Fifty years after its original publication, “Catch-22 “remains a cornerstone of American lit-erature and one of the funniest–and most celebrated–novels of all time. In recent years it has been named to “best novels” lists by “Time, Newsweek, “the Modern Library, and the London “Observer.” Set in Italy during World War II, this is the story of the incomparable, malingering bombardier, Yossarian, … Yossarian, a hero who is furious because thousands of people he has never met are trying to kill him. But his real problem is not the enemy–it is his own army, which keeps increasing the number of missions the men must fly to complete their service. Yet if Yossarian makes any attempt to excuse himself from the perilous missions he’s assigned, he’ll be in violation of Catch-22, a hilariously sinister bureaucratic rule: a man is considered insane if he willingly continues to fly dangerous combat missions, but if he makes a formal request to be removed from duty, he is proven sane and therefore ineligible to be relieved. Since its publication in 1961, no novel has matched “Catch-22“‘s intensity and brilliance in depicting the brutal insanity of war. This fiftieth-anniversary edition commemorates Joseph Heller’s masterpiece with a new introduction by Christopher Buckley; personal essays on the genesis of the novel by the author; a wealth of critical responses and reviews by Norman Mailer, Alfred Kazin, Anthony Burgess, and others; rare papers and photos from Joseph Heller’s personal archive; and a selection of advertisements from the original publishing campaign that helped turn “Catch-22 “into a cultural phenomenon. Here, at last, is the definitive edition of a classic of world literature.
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It takes years for me to finish this book yet I finally did it with success. Overall it’s an excellent reading material which gave me a whole perspective at the actual mining of war As experienced on the other side of the television screen, on the battlefield itself.
And while it may well be that this is the real definition of war and this is the …
I definitely didn’t expect this story. It was worth reading and was well written. It wasn’t an easy read but everyone should try. Although it was written years ago, I can understand how it could apply today.
The book shows how unpredicyable the human bein humans can be..
I’ve tried to read this book twice and always get fed up. Still haven’t finished it and I don’t plan to try again.
Great book. Plan to re-read for the ….???..time. Underrated