Player Piano

Player Piano is not my favorite of Vonnegut's works, but that's not to say I don't like it.  Though it was written early in his career, and is somewhat dated in the world it presents, still the themes and concerns examined in the story are real and meaningful today.

Player Piano examines the idea of how the problem of the divide between the "haves and have nots" may be heightened in a knowledge-based society.  It looks at the mechanical (and therefore meaningless?) nature of a life lived out in such a society.  What we find there is pretty sobering.

Though the story is not as enjoyable, for me, as much of Vonnegut's writing, it is still worth reading and thinking about.  I find it has stuck in my mind since I read it, with that sort of haunting act that is the sure sign of a good book.


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