Look at the Birdie: Short Fiction

By Kurt Vonnegut Jr.

Book Overview

"Relentlessly fun to read."--Dave Eggers * A collection of fourteen previously unpublished short stories from one of the most original writers in all of American fiction In this series of perfectly rendered vignettes, written just as he was starting to find his comic voice, Kurt Vonnegut paints a warm, wise, and funny portrait of life in post-World War II America--a world where squabbling couples, high school geniuses, misfit office workers, and small-town lotharios struggle to adapt to changing technology, moral ambiguity, and unprecedented affluence. Here are tales both cautionary and hopeful, each brimming with Vonnegut's trademark humor and profound humanism. A family learns the downside of confiding their deepest secrets into a magical invention. A man finds himself in a Kafkaesque world of trouble after he runs afoul of the shady underworld boss who calls the shots in an upstate New York town. A quack psychiatrist turned "murder counselor" concocts a novel new outlet for his paranoid patients. While these stories reflect the anxieties of the postwar era that Vonnegut was so adept at capturing--and provide insight into the development of his early style--collectively, they have a timeless quality that makes them just as relevant today as when they were written. It's impossible to imagine any of these pieces flowing from the pen of another writer; each in its own way is unmistakably, quintessentially Vonnegut. Featuring a foreword by author and longtime Vonnegut confidant Sidney Offit and illustrated with Vonnegut's characteristically insouciant line drawings, Look at the Birdie is an unexpected gift for readers who thought his unique voice had been stilled forever--and serves as a terrific introduction to his short fiction for anyone who has yet to experience his genius. Includes these never-before-published stories: "Confido" "FUBAR" "Shout About It from the Housetops" "Ed Luby's Key Club" "A Song for Selma" "Hall of Mirrors" "The Nice Little People" "Hello, Red" "Little Drops of Water" "The Petrified Ants" "The Honor of a Newsboy" "Look at the Birdie" "King and Queen of the Universe" "The Good Explainer" "[ Look at the Birdie] brings us the late writer's young voice as he skewers--sometimes gently, always lethally--post World War II America."-- The Boston Globe

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0385343728
• ISBN13: 9780385343725
• Release Date: September 2010
• Publisher: Dial Press
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 0.48 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.6" x 7.9"

Customer Reviews

I miss Vonnegut already

I'm very glad to have purchased this little view into his world and his mind. I've always enjoyed his works and they are even more sentimental knowing they were never published before.

Look at the Birdie well worth a look

As one would expect, these are brilliant stories crisply told, obviously earlier works well polished. Vonnegut had an eye for character and an ear for dialogue, and a wonderful, often whimsical sense of setting and story line. What is missing in almost all of these stories is that oddity, or suspension of belief required in satirical -- or any -- science fiction. Missing but not missed. These stories sparkle with humor and delicately recreated observation of various aspects of human nature. they adhere to the concept that what is truly interesting is what people think and do. They are delicious from start to finish, and make us hope there are more byrued treasures in Vonnegut's ouvre wairing to be uncovered!

I love this book

I love this book so much, I'm speechless. I feel like a little kid in a candy store. This is such a delight and I cannot stop reading. I don't want to work, I don't want to sleep! I just want to read this book! I cannot believe it was never published before. What a wonderful surprise for any Vonnegut fan!

I hope there's more left

Much better than the last two bits of material. These are stories from the front end of his climb to becoming the best American writer since Twain. The other stuff I'd heard before but read greedily like a man thirsting for his last breath. While these stories don't equal his best known works, they are worth the time of someone who has idolized the man and his writing. But if that is true, you probably aren't reading this. Give it a whirl, what have you got to lose?

Worthy Addition - Delight for Vonnegut fans!

This newly published collection of Kurt Vonnegut short "stories" is a worthy addition to your personal library and a delight for fans - especially those that enjoy reading the full breadth of his writing style. While some of the selections display the quick wit with a twist so common to his more popular works, others border on the bizarre...of course, each has the element of surprise that only Vonnegut does so well. Contents include: Confido FUBAR Shout About it from the Housetops A Song for Selma Hall of Mirrors The Nice Little People Hello, Red Little Drops of Water The Petrified Ants The book is hardcover with dustjacket and contains just over 200 pages of pure pleasure reading...the type that makes literature worth the time and effort to slow down, read and reflect upon. Unlike authors of the past, Vonnegut reflects modern society and is often compared to the likes of Twain etc... with an up-to-date appeal that makes it relevant yet refreshing. Very enjoyable - superb gift idea for Vonnegut fans!