Books like 'Kurt Vonnegut's Cat's Cradle'
Readers who enjoyed Kurt Vonnegut's Cat's Cradle by Harold Bloom, Terry Southern, David H. Goldsmith, James Lundquist, Lawrence R. Broer, Peter J. Reed, Loree Rackstraw, William S. Doxey, Jerome Klinkowitz, Richard Giannone, John L. Simons, Leonard Mustazza, Zoltan Ab di-Nagy, Peter Freese & Wendy B. Faris also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary sc-fi comedy classics humor satire high-school historical-fiction dystopia literary-fiction
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Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace
Rated: 4.26 of 5 stars · 60 ratingsA gargantuan, mind-altering tragi-comedy about the Pursuit of Happiness in America... -
![Old Man's War by John Scalzi]()
Old Man's War by John Scalzi
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 50 ratingsJohn Perry did two things on his 75th birthday. First he visited his wife's grave. Then he joined the army.The good news is that humanity finally made it into interstellar space. The bad news is that planets fit to live on are scarce-- and alien races willing to fight us for them are common. So: we fight. To defend Earth, and to stake our own claim to planetary real estate... -
![The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams]()
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 66 ratingsSeconds before the Earth is demolished to make way for a galactic freeway, Arthur Dent is plucked off the planet by his friend Ford Prefect, a researcher for the revised edition of the The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy who, for the last fifteen years, has been posing as an out of work actor...Categorized as:
classics dystopia high-school humor literary-fiction satire 20th-century action-adventure -
![The Pillowman by Martin McDonagh]()
The Pillowman by Martin McDonagh
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsA writer in a totalitarian state is interrogated about the gruesome content of his short stories and their similarities to a number of child-murders that are happening in his town.'Sometimes you don't even know what you've been craving until the real thing comes along.' New York Times'McDonagh is more than just a very clever theatrical stylist. His tricks and turns have a purpose... -
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![The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.]()
The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 67 ratingsThe Sirens of Titan is an outrageous romp through space, time, and morality. The richest, most depraved man on Earth, Malachi Constant, is offered a chance to take a space journey to distant worlds with a beautiful woman at his side. Of course there’ s a catch to the invitation–and a prophetic vision about the purpose of human life that only Vonnegut has the courage to tell...Categorized as:
classics dystopia high-school humor literary-fiction postmodernism satire 20th-century -
![CivilWarLand in Bad Decline by George Saunders]()
CivilWarLand in Bad Decline by George Saunders
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsIn six stories and the novella, Bounty, Saunders introduces readers to people struggling to survive in an increasingly haywire world...Categorized as:
classics dystopia high-school historical-fiction humor literary-fiction postmodernism satire -
![The Golden Apple by Robert Shea, Robert Anton Wilson]()
The Golden Apple by Robert Shea, Robert Anton Wilson
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsNausea, then microamnesia, then the laughing jag, then sex. Be patient. The clear light comes next. Then we can discuss Truth. As if we haven't been discussing it all along. -Hagbard Celine, The Golden Apple Illuminatus! Part II, from the original and genuine trilogy of conspiracies, is performed in all its unabridged brilliance by a full ensemble cast...Categorized as:
classics dystopia historical-fiction humor politics postmodernism satire 20th-century -
![Monday Begins on Saturday by Arkady Strugatsky, Boris Strugatsky]()
Monday Begins on Saturday by Arkady Strugatsky, Boris Strugatsky
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 38 ratingsWhen young programmer Aleksandr Ivanovich Privalov picks up two hitchhikers while driving in Karelia, he is drawn into the mysterious world of the Scientific Research Institute of Sorcery and Wizardry, where research into magic is serious business... -
![The Gone-Away World by Nick Harkaway]()
The Gone-Away World by Nick Harkaway
Rated: 4.12 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsThe Jorgmund Pipe is the backbone of the world, and it's on fire. Gonzo Lubitsch, professional hero and troubleshooter, is hired to put it out, but there's more to the fire, and the Pipe itself, than meets the eye. The job will take Gonzo and his best friend, our narrator, back to their own beginnings...Categorized as:
apocalyptic dystopia humor literary-fiction postmodernism satire 21st-century action-adventure -
![Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.]()
Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 76 ratingsTold with deadpan humour and bitter irony, Kurt Vonnegut's cult tale of global destruction preys on our deepest fears of witnessing Armageddon and, worse still, surviving it ...Dr Felix Hoenikker, one of the founding 'fathers' of the atomic bomb, has left a deadly legacy to the world. For he's the inventor of 'ice-nine', a lethal chemical capable of freezing the entire planet...Categorized as:
apocalyptic classics dystopia high-school historical-fiction humor literary-fiction politics -
![Welcome to the Monkey House by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., Курт Воннегут]()
Welcome to the Monkey House by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., Курт Воннегут
Rated: 4.12 of 5 stars · 49 ratingsWelcome to the Monkey House is a collection of Kurt Vonnegut’s shorter works. Originally printed in publications as diverse as The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction and The Atlantic Monthly, these superb stories share Vonnegut’s audacious sense of humor and extraordinary range of creative vision...Categorized as:
classics dystopia high-school historical-fiction humor literary-fiction politics postmodernism -
![Infinity Welcomes Careful Drivers by Grant Naylor]()
Infinity Welcomes Careful Drivers by Grant Naylor
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsThe first lesson Lister learned about space travel was you should never try it. But Lister didn't have a choice. All he remembered was going on a birthday celebration pub crawl through London. When he came to his senses again, with nothing in his pockets but a passport in the name of Emily Berkenstein.So he did the only thing he could... -
![Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.]()
Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 70 ratingsAlternate cover for this ISBN can be found hereIn Breakfast of Champions, one of Kurt Vonnegut’s most beloved characters, the aging writer Kilgore Trout, finds to his horror that a Midwest car dealer is taking his fiction as truth. What follows is murderously funny satire, as Vonnegut looks at war, sex, racism, success, politics, and pollution in America and reminds us how to see the truth...Categorized as:
classics dystopia high-school historical-fiction humor literary-fiction politics postmodernism -
![Leviathan by Robert Shea, Robert Anton Wilson]()
Leviathan by Robert Shea, Robert Anton Wilson
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThe ultimate weapon isn't this plague out in Vegas, or any new super H-bomb. The ultimate weapon has always existed. Every man, every woman, and every child owns it. It's the ability to say No and take the consequences. - Hagbard Celine, LeviathanIlluminatus! Part III cheerfully ushers in the apocalyptic high-camp conclusion of the Illuminatus! Trilogy...Categorized as:
classics dystopia historical-fiction humor politics postmodernism satire 20th-century -
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![Pastoralia by George Saunders]()
Pastoralia by George Saunders
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsWith this new collection, George Saunders takes us even further into the shocking, uproarious and oddly familiar landscape of his imagination.The stories in Pastoralia are set in a slightly skewed version of America, where elements of contemporary life have been merged, twisted, and amplified, casting their absurdity-and our humanity-in a startling new light...Categorized as:
classics dystopia humor literary-fiction postmodernism satire 20th-century 21st-century -
![Qualityland by Marc-Uwe Kling]()
Qualityland by Marc-Uwe Kling
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsIn the near future sci-fi world of Qualityland, algorithms help create an idyllic life for its citizens, but what if the perfect world wasn't built for you?Welcome to QualityLand, the best country on Earth. Here, a universal ranking system determines the social advantages and career opportunities of every member of society... -
![In Persuasion Nation by George Saunders]()
In Persuasion Nation by George Saunders
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsThe stories In Persuasion Nation are easily his best work yet. "The Red Bow,"about a town consumed by pet-killing hysteria, won a 2004 National Magazine Award and "Bohemians," the story of two supposed Eastern European widows trying to fit in in suburban USA, is included in The Best American Short Stories 2005... -
![Bluebeard by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.]()
Bluebeard by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Rated: 4.05 of 5 stars · 41 ratingsBroad humor and bitter irony collide in this fictional autobiography of Rabo Karabekian, who, at age seventy-one, wants to be left alone on his Long Island estate with the secret he has locked inside his potato barn...Categorized as:
classics high-school historical-fiction humor literary-fiction postmodernism satire 20th-century -
![Everything Matters! by Ron Currie Jr.]()
Everything Matters! by Ron Currie Jr.
