Rob Recommends (sort of): Look at the Birdie

Kurt Vonnegut
THis is not Kurt Vonnegut at his best. I include it in Picks only because I suspect that I am not the only die-hard fan of Vonnegut's short stories, and we're not likely to see much more from the author (1922-2007). Look at the Birdie gives us 14 previously unpublished stories of the early Kurt Vonnegut--before Sirens of Titan, Welcome to the Monkey House, Slaughterhouse-Five, Cat's Cradle and the rest of the author's rightfully popular work.
The stories are fun, uncomplicated, easy to read and Vonnegut-ish with middle American characters finding temselves in slightly bizarre circumstances, and the humor alternating light and dark. And if you've never read Kurt Vonnegut, skip this one for now and read one of the above titles.