Product Description

Jailbird takes us into a fractured and comic, pure Vonnegut world of high crimes and misdemeanors in government...and in the heart. This wry tale follows bumbling bureaucrat Walter F. Starbuck from Harvard to the Nixon White House to the penitentary as Watergate's least known co-conspirator. But the humor turns dark when Vonnegut shines his spotlight on the cold hearts and calculated greed of the mighty, giving a razor-sharp edge to an unforgettable portrait of power and politics in our times.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #43918 in Books
• Published on: 1999-01-12
• Released on: 1999-01-12
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 320 pages

Review
"He is our strongest writer . . . the most  stubbornly imaginative." -- John Irving,  author of The Cider House Rules.

"A gem. . .  a mature, imaginative novel-possibly the best he  has written. . . Jailbird is a  guided tour de force of America. Take it!"  -- Playboy


From the Paperback edition. -- Review

Review
"He is our strongest writer . . . the most  stubbornly imaginative." -- John Irving,  author of The Cider House Rules.

"A gem. . .  a mature, imaginative novel-possibly the best he  has written. . . Jailbird is a  guided tour de force of America. Take it!"  -- Playboy


From the Paperback edition.

From the Inside Flap
Jailbird takes us into a fractured and comic, pure Vonnegut world of high crimes and misdemeanors in government. . .and in the heart. This wry tale follows bumbling bureaucrat Walter F. Starbuck from Harvard to the Nixon White House to the penitentiary as Watergate's least known co-conspirator. But the humor turns dark when Vonnegut shines his spotlight on the cold hearts and calculated greed of the mighty, giving a razor-sharp edge to an unforgettable portait of power and politics in our times.

From the Paperback edition.

Customer Reviews

Brilliant
Yes, I'm a Kurt Vonnegut fan boy. Started reading him in junior high and have never stopped. But even so, Jailbird is one of his best. A great story, caustic wit, and women farting like a man. A wondrous joy is Kurt.

RIP

Vonnegut - a good example of his style
Walter Starbuck, the main character of Jailbird, has much more control over his life than the main characters in some of Vonnegut's other novels, notably Paul Proteus in Player Piano and Billy Pilgrim in Slaughterhouse 5, among others. Starbuck's rising and falling doesn't really get described in graphic detail... never does he really hit rock bottom nor seem to touch the stars (!) at all. The result feels a little flat. Sirens of Titan sees Malachi Constant go to tremendous extremes - which I personally find makes for voyeuristic, quick reading.

As an Australian, and an ignorant one at that, I have to admit to knowing very little about the Watergate scandal at all. Jailbird whetted my appetite to learn more. Perhaps I'll have to pick up some good non-fiction on the subject for some more in-depth investigating.

I don't know whether this says more about the book or about myself, but I have just reread this book after several years and found that I remember virtually nothing from the first reading.

The true genuis of Kurt Vonnegut
I sometimes refer to this novel as "the best book I've ever read that contains no plot whatsoever." That's a bit of hyperbole, but if you read the book, I think you'll understand what I'm getting at (and if you haven't read the book, it's very hard to describe what I mean). That said, I consider "Jailbird" to be one of Vonnegut's true masterpieces. Overshadowed by "Slaughterhouse-Five" and others, this book doesn't get nearly as much respect or attention as it deserves. It's amusing and engaging throughout, and deeply moving at many points, especially the end. While I was a Vonnegut fan before reading it, "Jailbird" helped me understand that the true genius of Kurt Vonnegut lies not with his incisive wit--which is considerable--but with his compassionate humanity. This book is recommended for everyone.