Book Lovers Series

Book Lovers: Episode 11

Episode 11: Slaughterhouse-Five, Two Ways

November 27, 2020


There’s no questioning the tremendous impact that Kurt Vonnegut has had on writing. The inimitable author penned dozens of novels, short stories, essays and more over his life, and none is better known than Slaughterhouse-Five, the rare beloved school-assigned novel once described to Jess as “World War II, but with aliens”. At 51 years old, Slaughterhouse-Five is still as relevant, biting and comical as ever, but to deepen its legend, a graphic novel adaptation was released in September 2020. The source material is clearly handled with kid gloves by Ryan North and Albert Monteys, who do their best to bring Dresden, time travel, and Tralfamadorians to life. In this episode, we discuss our varied relationships with Slaughterhouse-Five, the story and world that Vonnegut builds, and that time Ryan North got stuck in a skate pit with his dog.




Titles and topics discussed:

  • Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
  • Slaughterhouse-Five, adapted by Ryan North and Albert Monteys
  • The Lost Generation
  • Lord of the Flies by William Golding
  • Supernatural
  • Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut
  • Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
  • God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater by Kurt Vonnegut
  • The fire bombing of Dresden
  • The Children’s Crusade
  • George Saunders’s Manifesto for the People
  • Ill Will by Dan Chaon
  • Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut
  • The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien
  • Ryan North gets stuck in a hole
  • Octavia E. Butler’s Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation by Damian Duffy and John Jennings
  • Maus: A Survivor’s Tale by Art Spiegelman
  • Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451: The Authorized Adaptation by Tim Hamilton
  • Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
  • Dhalgren by Samuel R. Delany
  • Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery”: The Authorized Graphic Adaptation by Miles Hyman
  • The Good Earth by Pearl Buck, adapted by Nick Bertozzi