Subject: Re: list
From: Tim O'Connor (tim@roughdraft.org)
Date: Fri Jan 14 2000 - 17:01:00 EST
At 11:50 AM -0500 on 1/13/2000, you wrote:
> Slaughter House Five is based on V's real experience. He was present
> in the bombing of Dresdin (an event in the book). I visted Dresdin and
> looked up Schlokthaus Fuenf. Of all the people I asked about its location
> no one knew of the book. No one had heard of V. Schlokthaus Fuenf is
> still there, unfortunately it is behind a gate, and the guard wasn't
> really pleased about my interest in the place.
Vonnegut labored for years to write that book, and the only way he
could get a handle on it was to frame the Dresden bits within a
noodly SF surreal story. I've read him describe how he drew a map on
wallpaper, with each color representing a character, so he could
figure out the plot line. I still think the opening, when he goes to
visit his old war buddy (wearing the Mark Twain mantle of simple
rube) and elicits that reaction from his buddy's wife is
chest-rattling. No many how times I read it, it gives me a lump in
my throat. Bernard V. O'Hare. I can't swear to it, but when I saw
KV last year I think he said that Bernard had died that year.
Vonnegut's brother died too in the last few years. Perhaps this is
why he said he will no longer write books. (The exception is an
anthology of uncollected work that recently came out. And SOMETHING
called God Bless You, Dr. Kevorkian! If anyone knows of other
exceptions to his pronouncement, please post them!)
I'm amazed that the building is still intact.
--tim
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