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Slaughterhouse-Five, published in 1969, is an antiwar novel by Kurt Vonnegut blending science fiction with historical facts. The novel draws on Vonnegut's experiences as a prisoner of war in Dresden, Germany, during the Allied firebombing of that city in early 1945, and uses an absurdist, nonlinear narrative.
The story follows U.S. soldier Billy Pilgrim through flashbacks and recounts his life out of chronological order. One of the most important events in Billy’s life was witnessing the Allied carpet-bombing and firebombing of Dresden (which leveled the city and reportedly killed at least 25,000 civilians), and the descriptions of that horror bring home in gripping fashion Vonnegut’s eloquent antiwar message. Despite its bleak message, however, Slaughterhouse-Five is a satire filled with black humour. In addition, Vonnegut’s simple, direct, and minimalist prose greatly facilitates understanding of the story’s nonlinear order and widespread settings. (Cathy Lowne, Britannica Editors)
Slaughterhouse-Five is widely considered Vonnegut’s best work. The novel also proved timely, as it was published during growing opposition to the Vietnam War. In 1972 director George Roy Hill adapted the novel into a film. Vonnegut wrote about the film soon after its release, in his preface to Between Time and Timbuktu: "I love George Roy Hill and Universal Pictures, who made a flawless translation of my novel Slaughterhouse-Five to the silver screen. I drool and cackle every time I watch that film, because it is so harmonious with what I felt when I wrote the book".

This meetup group is organised to discuss both the novella and the film.
Details:
- Read Vonnegut's novel.
- Rent the film using one of the available streaming services and watch it in your own time.
- At 8.00pm EET time the online meeting will start to discuss book & adaptation.

Film: Slaughter-Five (1972)
director: George Roy Hill
Running Time: 1h 44min

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