If This Isn't Nice, What Is?
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If This Isn't Nice, What Is? by Kurt Vonnegut
A collection of 15 graduation speeches and treasured wisdom from the New York Times-bestselling literary icon and author of Slaughterhouse-Five, Cat's Cradle, and Breakfast of Champions"Like that of his literary ancestor Mark Twain, Kurt Vonnegut's crankiness is good-humored and sharp-witted."-A.O. Scott, The New York Times Book Review
Master storyteller and satirist Kurt Vonnegut was one of the most in-demand commencement speakers of his time. His words were unfailingly insightful and witty, and they stayed with audience members long after graduation. Chosen and introduced by fellow novelist and friend Dan Wakefield, a selection of speeches and essays in this expanded 3rd edition include-
. "What to Do When You Have the Power; In the Meantime, Remember to Skylark!"
. "Why Social Justice Does More Than Art to Nourish the American Dream"
. "How to Make Money and Find Love!"
. "Somebody Should've Told Me Not to Join a Fraternity"
. "How to Have Something Most Billionaires Don't"
Hilarious, razor-sharp, freewheeling, and at times deeply serious, these reflections are ideal not just for graduates but for anyone undergoing what Vonnegut would call their "long-delayed puberty ceremony"-marking the long and challenging passage to full-time adulthood.
Born in 1922 in Indianapolis, Indiana, KURT VONNEGUT was one of the few grandmasters of modern American letters. Called by the New York Times the counterculture's novelist, his works guided a generation through the miasma of war and greed that was life in the US in the second half of the twentieth century. Vonnegut rose to prominence with the publication of Cat's Cradle in 1963. Several modern classics, including Slaughterhouse-Five, soon followed. And he wrote and published dozens of short stories. Given who and what I am, he once said, it has been presumptuous of me to write so well. Kurt Vonnegut died in New York in 2007. A longtime friend of Kurt Vonnegut's, DAN WAKEFIELD edited and introduced Kurt Vonnegut: Letters, and is the author of the memoirs New York in the Fifties and Returning: A Spiritual Journey, and the novel, Going All the Way, which was made into a movie starring Ben Affleck. He lives in Indianapolis, Indiana.
JEROME KLINKOWITZ, a scholar of mid-century American literature in general and Kurt Vonnegut in particular, is a professor of English at the University of Northern Iowa. He is co-editor of The Vonnegut Statement and author of several books including The American 1960s. He lives in Cedar Falls, Iowa. DAVE EGGERS is the founder of McSweeney's and is the author of many books, including Heroes of the Frontier, The Circle, A Hologram for the King, and What Is the What.
JEROME KLINKOWITZ, a scholar of mid-century American literature in general and Kurt Vonnegut in particular, is a professor of English at the University of Northern Iowa. He is co-editor of The Vonnegut Statement and author of several books including The American 1960s. He lives in Cedar Falls, Iowa. DAVE EGGERS is the founder of McSweeney's and is the author of many books, including Heroes of the Frontier, The Circle, A Hologram for the King, and What Is the What.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781609806101 |
| ISBN 10 | 1609806107 |
| Title | If This Isn't Nice, What Is? |
| Author | Kurt Vonnegut |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Seven Stories Press,U.S. |
| Year published | 2020-03-31 |
| Number of pages | 208 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |