Hocus Pocus by Kurt Vonnegut
From the New York Times bestselling author of Slaughterhouse-Five comes an irresistible novel that combines clever wit with keen social observation...[and] re-establishes Mr. Vonnegut's place as the Mark Twain of our times (Atlanta Journal & Constitution). n nHere is the adventure of Eugene Debs Hartke. He's a Vietnam veteran, a jazz pianist, a college professor, and a prognosticator of the apocalypse (and other things Earth-shattering). But that's neither here nor there. Because at Tarkington College--where he teaches--the excrement is about to hit the air-conditioning. And it's all Eugene's fault. n nEditorial Reviews n nIt is the most richly detailed and textured of Mr. Vonnegut's renderings of this particular planet. Unlike many of his major characters, Hartke seems like a real person, and Scipio seems like a real town. Some readers may miss the wilder leaps of imagination and the whimsy, but what is gained is a muscular dignity of voice that only rarely is tendentious. And, like outer space in The Sirens of Titan, Hocus Pocus is not without ''empty heroics, low comedy, and pointless death.'' n- The New York Times n- Jay McInerney n nWhile awaiting trial for an initially unspecified crime, Vietnam vet and college professor Eugene Debs Hartke realizes that he has killed exactly as many people as he has had sex with, a coincidence that causes him to doubt his atheism. According to PW , ``The cumulative power of the novel is considerable, revealing Vonnegut at his fanciful and playful best.'' (Nov.) n n- Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly n nPraise for Hocus Pocus n nHocus Pocus is the most topical, realistic Vonnegut novel to date...he is a satirist with a heart, a moralist with a whoopee cushion.--Jay McInerney, The New York Times n nVonnegut's best novel in years--funny and prophetic, yes, and fabulous too, as cunning as Aesop and as gloomy as Grimm...He's up to something special in Hocus Pocus.--The Nation n nA king-sized relief valve of comedy. Every bit as humorous as Cat's Cradle, Slaughterhouse-Five, Breakfast of Champions or any of Vonnegut's other comic masterpieces...Vonnegut evokes the cynical chortle, the knowing grin, the inner laughter that soothes our troubled reflections...He's mad as hell and laughing all the way to the apocalypse.--Playboy n nHis voice is one of the most original in popular American fiction...sharp-toothed satire...truly hilarious...Hocus Pocus is ample proof that his literary prestidigitation can still amuse and delight.--San Francisco Chronicle n nIrresistible...Hocus Pocus is vintage Vonnegut, witty, startling, satiric...off-the-wall brilliance. Vonnegut is a true original. Hocus Pocus is not only poignant and provocative, it is outrageous and very funny indeed. If Luck and Time are the two prime movers of the Universe, we are lucky in our time to have a Kurt Vonnegut to prod us, scold us, astonish us, unnerve us, entertain us and make us laugh.--The Cleveland Plain Dealer n- From the Publisher
Publication Details
Title:
Author(s):
Illustrator:
Binding: Paperback
Published by: Penguin Publishing Group: , 1991
Edition:
ISBN: 9780425130216 | 0425130215
336 pages.
Book Condition: Good
Cover worn
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Product information
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