Although it was not intended as such, Kurt Vonnegut's A Man Without A Country may be as close as readers get to a memoir by the popular late 20th century American author. Vonnegut died in April, 2007 at the age of 85. The short volume (145 pages) is actually a collection of articles, most of which are reprints from the alternative news magazine In These Times, where Vonnegut's articles remain consistently the most popular.
Vonnegut's Work Defied Categorization
The author of more than two dozen novels, including Cat's Cradle, Slaughterhouse Five, and Breakfast of Champions, Kurt Vonnegut's prose defied categorization. He was called a genre-bender, often wrongly placed in the science fiction aisle due to the futuristic bent to his stories. The single theme that is present throughout his work is the notion of "humanism" and A Man Without A Country carries on that tradition, albeit with the cranky grandfatherly tone.
That is not to say that Kurt Vonnegut has not been cranky throughout his half-century career. The author has always promoted his humanist values against a backdrop of the more negative aspects of life on Earth: political corruption, sleazy values and, especially, war. Right alongside these serious matters, however, has always been Vonnegut's quirky, but very funny, brand of humor. Again, A Man Without A Country delivers.
Quotable Vonnegut
This book covers a little bit of everything. On our (particularly Americans') overuse of natural resources: " ...Don't spoil the party, but here's the truth: we have squandered our planet's resources, including air and water, as though there were no tomorrow, and now there isn't going to be one. So there goes the Junior Prom..."
On the out-going administration: "Speaking of plunging into war, do you know why I think George W. Bush is so pissed off at the Arabs? They brought us algebra...try doing long division with Roman numerals."
Vonnegut On The Future
Perhaps his saddest sentiment: "I don't think people give a damn whether the planet goes on or not...everyone is living as members of Alcoholics Anonymous do, day by day...I know of very few people who are dreaming of a world for their grandchildren."
Vonnegut On The Arts
But not all of A Man Without a Country is gloom and doom. Vonnegut advocates the practice of humanist behavior, of simply helping each other, and finds solace in the arts. He suggests creating, in any form: "Dance to the radio. Tell stories. Write a poem to a friend, even a lousy poem. Do it as well as you possibly can. You will get an enormous reward. You will have created something."
And a final, appropriate, sentiment: "If I should ever die, God forbid, let this be my epitaph: the only proof he ever needed for the existence of God was music."
Not much of what Vonnegut has to say in A Man Without a Country" is new, but for fans, that's just fine. His musings are one final underline to an estimable career, one which provoked thought and raised smiles in many. "So it goes."
Vonnegut, Kurt. A Man Without A Country, 2007 Random House, 145 pgs. (isbn# 978-0-8129-7736-3)
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