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsIn infancy, Junior Thibodeaux is encoded with a prophecy: a comet will obliterate life on Earth in thirty-six years...Categorized as:
apocalyptic dystopia humor literary-fiction satire 21st-century alternate-history audiobook -
![Zombie by Chuck Palahniuk]()
Zombie by Chuck Palahniuk
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIn 'Zombies', the absurdity of both life and death are on full display as the best and brightest of a high school prep school become tragically addicted to the latest drug craze - electronic shocks from cardiac defibrillators.Funny, caustic, bizarre, poignant - this story represents everything listeners have come to love and expect from Chuck Palahniuk.©2015 Chuck Palahniuk (P)2016 W.F. Howes Ltd... -
![We Have Lost The Chihuahuas by Paul Mathews]()
We Have Lost The Chihuahuas by Paul Mathews
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsLondon, 2046. The British Republic has a new First Lady. She’s Californian, ‘in-your-face, for sure’ and she’s got big plans for a Buckingham Palace refurb. When her three Chihuahuas go missing, one man is determined to avoid getting dragged into it all. His name is Pond. Howie Pond – presidential spokesperson, retired secret agent and cat lover... -
![Clowns Vs. Spiders by Jeff Strand]()
Clowns Vs. Spiders by Jeff Strand
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsJaunty the Clown just wants to entertain families with lighthearted slapstick antics, but people think of clowns as terrifying, nightmarish creatures who hide in closets or under beds. When Jaunty, along with his fellow performers Guffaw, Wagon, Reginald The Pleasant Clown, and Bluehead are fired from the circus, they're told that the world just doesn't like clowns anymore... -
![The Scholar of Moab by Steven L. Peck]()
The Scholar of Moab by Steven L. Peck
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWinner of AML best literary novel of 2011 and a finalist for the national Montaigne Medal. What happens when a two-headed cowboy, a high school dropout, and a poet abducted by aliens come together in 1970’s Moab, Utah? The Scholar of Moab, a dark-comedy perambulating murder, affairs, and cowboy mysteries in the shadow of the hoary La Sal Mountains...Categorized as:
historical-fiction humor literary-fiction postmodernism satire action-adventure adult book -
![Zombie Lake by Javan Bonds]()
Zombie Lake by Javan Bonds
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe world has gone to hell but Mo Collins and his shipmate, Crow, are still alive. Every night hordes of naked, blue, biting zombies flood the now dead Alabama lake town. While on board their replica pirate ship, the Viva Ancora, they fish and watch the monsters roam the night; seeking untainted flesh and leaving a disgusting mess in their wake…just like a horror show... -
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![I'm Starting to Worry About This Black Box of Doom by Jason Pargin]()
I'm Starting to Worry About This Black Box of Doom by Jason Pargin
Rated: 4.05 of 5 stars · 21 ratingsA standalone darkly humorous thriller set in modern America's age of anxiety, by New York Times bestselling author Jason Pargin.Outside Los Angeles, a driver pulls up to find a young woman sitting on a large black box. She offers him $200,000 cash to transport her and that box across the country, to Washington, DC.But there are rules:He cannot look inside the box.He cannot ask questions... -
![Cosmic Banditos by A.C. Weisbecker]()
Cosmic Banditos by A.C. Weisbecker
Rated: 4.03 of 5 stars · 23 ratingsSoon to be a major motion picture starring John Cusack!Mr. Quark is a down-on-his luck pot-smuggler hiding out in the mountains of Colombia with his dog, High Pockets, and a small band of banditos led by the irascible Jose... -
![Sewer, Gas and Electric: The Public Works Trilogy by Matt Ruff]()
Sewer, Gas and Electric: The Public Works Trilogy by Matt Ruff
Rated: 3.94 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsHigh above Manhattan android and human steelworkers are constructing a new Tower of Babel for billionaire Harry Gant, as a monument to humanity’s power to dream. In the festering sewers below a darker game is afoot: a Wall Street takeover artist has been murdered, and Gant’s crusading ex-wife, Joan Fine, has been hired to find out why... -
![The Authorities™ by Scott Meyer]()
The Authorities™ by Scott Meyer
Rated: 3.94 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsSinclair Rutherford is a young Seattle cop with a taste for the finer things. Doing menial tasks and getting hassled by superiors he doesn't respect are definitely not “finer things... -
![Up and Down by Terry Fallis]()
Up and Down by Terry Fallis
Rated: 3.93 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsOn his first day at Turner King, David Stewart quickly realizes that the world of international PR (affectionately, known as "the dark side") is a far cry from his previous job with the Canadian government. For one, he missed the office memo on the all-black dress code; for another, there are enough acronyms and jargon to make his head spin... -
