Tim the Wiz
Banned
GAF Book Club (Jan 2012) - "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller
"Catch-22 is the only war novel I've read that makes any sense." -- Harper Lee
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/168668.Catch_22?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
"He had decided to live forever or die in the attempt."
Catch-22 is like no other novel. It is one of the funniest books ever written, a keystone work in American literature, and even added a new term to the dictionary.
At the heart of Catch-22 resides the incomparable, malingering bombardier, Yossarian, a hero endlessly inventive in his schemes to save his skin from the horrible chances of war. His efforts are perfectly understandable because as he furiously scrambles, thousands of people he hasn't even met are trying to kill him. His problem is Colonel Cathcart, who keeps raising the number of missions the men must fly to complete their service. Yet if Yossarian makes any attempts to excuse himself from the perilous missions that he is committed to flying, he is trapped by the Great Loyalty Oath Crusade, the hilariously sinister bureaucratic rule from which the book takes its title: a man is considered insane if he willingly continues to fly dangerous combat missions, but if he makes the necessary formal request to be relieved of such missions, the very act of making the request proves that he is sane and therefore ineligible to be relieved.
Catch-22 is a microcosm of the twentieth-century world as it might look to someone dangerously sane -- a masterpiece of our time.
Amazon Paperback
Kindle edition
Guidelines:
Reading Milestones:
Fri, Jan 6 - Ch 1 - 5
Sun, Jan 8 - Ch 6 - 10
Tue, Jan 10 - Ch 11 - 15
Thu, Jan 12 - Ch 16 - 20
Sat, Jan 14 - Ch 21 - 25
Mon, Jan 16 - Ch 26 - 30
Wed, Jan 18 - Ch 31 - 35
Fri, Jan 20 - Ch 36 - 40
Sun, Jan 22 - Ch 41 - 42
Tue, Jan 24 - Fin
Future Book Club Possibilities (In Tentative Order):
2666 by Roberto Bolaño
Help! A Bear Is Eating Me! by Mykle Hansen
If on a winter's night, a traveler by Italo Calvino
The Long Ships by Frans Gunnar Bengtsson
The Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peake
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers
The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
Devil In the White City by Erik Larson
[your recommendation here!]
Previous Book Club Threads:
The Shadow of the Wind, by Carlos Ruiz Zafón (December 2011)
Blood Meridian: Or the Evening Redness in the West, by Cormac McCarthy (Oct 2011)
The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov (Sep 2011)
The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas (Aug 2011)
Master and Commander, by Patrick O'Brian (July 2011)
The Happiness Project, by Gretchen Rubin (June 2011)
A Visit from the Goon Squad, by Jennifer Egan (May 2011)
The Afghan Campaign, by Steven Pressfield (Apr 2011)
Stranger in a Strange Land, by Robert A. Heinlein (Mar 2011)
Flashman, by George MacDonald Fraser (Feb 2011)
"Catch-22 is the only war novel I've read that makes any sense." -- Harper Lee
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/168668.Catch_22?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
"He had decided to live forever or die in the attempt."
Catch-22 is like no other novel. It is one of the funniest books ever written, a keystone work in American literature, and even added a new term to the dictionary.
At the heart of Catch-22 resides the incomparable, malingering bombardier, Yossarian, a hero endlessly inventive in his schemes to save his skin from the horrible chances of war. His efforts are perfectly understandable because as he furiously scrambles, thousands of people he hasn't even met are trying to kill him. His problem is Colonel Cathcart, who keeps raising the number of missions the men must fly to complete their service. Yet if Yossarian makes any attempts to excuse himself from the perilous missions that he is committed to flying, he is trapped by the Great Loyalty Oath Crusade, the hilariously sinister bureaucratic rule from which the book takes its title: a man is considered insane if he willingly continues to fly dangerous combat missions, but if he makes the necessary formal request to be relieved of such missions, the very act of making the request proves that he is sane and therefore ineligible to be relieved.
Catch-22 is a microcosm of the twentieth-century world as it might look to someone dangerously sane -- a masterpiece of our time.
Amazon Paperback
Kindle edition
Guidelines:
- For maximum fun and discussion, follow the milestones with the group. But feel free to read at your own pace if you prefer!
- If you read ahead and want to drop some knowledge, that's cool--but please use spoiler tags where appropriate! And be sure to indicate how far ahead the spoiler is. [spoiler]text goes here[/spoiler]
- Unspoilered discussion of anything through the latest milestone is allowed and encouraged. If you’re not caught up, read the thread at your own risk!
- Suggestions for the next book club selection are welcome at any time. Please vote on the next book once we're finished with this one. If no consensus is reached by the end of the month, we will go with the next book in the tentative order below.
Reading Milestones:
Fri, Jan 6 - Ch 1 - 5
Sun, Jan 8 - Ch 6 - 10
Tue, Jan 10 - Ch 11 - 15
Thu, Jan 12 - Ch 16 - 20
Sat, Jan 14 - Ch 21 - 25
Mon, Jan 16 - Ch 26 - 30
Wed, Jan 18 - Ch 31 - 35
Fri, Jan 20 - Ch 36 - 40
Sun, Jan 22 - Ch 41 - 42
Tue, Jan 24 - Fin
Future Book Club Possibilities (In Tentative Order):
2666 by Roberto Bolaño
Help! A Bear Is Eating Me! by Mykle Hansen
If on a winter's night, a traveler by Italo Calvino
The Long Ships by Frans Gunnar Bengtsson
The Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peake
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers
The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
Devil In the White City by Erik Larson
[your recommendation here!]
Previous Book Club Threads:
The Shadow of the Wind, by Carlos Ruiz Zafón (December 2011)
Blood Meridian: Or the Evening Redness in the West, by Cormac McCarthy (Oct 2011)
The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov (Sep 2011)
The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas (Aug 2011)
Master and Commander, by Patrick O'Brian (July 2011)
The Happiness Project, by Gretchen Rubin (June 2011)
A Visit from the Goon Squad, by Jennifer Egan (May 2011)
The Afghan Campaign, by Steven Pressfield (Apr 2011)
Stranger in a Strange Land, by Robert A. Heinlein (Mar 2011)
Flashman, by George MacDonald Fraser (Feb 2011)