At the heart of Joseph Heller's bestselling novel, first published in 1961, is a satirical indicement of military madness and stupidity, and the desire of the ordinary man to survive it. It is a tale of the dangerously sane Captain Yossarian, who spends his time in Italy plotting to survive.
Catch-22
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Review
"Wildly original, brutally gruesome, a dazzling performance that will outrage as many readers as it delights. Vulgarly, bitterly, savagely funny, it will not be forgotten by those who can take it" (New York Times )
"Blessedly, monstrously, bloatedly, cynically funny, and fantastically unique. No one has ever written a book like this" (Financial Times )
"Not only the best novel to come out of the war but the best novel to come out of anywhere in years" (The Nation )
"The greatest satirical work in the English language since EREHWON" (Philip Tonybee Observer )
"An apocalyptic masterpiece" (Chicago Times )
"Blessedly, monstrously, bloatedly, cynically funny, and fantastically unique. No one has ever written a book like this" (Financial Times )
"Not only the best novel to come out of the war but the best novel to come out of anywhere in years" (The Nation )
"The greatest satirical work in the English language since EREHWON" (Philip Tonybee Observer )
"An apocalyptic masterpiece" (Chicago Times )
Book Description
The nth book in our stunning 'Vintage Love Film' promotion (20030513)
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
74 of 80 people found the following review helpful
By S. Pollard
Format:Paperback
People I know who have read Catch-22 have:
* Been unable to talk to me about it because they laugh when they're half way through telling me what it is they want to say
* Glorified it as funnier than any book, film, comedy series or stand up performance they've ever seen
* Said that they found it so annoying they had to throw it away
* Asked me what was happening after reading the first 100 pages
* Considered never reading again because they'd decided they'd never read anything better
* Had to leave the tube due to annoying the other passengers by laughing
Why do people love it? Because it is dark, surreal, immoral, subversive and hilarious. It gets away with it because Heller finds the perfect setting (a small island) in the perfect time (World War 2 - a dark, surreal, immoral time). But it all rings true because Heller was a WW2 airman himself.
Why do people hate it? I can only speculate. Maybe it's because there is no traditional plot-weaving. Maybe because the chronology is all over the place. Maybe because the main love-interest is a whore. Maybe because it relies on being absurd.
Its humour lies in words mainly so maybe people who don't find wordplay funny don't find Catch-22 funny.
Everyone should TRY and read this book. Even if you do cast it aside and lament a waste of a week's reading after 200 pages. If you love it you will really love it. I did and it's led to me writing an amazon review - and I've never done that before.
Just don't read the sequel.
71 of 79 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
On the surface, Catch-22 is a fine novel about the U.S Army Air Force in Europe during the 1939-45 war. You do not have to scratch the surface hard to find a classic, timeless novel of the fine line between sanity and total madness. Is Yossarian, the 'hero', totally sane, or utterly, irredeemably insane? You tell me. Catch-22 is unique in its ability to thrust confusion, frustration, despair, insanity, death and plain old fashioned misery in waves - and yet repeatedly surprise you with its sidesplitting humour. When you laugh, you are not laughing at Heller's finely crafted characters, with all their idiosyncrasies, but at yourself, your friends and relatives. Because Heller's situations mirror the daily stupidities that we all put up with, laugh about and cry about. Reading Catch-22 is like sitting through the main feature a second time - you know exactly what will happen next; you know that nothing can change it. You cannot help hoping that it won't be so bad. But, of course, it's worse.
15 of 17 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller is a novel full of irony and black humour about the absurdity of war. There is a rich diversity of characters, each with their own personality and objectives: from Milo Minderbinder, a cook who controls the trading of all items on the Mediterranean Island; to Major —— de Coverley, a man whose terrifying face has stopped anyone ever asking his first name; to Yossarian, a reluctant, but very fortunate pilot who is entirely fed up with bombing the enemy.
I found the plot and characters to be immensely interesting: as Yossarian tries to elude his duties (he admits to becoming more and more frightened after every mission), he actually is praised for his courageous actions in flight, is given medals and rises in rank.
