomes a bit slow.
Heller uses black humor to present the charachters- which adds to the book a lot. recommended.

Catch 22 is like no other novel. It has its own rationale its own extraordinary character. It moves back and forth through OUR conception of time. The humor and overallvitality and power of the novel create the master piece that is a catch 22.