Cat's Cradle was written by Kurt Vonnegut, back in 1963. This is the third or fourth book I have read by Vonnegut. He seems to like a little science fiction in his stories, with his inclusion of ice-9. The story begins with the author having the idea of writing a book about what certain people were doing when the first nuclear bomb was detonated. One of the person's he is interested in is Felix Hoenikker, the father of the bomb used to end World War II. In researching him, he ends up in Illium, where Felix used to live and talking to two of his children. The story follows into the research facility where we met Dr. Breed who is giving him a tour. The author, John, ends up having a discussion about ice-9 as he is asking questions about other inventions by Felix.
As it turns out, the third son is on an island and through serendipity, the other two siblings are headed to meet him and they happen to be on the same airplane as John.the author. There are some diplomats and other people on the plane, all end up on the island. While on the plane, John sees an ad for the island with Mona on the cover and he instantly falls in love with her. He starts thinking he wants to marry her. When they get to the island, we meet Papa who is the dictator, we start learning of Bokononism, a religion invented by Bokonon. John reads the books of Bokonon and becomes a believer too,
As it turns out, Papa is dying and even though the third missing son of Felix, Frank, has become his right hand man, he does not want the responsibility of running the island. There is no rhyme or reason, but Felix meets John the writer and offers him the job of Dictator, which happens to come with the privilege of marrying the beautiful Mona. Papa is bedridden and just needs to die, but he makes a mess of it by opening a vial of ice-9 to drink and commit suicide. Although it seems isolated and they have attempted to clean up the mess, a plane that is supposed to perform a ceremonial flyover loses an engine and crashes into Papa's castle and knocks him into the ocean where the ice-9 in Papa's body makes a mess of the ocean and everything freezes and causes mayhem and destruction. John and Mona end up in a bunker where they have baby making love instead of the Boko Maru, which is a form of Bokononism sex where they touch feet instead of sex organs.
The end is a mess as most of the island is covered in ice blue from the ice-9 and most of the inhabitants have committed suicide by taking the ice-9, John meets the elusive Bokonon by the side of the road. Although his words are followed by most of the people, in reality, he is a simple man, clad in only a bedspread from the Casa Mona hotel. He suggests that the best way to die if that is all that is left for the writer is to climb the highest mountain on the island, lay down on his back, grin, and thumb your nose at You Know Who, to remain in that position permanently.
The story was fun and quick to read, I am just not sure I got out of it whatever I should have.
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