SLAUGHTERHOUSE-FIVE
Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., Author, Ethan Hawke, Read by , read by Ethan Hawke. Caedmon $25.95 (0p) ISBN 978-0-06-056492-6
"Listen: Billy Pilgrim has become unstuck in time." So begins Vonnegut's absurdist 1969 classic. Hawke rises to the occasion of performing this sliced-and-diced narrative, which is part sci-fi and partially based on Vonnegut's experience as a American prisoner of war in Dresden, Germany during the firebombing of 1945 that killed thousands of civilians. Billy travels in time and space, stopping here and there throughout his life, including his long visit to the planet Tralfamador, where he is mated with a porn star. Hawke adopts a confidential, whisper-like tone for his reading. Listening to him is like listening to someone tell you a story in the back of a bus—the perfect pitch for this book. After the novel ends, Vonnegut himself speaks for a short while about his survival of the Dresden firestorm and describes and names the man who inspired this story. Tacked on to the very end of this audio smorgasbord is music, a dance single that uses a vintage recording of Vonnegut reading from the book. Though Hawke's reading is excellent, one cannot help but wish Vonnegut himself had read the entire text.
Reviewed on: 03/01/2004
Release date: 11/01/2003
Genre: Religion
Paperback - 72 pages - 9781586634582
Prebound-Glued - 288 pages - 9780613647885
MP3 CD - 1 pages - 9781433269721
Open Ebook - 120 pages - 9780440339069
Prebound-Glued - 224 pages - 9780808514572
Compact Disc - 5 pages - 9780060573775