Mere Mortals Book Reviews

Mere Mortals Book Reviews


Catch-22 (Joseph Heller) - Book Review

August 24, 2021

Easily the funniest book I've ever read!

'Catch-22' by Joseph Heller is fictional novel set on a US air force base on an island off Northern Italy during WWII. It follows Yossarian whilst he tries to avoid flying missions as everyone is out to kill him. He is joined by a collection of other wacky characters as they all show their peculiar idiosyncrasies. The book highlights the absurdity of army politics, the waste that is generated by bureaucracy and the mundanity of war (with brief flashes of intensity).

I summarised the book as follows. "To say this is funny is an understatement. It is absolutely hilarious although it does contain disturbing/gory scenes, as it is after all about war. Catch-22 has become mainstay of the English language due to the absolute perfection of Heller in creating situation of paradox that can't be resolved. One of the best books I've ever read!"

I hope you have a fantastic day wherever you are in the world. Kyrin out!

If you would like to support the channel, you can grab yourself a copy of the book here! https://amzn.to/3zmGbIH

Timeline:
(0:00) - Intro
(0:30) - Synopsis
(3:11) - Catch-22: The funny side of paradox
(6:58) - The Wastage Of War: Ridiculous, futile bureaucracy in action
(11:41) - Personal Observations/Takeaways
(15:17) - Summary

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