Classics · DarkBilly Pilgrim, an optometrist from Ilium, New York, lives his life out of order, from Dresden to Tralfamadore
Slaughterhouse-Five
A soldier's life told out of order, from the firebombing of Dresden to a distant planet
Its full title is Slaughterhouse-Five, or The Children's Crusade, with the subtitle "A Duty-Dance with Death." Billy Pilgrim is an optometrist from the fictional town of Ilium, New York, and the novel follows his life across time, centering on his capture by the Germans and his survival of the Allied firebombing of Dresden as a prisoner of war. The settings include World War II, postwar America and the planet Tralfamadore. The first chapter is an author's preface, and the story proper begins with Billy. Delacorte published it on March 31, 1969.
More about this book
Who
Billy Pilgrim, an optometrist from Ilium, New York.
World
World War II (including the Battle of the Bulge and Dresden), postwar America and the planet Tralfamadore.
What makes it different
The narrative is nonlinear and broken into short scenes. The phrase "So it goes" recurs, and the book has hand-drawn illustrations. It opens with "All this happened, more or less."
Feel
Short, dark and wry, at 190 pages.
Page count and cover shown for: Selected edition
Further reading
- Slaughterhouse-FiveWikipedia