Hocus Pocus

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Vonnegut will never disappoint me. He and David Foster Wallace are two of the most reliable authors I know; if I pick up a Vonnegut, I’m going to have a good time. Not only do I fully align with his philosophies on religion, politics, and human nature, but his stories are consistently super inventive, funny, vulnerable, and cynical in all the right ways.

I had high expectations for Hocus Pocus, because Joseph Heller, author of one of my favorite novels, Catch-22, hyped it in big bold letters on the cover. He said, “A triumph. It is perhaps his best.” His best??? Real recognizing real??

But no, this was not his best. It’s not even close simply because his best is so next-level. Hocus Pocus is average-Vonnegut. It’s Vonnegut for amateurs. It has Vonnegut’s signature insights packaged less entertainingly. It tells the fictional story of Eugene Debs Hartke, a Vietnam vet (who has dark, funny, less than flattering things to say about America) who teaches at an unconventional college until, as Eugene says, “the excrement hits the air-conditioning.”

Things Vonnegut does right, IMO: The entire book is separated in small vignettes, so he’s able to bounce around in time and place without confusing the reader. As such, he ties every loose end in satisfying ways, sometimes hundreds of pages later when you forgot about the loose end and are able to have the orgasmic aha moment. His bits-and-pieces format also allows for effective punchlines.

Things Vonnegut does wrong, IMO: Too much going on. Too many characters who I didn’t care about. Satirical fat that made me smirk but could have been trimmed.

Overall, I give Hocus Pocus 3 out of 5 flames. Contrary to what Joseph Heller said, there’s much better Vonnegut out there, so read those. I’ve reviewed several of them (flex): Mother Night [read this review for a brief overview of the books to follow], Cat’s Cradle, Slaughterhouse-Five, and Breakfast of Champions, Welcome to the Monkey House, Bluebeard, and Slapstick (Lonesome No More!)