![Dusty's Diary: One Frustrated Man's Zombie Apocalypse Story by Bobby Adair]()
Dusty's Diary: One Frustrated Man's Zombie Apocalypse Story by Bobby Adair
Rated: 3.92 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsOne Frustrated Man's Zombie Apocalypse Story I played all those cool video games. I watched all those movies. I read all those books. In most of those, the hero of the story kills all the zombies, drives a sweet car, has plenty to eat, and always seems to get laid by the end. Yeah. Whatever... -
![God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.]()
God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Rated: 3.96 of 5 stars · 53 ratingsSecond only to Slaughterhouse-Five of Vonnegut's canon in its prominence and influence, God Bless You, Mr...Categorized as:
classics dystopia high-school historical-fiction humor literary-fiction politics postmodernism -
![Bellwether by Connie Willis]()
Bellwether by Connie Willis
Rated: 3.92 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsConnie Willis has won more Hugo and Nebula awards than any other science fiction author. Now, with her trademark wit and inventiveness, she explores the intimate relationship between science, pop culture, and the arcane secrets of the heart.Sandra Foster studies fads - from Barbie dolls to the grunge look - how they start and what they mean...Categorized as:
historical-fiction humor literary-fiction satire 20th-century action-adventure animals audiobook -
![Armageddon in Retrospect: And Other New and Unpublished Writings on War and Peace by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., Mark Vonnegut]()
Armageddon in Retrospect: And Other New and Unpublished Writings on War and Peace by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., Mark Vonnegut
Rated: 3.92 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsTo be published on the first anniversary of Kurt Vonnegut's death, Armageddon in Retrospect is a collection of twelve new and unpublished writings on war and peace, imbued with Vonnegut's trademark rueful humor...Categorized as:
apocalyptic classics historical-fiction humor literary-fiction politics satire 20th-century -
![Physicists by Friedrich Dürrenmatt]()
Physicists by Friedrich Dürrenmatt
Rated: 3.96 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsThe Physicists is a provocative and darkly comic satire about life in modern times, by one of Europe’s foremost dramatists and author of the internationally celebrated The Visit.The world’s greatest physicist, Johann Wilhelm Möbius, is in a madhouse, haunted by recurring visions of King Solomon... -
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![Tigerman by Nick Harkaway]()
Tigerman by Nick Harkaway
Rated: 3.96 of 5 stars · 31 ratingsSergeant Lester Ferris is a good man in need of a rest. After a long career of being shot at, he’s about to be retired. The mildly larcenous, backwater island of Mancreu is the ideal place to serve out his time, a former British colony in legal limbo, belching toxic clouds of waste and facing imminent destruction by an international community concerned for their own safety...Categorized as:
dystopia historical-fiction humor literary-fiction 21st-century action-adventure adult audiobook -
![The Snake Oil Wars or Scheherazade Ginsberg Strikes Again by Parke Godwin]()
The Snake Oil Wars or Scheherazade Ginsberg Strikes Again by Parke Godwin
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsBarion and Coyul are at it again... This time, they've been discovered toying with evolution. Barion has been summoned back to answer to the Council for their transgressions and Coyul is left behind to clean up the mess.. -
![How Best to Avoid Dying by Owen Egerton]()
How Best to Avoid Dying by Owen Egerton
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratings[i]Lazarus Dying[/i]: the man Jesus raised from the dead is alive and living in New York City. [i]The Fecalist[/i]: an author whose best selling work is his latest poop. [i]Christmas[/i]: she loves you, you love her, she has a gun in your mouth. Welcome to the award-winning short fiction of Owen Egerton... -
![The Love Interest by Helen Comerford]()
The Love Interest by Helen Comerford
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA swoony, speculative and entirely electric YA debut with a humorous and satirical take on the conventions of the superhero-verse, for fans of Michelle Quach's Not Here To Be Liked and the Marvel Universe.Seventeen-year-old Jenna Ray has just been saved by the world's newest superhero, Blaze. And, in the eyes of the public, that means one thing: Jenna Ray has been cast as the Love Interest.No... -
![Set My Heart To Five by Simon Stephenson]()
Set My Heart To Five by Simon Stephenson
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 12 ratings‘You shall read this with unadulterated pleasure’ Scotland on Sunday‘A beautiful, funny, heartfelt analysis of what it means to be human’ Simon Pegg Set in a 2054 where humans have locked themselves out of the internet and Elon Musk has incinerated the moon, Set My Heart To Five is the hilarious yet profoundly moving story of one android’s emotional awakening... -
