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Kurt Vonnegut's America

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There are only a few works of scholarship dedicated to a particular subject that can function exquisitely as such, and equally well as an autobiography of the scholar. Jerome Klinkowitz, the pre-eminent literary critic of Kurt Vonnegut and his generation of american writers, has written a masterful memoir of scholarship and friendship with one of the most important literary figures ever produced by the United States. How the United States crafted the work and personage of Kurt Vonnegut is a story as captivating and all-encompassing as a social history of exciting times can be, but with a depth of character and insight so personal and wry and humane that the reader cannot help but understand the passion, pain, complexity, love and sincerity behind and at the start and heart of Kurt's works. While a brief 160 pages, Klinkowitz deftly addresses Vonnegut's life story, each of his novels, and his profound influence on American letters throughout a 60-year publishing career. This is a marvelous read, and provides so much new thought and avenues for new understandings within Vonnegut's works that it will be a foundation for the study of American literature and literary figures of this era. More than this, even, it is the story of the formation of a prolific scholar, and a close friendship which is enviable to all who feel a kinship with the public Vonnegut. Klinkowitz shares this relationship freely, so that the experience of it becomes available and comprehensible.

KURT VONNEGUT'S AMERICA is a literary survey highly recommended for any college-level collection strong in Kurt Vonnegut. It blends discussion of his fiction, essays and works with personal exchanges and biographical background to follow the relationship between his work and culture, and is key to any understanding of Vonnegut's work.