Deadeye Dick

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Summary: A satirical look at the loss of innocence
Review: Deadeye Dick had a mix of everything, murder romance and major accident resulting in the death of hundreds of thousands of people in a typical American town. Rudy Waltz is telling the story of his life. Vonnegut is a master of suspense, not the usual cliched way, but he gives you inforamtion bit by bit that makes you want to keep reading. ofcourse any person can read this book but it takes a true reader and analyzer to UNDERSTAND this book. while i was reading this wonderful book, it got to me that today "...we're still in the dark ages; the darkages, they havent ended yet. (p240)" the book is full of twists, one of the little ones is that rudy waltz's father, otto waltz, saved hitler from death and starvation in Vienna before world war 1. "Think of that:my father could have strangeled the worst monster of the century, or simply let him starve or freaze to death. But he became his bosom buddy instead." A double murder, a neutron bomb explosion, a mysterious decapitation, just a few of the many ironical twists of this wonderful cynical look at society.

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Summary: Not the best of Vonnegut's tongue-in-cheek misanthropy.
Review: Deadeye Dick is a good Vonnegut serving of his trademark cheeky cynicism about the beast, Mankind. The beast is way over his head in the task of properly handling the power of technology. Tragic, yet smirking mayhem follows when a boy gets his hands on a 30-06, and a government gets its hands on a neutron bomb. In this story Vonnegut doesn't suggest any answer to save the swarming bipeds from themselves. He does show empathy, though -- as much as I felt for the fire-ants that writhed a few seconds after walking on a teaspoon of sodium cyanide I had once put on an ant hill. The hill went dead as fast as the world did when Vonnegut let Ice-9 hit the ocean in a better novel.

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Summary: Symbolic musings on the life of an unforgettable character
Review: Deadeye Dick is a novel only Kurt Vonnegut could have written - quirky, strange, thought-provoking, and a little bit depressing. The story of Deadeye Dick and his family is not a happy one. Rudy Waltz acquires his unusual nickname at the age of twelve by accidentally killing a woman in his hometown, but the whole story starts well before Rudy was even born. His father was supposedly a promising artist, or at least his own mother thought so, but he and his painting tutor did little more than travel around getting drunk and carousing with women of ill repute; after the tutor was exposed as a sham, Otto Waltz went to Austria to study in the years before the Great War; his lack of talent forbade him entry to the Academy, and he developed a friendship with another failed artist who later became chancellor of the Third Reich. This association with Hitler and some of his ideas would come back to haunt Otto in the 1940s. Rudy was Otto's second son, and on the day when his father bestowed upon him the key to the gun room, Rudy took a rifle up to the top of the cupola at his family's most unusual residence, fired it randomly, and unknowingly shot a pregnant woman right between the eyes while she was vacuuming - thus did Rudy receive the nickname Deadeye Dick. His father insisted on making a production about how everything was his fault, and life would never be the same again for the dysfunctional Waltz family. They lost everything, and life got little better as Rudy matured. The story of Deadeye Dick and his family goes on to include such events as a decapitation, a death by chimney (it was made of radioactive cement), and the eventual death of everyone in the whole town by way of an accidental neutron bomb explosion. There is a lot of symbolism in the book, and Vonnegut's discussion of what certain symbols mean in the introduction is particularly helpful in understanding this novel (although I'm still a little unsure about the random inclusion of recipes throughout the story). One experiences a definite lack of closure upon completing this fascinating read, and that inevitably disappoints some readers, including myself to some degree, but I don't think any can deny the fact that Deadeye Dick offers a typically Vonnegut-like interpretation of life and offers much food for thought to the serious reader.