The themes of anti-war, the pointlessness of most wars, and corruption of the government and military, are strong throughout and truly affect the reader. Highly recommended to all.
27 of 31 people found the following review helpful
By ZDDQ140770
VINE™ VOICE
Format:Paperback
Its taken me two attempts to read Catch 22, the first thwarted by the books odd structure based on characters rather than story and the authors initially difficult style. I've stuck with it, read it and am about to re-read it.
Yes this is funny, yes this is a great satire, yes this is deeply surreal, yes it is a direct descendant of Alice in Wonderland, Nineteen Eighty Four and an antecedant of Monty Python, Terry Pratchett and much comedy inbetween. Yes the writing is brilliant and Heller's pitch is artfully sustained across the entire novel. But these are only some of the reasons you should read this.
It is foolish to pigeon-hole this as a war novel- this is about the world, and the way the planet works NOW. Characters such as Milo, the ruthless entrepreneur, Cathcart the idiotically ambitious general, and Yossarian himself ring absolutely true. However, the battle sequences are utterly terrifying as they should be and the sense of loss at the death of a friend is shocking. However it is the sense of the war as huge organism which shuffles people around often without itself knowing why that, although it owes a great deal to Jaroslav Hašek, remains Catch 22's legacy.
This is a book you can live with and can keep you company for life. In dark psychological periods this can remind you that being at odds with an uncaring world is not neccessarily a hopeless thing. When feeling politically helpless, it can can remind you of how absurd, how unreasonable the planet actually is and how the human spirit can conquer.
And ultimately, the book is redemptive, it shows there are ways of escaping, and that the sanest people may well be the craziest (or is that the other way round?).
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Catch-22
An entertaining read that offers many interesting characters and plot twists. It has a rich use of vocabulary and wit; a timeless classic no doubt.
Published 3 days ago by adam pankhurst
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic
That was one of the best books I've ever read.
I recommend it to all, especially in digital form as the physical copy is so thick!
I recommend it to all, especially in digital form as the physical copy is so thick!
Published 10 days ago by Abbie Brockhurst
5.0 out of 5 stars
Worth the effort
Did take me a wee while to get to grips with this but once you understand the style of writing, this is one of the funniest tales ever told. Read more
Published 13 days ago by Bertie Conibear
5.0 out of 5 stars
Catch 22
This is a Cracking book and we'll worth a read. It goes from the sublime to the ridiculous and back again.
Published 16 days ago by Laura H
4.0 out of 5 stars
The absurdity of war
Most people are familiar with the phrase "Catch-22." What a lot of people do not know, however, is that the origin of the phrase stems from Joseph Heller's novel of the same name. Read more
Published 17 days ago by Carol A.
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the best
Great book, everyone should read it (make it free please). Don't read the sequel closing time though, it's a bit anticlimatic
Published 27 days ago by Luddite
5.0 out of 5 stars
catch-22 says it all
I have read this book many times and I never tire of reading it, it is the only book I have ever read that makes me laugh out loud, this book along with Joseph Heller's other books... Read more
Published 28 days ago by G. T. Potter
5.0 out of 5 stars
Brilliant book
Nothing to say about this book as have read and read it over and over again, a must to have to keep. In good condition
Published 1 month ago by Mrs. J. M. Worthington
1.0 out of 5 stars
Yossarian Lives! (But I'd rather he didn't)
Catch 22 is a metaphor for life - a long, rambling, pointless, incoherent uphill struggle.
One feels like they are banging their head against a wall, page after page,... Read more
One feels like they are banging their head against a wall, page after page,... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Alias Grace
4.0 out of 5 stars
Awesome book - a classic
Pros: Arrived quickly
Pros: A classic read
Cons: I wish an electronic version was part of the deal. I lost the book after I started using e-readers. Read more
Pros: A classic read
Cons: I wish an electronic version was part of the deal. I lost the book after I started using e-readers. Read more
Published 1 month ago by g-review
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