There was no need to revisit the people from Catch 22.

As they depressingly descended into old age and death, it was a rather disheartening sight.

The story, if one could even call it that, was hopelessly confusing.

It rambled endlessly in multiple random directions, making it extremely difficult to follow.

There appeared to be no resolution in sight, leaving the reader feeling rather lost.

At times, I truly felt like I was living in Groucho Marx's head, with all the chaos and confusion.

The attempts at humour and satire were there, but unfortunately, everything felt muddled, flat and aimless.

It was also quite repetitive, which only added to the overall sense of boredom and frustration.

Overall, it was not a pleasant experience revisiting this particular group of people and their story.

Closing Time, written decades after the renowned Catch 22, offers a unique perspective that reflects the concerns of an older Yossarian/Heller. This aspect truly appeals to me, as I am nearly the same age as the protagonist, a ripe 68 years old.

However, it must be noted that this book is not for everyone. It delves deep into a Dante's Inferno-like vision of Yossarian's life, exploring the darker and more complex aspects of his existence.

Despite its heavy themes, Closing Time still manages to be good fun. It presents a thought-provoking and engaging narrative that keeps the reader hooked from start to finish. Whether you are a fan of Heller's previous work or simply looking for a new and interesting read, Closing Time is definitely worth checking out.

Like Catch 22, this work is more of a profound statement than a simple story.

Through the use of paradox and parody, Heller further develops the concept from his first book, highlighting that life is indeed absurd, humanity often lacks sense, and very little seems reasonable.

This time, rather than centering on World War II, we encounter Yossarian at the twilight of his life (thus, the title "Closing Time"), grappling with the senseless aspects of American capitalism, the government, and foreign policy in a post-Cold War era.

In this world, a bomber can be ironically regarded as an "instrument of peace."

The book commences with Yossarian, in a satisfying symmetry, once again in a hospital, yet in perfect health.

Single, mingling, and in his sixties, Yossarian has fathered some children, has a healthy dose of cynicism, and holds certain life maxims that he doesn't truly believe but deems to be true.

He manages to leave the hospital, plans a wedding in a bus terminal, gets his girlfriend pregnant, and then faces the end of the world at the hands of a president who, while playing a videogame, accidentally detonates nukes.

Just as in Catch 22, it remains a challenge to determine whether Yossarian is the one who is crazy or if it's everyone else.

I will undoubtedly need to read both books several more times to fully comprehend them, but I already cherish the insights I was able to glean from this initial reading!

Catch-22 has always been my all-time favorite novel, and when I approached its sequel, I did so with great trepidation.

Would I dare to peek into the future of those beloved characters? Could I bear to disturb the frantic stasis of that perfect ending? What if it upended the understanding I had come to?

But life waits for no one, and Heller's return to the veterans of Pianosa is both tenderhearted and wistful, with a touch of the loony.

Yossarian still exists in a state of paralysis, forever caught in the fleeting time of good health before disease. His doctors try to cheer him up by highlighting his health, but he isn't fooled.

Heller's scathing cynicism towards society remains as wry as ever, and the bantering dialogue is as delightful as in Catch-22. The book follows the same form of ridiculous balance between extremes.

However, this book feels a bit too derivative of its predecessor. Maybe it's unavoidable, perhaps it's too true to the tragedy of an old man's life.

Overall, it's an inevitably important work, but it's a joyless fun to read. I give it 3.5 stars out of 5.

(Read in 2017, as the third book in my Alphabetical Reading Challenge)

I feel this book was a let down.

Some parts of it were funny, but most was not even entertaining.

The characters I loved in Catch-22 almost seemed to disappear, which was highly disappointing.

The book seems to be a confused mess of strange ideas that were intriguing but for some reason were never explored fully.

Characters like Sammy seem to repeat themselves over and over throughout just to fill pages.

It's as if the author had great potential with these concepts but failed to follow through.

The lack of depth and development made it difficult for me to truly engage with the story.

I had high hopes for this book, especially after loving Catch-22, but it just didn't deliver.

Perhaps with a bit more focus and a deeper exploration of the ideas and characters, it could have been a great read.

As it stands, it's a mediocre effort that left me feeling unsatisfied.

I would not recommend this book to others who are looking for a truly engaging and thought-provoking read.

Lost interest - I have never read such a bad and boring continuation. This novel is about nothing. It lacks all the wonderful humor that the first part had. The characters are the same, but completely deprived of content, emotions, and imagination. It is sad to read such stories, and the sadness is even greater because Paragraph 22 was an amazing book from all dimensions, which is one of the few masterpieces in my reading life. I do not recommend it.

It seems that the author has completely failed to maintain the charm and quality of the previous work. The story just drags on without any real purpose or excitement. The lack of development in the characters makes them seem flat and uninteresting. It's a real disappointment for those who were looking forward to a great sequel.