![Night of the Living Trekkies by Kevin David Anderson, Sam Stall]()
Night of the Living Trekkies by Kevin David Anderson, Sam Stall
Rated: 3.91 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsJim Pike, the disillusioned manager of a hotel that is hosting a Star Trek convention, finds himself leading a ragtag crew of survivors as a strange virus turns the convention-goers into zombies.. -
![Nine Kinds of Naked by Tony Vigorito]()
Nine Kinds of Naked by Tony Vigorito
Rated: 3.80 of 5 stars · 10 ratings"As fanciful and inventive in its form... as it is in its observations... It fed tasty crackers to all the hungry parrots in my mental aviary." —TOM ROBBINSJoin cult favorite Tony Vigorito in his acclaimed, surreal whirlwind of a novel exploring chaos theory... -
![Waiting for the Galactic Bus by Parke Godwin]()
Waiting for the Galactic Bus by Parke Godwin
Rated: 3.89 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsImagine two brothers off on an intergalatic Spring Break. When their friends leave them behind on Earth, they've got a few millenia to kill before they'll manage to get back to school. So, as an experiment, mind you, they decide to give evolution a bit of a nudge... And that's when all hell breaks loose... a little more literally than either of them planned.. -
![Semiotext (e) SF by Rudy Rucker, John Shirley]()
Semiotext (e) SF by Rudy Rucker, John Shirley
Rated: 3.88 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA science fiction anthology at the extremes of the genre (including gore, deviant sex, blasphemy and radicalism of all sorts), this book includes edgy works by 45 contemporary authors... -
![The Salmon of Doubt by Douglas Adams]()
The Salmon of Doubt by Douglas Adams
Rated: 3.90 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsDouglas Adams changed the face of science fiction with his cosmically comic novel The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and its classic sequels. Sadly for his countless admirers, he hitched his own ride to the great beyond much too soon...Categorized as:
classics high-school historical-fiction humor literary-fiction satire 21st-century action-adventure -
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![Arhanghelul Raul by Ovidiu Eftimie]()
Arhanghelul Raul by Ovidiu Eftimie
Rated: 3.75 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsRaul, un publicitar din București, nu bănuia că atunci când va muri va ajunge în Iad. Și nici că de acolo se va întoarce pe Pământ nemuritor și cu misiunea de a preveni Apocalipsa: invazia nemuritorilor prin gaura spațio-temporală din gara de la Teiuș... -
![Bombardiers by Po Bronson]()
Bombardiers by Po Bronson
Rated: 3.75 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsFrom the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller What Should I Do with My Life?, Bombardiers is Po Bronson’s first novel, a devastating satire of the business world told through the lens of a crazed and colorful group of salespeople forced to push increasingly absurd financial products... -
![While Mortals Sleep: Unpublished Short Fiction by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., Dave Eggers]()
While Mortals Sleep: Unpublished Short Fiction by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., Dave Eggers
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsForeword by Dave EggersSmart, whimsical, and often scathing, the fiction of Kurt Vonnegut influenced a generation of American writers—including Dave Eggers, author of this volume’s Foreword... -
![Microserfs by Douglas Coupland]()
Microserfs by Douglas Coupland
Rated: 3.88 of 5 stars · 38 ratingsNarrated in the form of a Powerbook entry by Dan Underwood, a computer programmer for Microsoft, this state-of-the-art novel about life in the '90s follows the adventures of six code-crunching computer whizzes... -
![Агент Х, или Конец игры by Robert Sheckley, Роберт Шекли]()
Агент Х, или Конец игры by Robert Sheckley, Роберт Шекли
Rated: 3.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThis spy business can happen to anyone. That's what William P. Nye discovers when he accepts the offer of a job from his friend George—just a casual invitation in a little Paris cafe. Nye little realises that this is the start of his meteoric careers as Special Agent X—an imaginary super-spy dreamed up as a ploy in the war of nerves.. -
![Fireflies by Shiva Naipaul]()
Fireflies by Shiva Naipaul
Rated: 3.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsShiva Naipaul was the brother of V. S. Naipaul and author of Firefles and The Chip-Chip Gatherers. Fireflies, his first novel, published in 1970 and longlisted for the 'Lost Man Booker Award' in 2010, is set in Naipaul's native Trinidad. It includes a new foreword by Amit Chaudhuri. The Khojas are Trinidad's most venerated Hindu family...
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