Armageddon in Retrospect

By: Kurt Vonnegut

Narrated by: Rip Torn

Audie Awards winner, 2009

The New York Times best seller from the author of Slaughterhouse-Five—a “gripping” posthumous collection of Kurt Vonnegut’s previously unpublished work on the subject of war and peace. A fitting tribute to a literary legend and a profoundly humane humorist, Armageddon in Retrospect is a collection of 12 previously unpublished writings. Imbued with Vonnegut's trademark rueful humor and outraged moral sense, the pieces range from a letter written by Vonnegut to his family in 1945, informing them that he'd been taken prisoner by the Germans, to his last speech, delivered after his death by his son Mark, who provides a warmly personal introduction to the collection. Taken together, these pieces provide fresh insight into Vonnegut's enduring literary genius and reinforce his ongoing moral relevance in today’s world.

Includes an Introduction by Mark Vonnegut

©2009 Penguin (P)2008 Kurt Vonnegut

Critic reviews

“Gripping...demonstrates Vonnegut’s mind-boggling evolution as a writer, the manner in which he learned to cloak his rage in hilarity, to cop to his immense despair without surrendering to it.” (Salon)

“A terrific post-traumatic witnessing.” (Roy Blount, The New York Times Book Review)

“The dark irony that lies beneath Vonnegut's wry, satiric work is always in the service of the individual...and against the system.” (The Boston Globe)

Vonnegut should get the nobel peace prize

What made the experience of listening to Armageddon in Retrospect the most enjoyable?

Rip Torn's reading and Vonnegut's words created a fantastic antiwar yet entertaining treatise...as only Vonnegut could pull off.

What other book might you compare Armageddon in Retrospect to and why?

This book contains the foundational thought that went into writing Slaughterhouse Five. The two short novella's in the book seemed to be Vonnegut working though his ideas on the subject of man's inhumanity to man.

Which character – as performed by Rip Torn – was your favorite?

The corporal in the Army of the World.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

The subject matter is such that three or four listenings would be a better approach.

Any additional comments?

This book contains letters, short stories and other words of wisdom from Vonnegut on the subject of his war experience and his thoughts on war. This book is an act of heroism and should be read by anyone who claims they are, or wants to be a writer.