Book Review: Catch 22

I struggled with this book.

I like reading the "classics" every once in a while. I didn't grow up in the US and sometimes when I watch a movie or a series (or a book), where they mention the "classics" it makes me wonder what these books are about.

I'm under the impression that most people read them during their school years as required reading. Well, when I was growing up, I was only forced to read like three books (and I don't remember what they were around either), so now I make a point to read at least once a year.

This year I picked up Catch 22.

I mean, I know the meaning of the saying "Catch 22" but I'd never read the book. My husband had bought the paperback and read it a few years ago. He says he enjoyed it. Well, it turns out we are very different indeed.

I could NOT get into it. It's a long book, too. The prose isn't that great, either. The font on the book is small (at least in my version) and sometimes, there aren't any paragraphs or dialogue in the entire page. That drove me nuts.

Also, a lot of the sentences repeat. Something like this:

"Did you buy the book?"
"What do you mean if I bought the book?"
"Yeah, did you buy it?"
"I sure bought the book."
"And did you read it?"
"I bought the book didn't I?"
"But, did you read it?"
"I just said I bought the book."

There's a lot of that. A lot. Again, drove me crazy.

The book is also about the war. The main character Yosarian, is faced with MANY injustices throughout the book, most of them created by his superiors, who don't really seem to care about human life. By the end of the book I felt so depressed. The situations sometimes get repeated only because you read them from someone else's point of view. There are characters who abuse and who are abused by other characters or the "system". Overall, I didn't much enjoy it. I didn't know if I should be laughing, crying, or just yelling at them to shut up. That dialogue unnerved me at some point.

I give it three stars only because the book made me think and the plot was cleverly manipulated through the chapters, but I wouldn't really recommend the book to anyone.

It's a catch 22.

cheers!

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