Need Vonnegut Help

[Nevada Blue]

Looking for suggestions here.

I have a 17 year old grandson. I have a shelf full of Vonnegut. I haven't read any of them in over 20 years so I'm having trouble picking out what to send along for him when his mother comes out to visit.

What was the Vonnegut that got you hooked (if you were hooked)?

Anyone have any suggestions on what to recommend as a first Vonnegut read for a teen-aged boy in this era of instant-everything? He does like to read. I know he hasn't read any Vonnegut yet.

Thanks.

[Smarmie Doofus]

1. Tough one. I'd go w. Slaughterhouse 5.

Only because I remember various passages..... and even sentence fragments.... even after 40 years.

I *THINK* they still serve this up for HS kids in some locales so it may have a timeless quality that modern kids can relate to.

[TexasBushwhacker]

3. +1

[antiquie]

2. Agreed here: Kurt Vonnegut-Gateways

Why: Slaughterhouse-Five is Kurt Vonnegut’s greatest novel. And not only is it a terrific book in its own right, it’s also a key piece in contextualizing the rest of Vonnegut’s writing. It’s not his first novel (Player Piano), and it does feature cameos from characters in earlier stories, like Eliot Rosewater, the protagonist of God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, Howard Campbell from Mother Night, and Kilgore Trout, Vonnegut’s fictional alter ego. But in Vonnegut’s writing, plot is never of primary importance, and characters’ histories change to fit the needs of whatever storyline they currently inhabit. When former main or secondary figures appear in novels beyond their debut, it’s less an effort to create a consistent world than to express a consistent worldview. These people all belong together, in a universe where cruel chance is the only true constant.

[4now]

4. Galapagos got me hooked on Vonnegut

I don't know what others thought of Galapagos but it is still a big brain favorite of mine.

[IcyPeas]

5. Sirens of Titan ....

got me hooked.

Cat's Cradle (ice-nine) was great too.

(I had a cat named Kilgore Trout)

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

6. Cat's Cradle is the one I remember best

but they're all great.

[Laffy Kat]

7. Welcome to the Monkey House.

It is a collection of shorts, and the title story is the only one I remember, but it is funny as hell.

[lame54]

8. S5 or BoC

[caraher]

9. Slaughterhouse 5 is probably the "safe" choice

If you only read one that should be it. I tend to prefer the earlier stuff myself; Cat's Cradle is perhaps equally good, and Sirens of Titan I think is too often overlooked.

[PufPuf23]

10. Cat's Cradle is catchy.

I have always been very fond of God Bless You Mr. Rosewater.

[Nevada Blue]

11. I appreciate your input - guess we'll go w/S-5 and Cat's Cradle for starters - thx again n/t