Holy Crap, Is This My Last Blog Ever?? - Novel Blog 10 (Slaughterhouse-Five)

"Billy and the rest wandered out onto the shady street. The trees were leafing out. There was nothing going on out there, no traffic of any kind. There was only one vehicle, an abandoned wagon drawn by two horses. The wagon was green and coffin-shaped. Birds were talking. One bird said to Billy Pilgrim, 'Poo-tee-weet?' "

~ Slaughterhouse-Five, page 215

Okay, time for an overall blog about Slaughterhouse-Five.

I really liked the book. It was very interesting - I've never read a book that combined time travel, war, and alien abduction - and it wasn't tedious to read. I really found myself enjoying it throughout even though we were supposed to analyze it. The structure was frustrating at times, especially in the beginning when it was hard to grasp the order and concepts, but it really added some unique qualities to the novel. I'm gonna be honest though, I still don't really know what the plot was; it seemed to be more of a memoir than a book with a clear purpose and climax.

I think that was what I struggled with the most while reading - it didn't seem like there was any point to the book. I mean, it was entertaining, but what was changed or achieved in the end? I don't think I've ever read something where the main character didn't want to attain something or fix a problem. It was just... different.

The ending also particularly frustrated me. There's a lot of action and a lot of things we ascertain from the bombing of Dresden in the last two chapters - and then it just ends? What the heck?? I guess that follows the structure of the book though; it's choppy and sporadic. I just thought there may be an "aha" moment at the end where everything clicked and made sense. That dissatisfaction and lack of resolution is really frustrating. But then again, what was there to resolve? I don't know.

Well, that was a pretty good book. Goodbye, blog readers! Enjoy your summer and have a lovely life hereafter.