Classic Pick: God Bless You, Dr. Kevorkian

Published: 2010

Pages: 96

Setting:Lethal Injection Execution Facility in Huntsville, Texas (also, Heaven)

Time Period: late 1990's

Synopsis: Kurt Vonnegut writes a tongue-in-cheek novella about interviewing dead people via controlled "near-death" experiments. Vonnegut interviews historical villains (Hitler), scientists (Sir Isaac Newton), writers (Shakespeare and Mary Shelley), etc. The premise of the book is that his interviews are being recorded and broadcasted on a radio for viewers. 

X 7

Forget-Me-Not Review: 

*7 Forget-Me-Nots: Great story but didn't make me think too hard or have bouts of intense emotion. I will remember my favorite scenes but not necessarily anything else.

Characters: 

Kurt Vonnegut :as himself

Dr. Kevorkian: a doctor who makes sure that Vonnegut's trips to the afterlife are "round-trip." 

 St. Peter :as himself, guarding the Gate of Heaven. 

I chose this book because I'd never read any Kurt Vonnegut before and I was ashamed of this fact. Erin from my Readers' Advisory class recommended it to the class and I immediately placed a hold on it at the library. The book is a fast read. Like, ridiculously fast. It IS only 96 pages. I love reading witty, satirical things and this book definitely satisfied me. The wit was very tongue-in-cheek and reminded me of some essays by Mark Twain and Ambrose Bierce. I think my favorite person that he interviewed was probably Shakespeare. Vonnegut states that "In effect, he told your reporter to go screw himself" (60). I guffawed at this point. And then St. Peter makes it even better by stating that nobody was willing to submit to his lie detector test and claim authorship of "Shakespeare's" works.

Characteristics that fit the genre: 

Tone/Mood: humorous, tongue-in-cheek

Frame/Setting: a prison in Texas as well as Heaven

Storyline: interview style

Style/Language: experimental (NoveList)

Characters: witty, satirical, historical figures

Pacing:  fast due to each interview only lasting a page or two. 

Appeals

1. Satire/humorous tone.

2. Interview style writing/ experimental

3. Historical figures. 

Author Read-A-Likes:

Connie Willis (NoveList)

Andrei Codrescu (NoveList)

Douglas Adams (NoveList)

Christopher Moore (NoveList)

James Morrow (NoveList)

Title Read-A-Likes

Tooth Imprints on a Corn Dog by Mark Leyner (NoveList)

You & Me by Padgett Powell (NoveList)

A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore (NoveList)

Last Call by Laura Pedersen (NoveList)

Wrecked by Carol Higgins Clark (NoveList)