Rating:
Summary: Symbolic musings on the life of an unforgettable character
Review: Deadeye Dick is a novel only Kurt Vonnegut could have written - quirky, strange, thought-provoking, and a little bit depressing. The story of Deadeye Dick and his family is not a happy one. Rudy Waltz acquires his unusual nickname at the age of twelve by accidentally killing a woman in his hometown, but the whole story starts well before Rudy was even born. His father was supposedly a promising artist, or at least his own mother thought so, but he and his painting tutor did little more than travel around getting drunk and carousing with women of ill repute; after the tutor was exposed as a sham, Otto Waltz went to Austria to study in the years before the Great War; his lack of talent forbade him entry to the Academy, and he developed a friendship with another failed artist who later became chancellor of the Third Reich. This association with Hitler and some of his ideas would come back to haunt Otto in the 1940s. Rudy was Otto's second son, and on the day when his father bestowed upon him the key to the gun room, Rudy took a rifle up to the top of the cupola at his family's most unusual residence, fired it randomly, and unknowingly shot a pregnant woman right between the eyes while she was vacuuming - thus did Rudy receive the nickname Deadeye Dick. His father insisted on making a production about how everything was his fault, and life would never be the same again for the dysfunctional Waltz family. They lost everything, and life got little better as Rudy matured. The story of Deadeye Dick and his family goes on to include such events as a decapitation, a death by chimney (it was made of radioactive cement), and the eventual death of everyone in the whole town by way of an accidental neutron bomb explosion. There is a lot of symbolism in the book, and Vonnegut's discussion of what certain symbols mean in the introduction is particularly helpful in understanding this novel (although I'm still a little unsure about the random inclusion of recipes throughout the story). One experiences a definite lack of closure upon completing this fascinating read, and that inevitably disappoints some readers, including myself to some degree, but I don't think any can deny the fact that Deadeye Dick offers a typically Vonnegut-like interpretation of life and offers much food for thought to the serious reader.

Rating:
Summary: Slight wacky but hey, we're talking Vonnegut
Review: Deadeye Dick is the kind of thing that your average person might write after a prolonged lack of sleep when the 'giddies' sets in. It doesn't entirely make sense, and some of the themes are a little wacky, but it is still very entertaining and fun to read. Vonnegut manages to use plenty of his traditionally biting humor throughout the book and deals with neutron bombs, eccentric artists, criminal coverups, and life after Ohio is obliterated. I am already biased because I am a big fan of Vonnegut's style of writing, but I found the book to be consistently interesting and can't wait to get another of his books

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Summary: A Book One May Enjoy On All Levels
Review: Deadeye Dick was the first novel of Kurt Vonnegut that I read. I found it delightfully humorous, but also disturbing in the way he takes on society so innocently. Later, I read Slaughterhouse Five, and I must be one of the few people who enjoyed Deadeye Dick more. Why? Maybe because he dosen't force you to think about how bad things are so much this time. Vonnegut allows you to read this book on different levels: enjoying a work of fiction or reading a strong message. I personally loved both.

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Summary: Oh, so THIS is what Vonnegut's about...
Review: Even though I was a fan of Vonnegut before I picked up this book, I never quite understood what the whole "funny/sad" part of his books was. I enjoyed Vonnegut because he was thought-provoking and had crazy, page-turning ideas. Deadeye Dick, though, really captured that humor mixed with sadness. I find that Rudy Waltz is one of the most sympathetic characters in literature, and his struggles to overcome the stigma of being Deadeye Dick are genuinely moving. This is a good introduction to Vonnegut's work

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Summary: I never set it down.
Review: I began reading during finals week at high school, and after I finished each test, I would eat through at least sixty more pages. it was wonderful, and as the first Vonnegut book I have ever read, I think it was a good choice as it so innocently portrays the horrors of society from almost a child-like view point. An awesome book.

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Summary: What I think the book's strong points are.
Review: I loved it. While this is not Vonnegut's most powerful book, this is still a great read. The characterization of Rudy Waltz (aka "Deadey Dick") is touching and funny. Vonnegut's absurd tale of Rudy Waltz's accidental shooting of Eloise Metzger could happen to anyone. I also liked Vonnegut's X-Files touch of having Rudy's hometown of Midland City, Ohio hit by a neutron bomb explosion that probably came from the government in attempt to oppress it's people. Vonnegut's book offers something for every reader.

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Summary: Advice
Review: In Deadeye Dick, the underlying messages shine through Vonnegut's words, the morals of innocence, the corruption of being etc. etc.
But Vonnegut forgot one thing in this book. The story. What is in his other books a perfect mixture of story and the underlying morals, here it is a decidedly lop-sided affair. The story is very unengaging and I found it quite tedious, to be frank. And unfortunately, it went downhill after an ok-ish start. Thankfully, those recipes he throws in very frequently at the first part of the novel are toned down because what was a good idea would have turned into an annoying one if continued too frequently.
This is the most disappointing Vonnegut book I've read so far.