Hocus Pocus by Kurt Vonnegut

Amazing---a Vonnegut that I have not read and really liked. There were a number of images that stuck with me. I liked the picture of the library with all the pieces of paper numbered for the book strewn out. I also liked the image of the professor sniping from the bell tower at the convicts below. Sort of a last ditch effort to save education. Oh, and the best has to be the bells that the students said were whale genitalia. Nice.

I think Vonnegut's point with this book is that life, on the whole, is thankless. No matter how long you care for your mad relatives, or help those who haven't learned to learn, you still aren't guaranteed to end up being given credit for that. You'll just end up in jail.

Here, Hartke (the main character) is not thanked by his wife, mother-in-law nor by his school. The prisoners---the outcasts of society---seemed to be the only ones who appreciated his help and used it for their own advancement, though not quite as he expected. The dumb and powerful don't know good information when they see it. The smart and imprisoned don't know how to use it. And each doesn't trust the other.