The Sirens of Titan (1959) (edit title/settings)

• Rated 4 stars

“Beautiful and absolutely heartbreaking. Potentially one of my favourite of Vonnegut's works. "I was a victim of a series of accidents. As are we all."”

• Rated 1 stars

“I didn’t understand what was going on half the time.”

• Rated 3 stars

“I both liked and disliked this book. As a fan of hard science fiction, I found his lack of world building and foundation in science to be annoying. I understand that it wasn't his point, but it still irritated me the whole way through. It came across like it was only half done. The characters, also, seemed like shadows of who they really were. Occasionally we got glimpses of who they were at their core but I never seemed to truly get to know them, or care about them. I think the most interesting and explained character was Salo and he was such a minor character.

As a commentary on society, it was much more interesting. The cadence of the writing seemed very similar to Margaret Atwood, not to mention the subject matter. The front of my book says that not only does Vonnegut dare to ask about the meaning of life, he dares to answer it. Perhaps I am not intelligent enough to figure it out, but I found no real answer. What I found was a canvas upon which lines were drawn and each person brings his own preconceptions to the work and then draws conclusions from it. In fact, I find this kind of art to be much more appealing, as it both forces you to confront your preconceptions, while not dismissing them altogether. In this sense, I found great enjoyment in the book. ”

• Rated 0 stars

“A literary master, Kurt Vonnegut is extremely cynical. His books presume to introduce enormous questions about the nature of humanity, and he is even audacious enough to answer some of those questions. His answers are rarely positive. Other books by him which I have read and loved are Slaughterhouse Five and Cat's Cradle.”

• Rated 4 stars

“Sirens of Titan was my second Vonnegut book and while I didn't think that it was quite on par with Slaughter House 5, I did think it was very good book that I enjoyed quite a bit. The book largely follows Malachi Constant as he's placed in various situations and examines the meaning of life utilizing a worldview that takes an existential slant that borders on nihilism in places. The difference between where Vonnegut concludes and where other's view the world through takes them, is that Vonnegut chooses to end up in a warmer, fuzzier, somewhat optimistic place rather than the cold, dark place that others often get to when beginning with the worldview Vonnegut espouses. While I won't spoil the end or the twists that happen along the way the message in the end is largely one of live in the moment you're in, love those around you and no matter who's pulling the strings, do the best to make the world a better place however you can. Sort of a 60's flower power anthem, which, isn't such a bad anthem to be singing.

In any case, philosophy aside, the story itself was a pretty fun, quick ride that made me think in a few places, had some good wisdom that most would agree with and even had a few twists along the way that kept the story interesting and moving along nicely. The pieces come together nicely towards the very end to shed light on the earlier events in a satisfying way and while I wouldn't consider this a "classic" or "must read", it is very good and definitely not Sci-Fi enough to turn off anyone who's not a fan of the genre. In fact, while the story happens to unfold on several planets (mostly in our solar system), it's really just a story about man's place in the universe and really can be enjoyed by just about anyone. So, all things considered, another great book by Vonnegut that has me looking forward to whatever next Vonnegut book I'll eventually read next.”

• Rated 4 stars

“Wasn't as highly recommended to me as Galapagos, but I enjoyed it way more.”

• Rated 4 stars

“I know it pre-dates Douglas Adams, but I read Adams first so it reminds me of him. Wreaks havoc with space-age technology, with quantum mechanics, classical metaphysics, with luck, chance, space, time. Absurd, obviously, but in the most clever and educated way.”

• Rated 5 stars

“Great novel. Very science fiction-y, which is not usually my cup of tea. But Vonnegut makes that genre speak in a way that no other author I've ever read does. Highly recommend. ”

• Rated 4 stars

“Great Vonnegut book. As good as I remember it.”

• Rated 5 stars

“crazy and amazing. so imaginative and inventive.”