Maybe the author should have taken more time to carefully plan and write this continuation to ensure that it lives up to the expectations of the readers. As it stands now, it is a far cry from the excellence of the first part.

Unbearably sad.

Moreover, for some inexplicable reason, there is a chapter dedicated to the hypothetical marriage of two billionaires.

This really makes it a difficult read to recommend, unless, of course, you happen to be in the mood to wallow in depression.

The story seems to be filled with such elements that tug at the heartstrings in a rather painful way.

The idea of focusing on the marriage of two extremely wealthy individuals in a fictional context might add an extra layer of complexity and perhaps a touch of absurdity.

But overall, it just leaves one with a sense of melancholy and a feeling that this is not something that would bring joy or entertainment.

It's as if the author is deliberately trying to push the reader into a state of sadness and reflection.

Maybe for those who enjoy exploring the darker side of human emotions and relationships, this could be an interesting read.

But for the average person looking for a light-hearted or uplifting story, this is definitely not the one to pick up.

Closing Time is less of a sequel and more of a lengthy postface that seems to have lost its way.

If Heller had developed this work with as much care and attention as he did with C22, it has the potential to be a superior novel. However, unfortunately, when compared to C22's deep and comic analysis of PTSD, the metaphysical scope of Closing Time appears too broad and rather shallow.

The new character Tilyou is a welcome addition to the cast. In fact, the personification of 'selfism' in the 20th century through Tilyou is very funny and engaging. But it's a pity that this character should have featured more prominently in the story.

Overall, while Closing Time has its亮点, it fails to live up to the expectations set by its predecessor, C22.

I liked 'Catch 22' which I read for the first time a few months ago. It was one of those books that I was both supposed to read in college and wanted to. But it didn't happen back then.

As I delved deeper into the book, my initial liking started to wane. This particular one I liked in certain parts even better than 'Catch 22,' but then there were long stretches that I could have easily skipped.

I just don't think satire has a clear direction at the moment. No, and here all the liberals will surely strongly disagree, it isn't Trump. Not even an aspiring Bonapartist (and they have all been like that since the end of the Second American Revolution) has that much personal power. If they rule as if the government is in a deep crisis, and it is, it's because that's what they seek in a deep crisis. Trump wants to make "American Great Again," but it's an impossible task, even in the reactionary way he intends.

Despite some talk on the left about a "unipolar world," that's the furthest thing from what we have since the end of the Cold War, which occurred due to the total collapse of the Stalinist regimes; certainly not because of anything the United States did anywhere on earth. The rulers no longer know who their "friends" and/or "enemies" are! And they can't function without them.

So, it probably won't happen in my lifetime, just like the socialist revolution in the advanced countries won't, but someday we will witness a rebirth of satire, drawing inspiration from everyone from Mark Twain to Joseph Heller and Kurt Vonnegut. Good luck!

A follow-up to a book as significant as one whose title has become part of common parlance was always bound to be a challenging task. I wasn't entirely certain what I anticipated from it. Although what I got wasn't precisely what I had in mind, it does manage to function as a worthy sequel.

There remains that frenzied sense of events unfolding at a breakneck pace, often leaving the reader somewhat disoriented. However, rather than this being attributed to the chaos of war and the insanity of military command, it stems from the chaos of life and the realization of approaching one's own end. It does create a similar atmosphere, but not one with which I felt as deeply connected. Of course, I haven't experienced war, and my own end is (hopefully) still a long way off, so it hasn't crossed my mind frequently. Turning 30 soon means you're no longer young, but it doesn't mean the end is imminent either.

This book also felt much more American than "Catch-22," which further distanced me from the events. I've visited New York, but that's a far cry from living there or being a native, and many details seemed targeted at those who are. I suppose authors often write for themselves, and perhaps, once I reach the age range of the characters within, I'll be able to relate more.

The inclusion of characters and figures from other works, such as Strangelove and Vonnegut, struck me as a bit peculiar. I'm not sure of the purpose, aside from perhaps directing readers towards other media the author deems worthy of consumption, but it was indeed intriguing.

As at the conclusion of the first book, I'm left with questions regarding what was supposed to be real, what was hyperbole, and what the ending signified. In that sense, I suppose it is a very successful sequel.

Old, jaded men, and even a dead one, are engaged in summarizing their lives between the end of Catch 22 and then. It seems to take an eternity to discover a plot to act upon. Meanwhile, as a reader, I find myself trapped, attempting to like clusters of male characters, each of whom possesses torrents of nonredeemable qualities and perverse annotations about women. This aspect truly makes the work age very poorly.

On the positive side, the author is adept at characterizations and world anecdotes. However, overall, it is generally an uncomfortable and arduous read. The combination of unlikable characters and their less-than-flattering views on women creates a rather unpleasant experience for the reader. Despite the author's skill in certain areas, the overall tone and content of the work make it a difficult one to fully enjoy.

The novel presents a rather complex and somewhat vaguely incomprehensible narrative. The intertwinement of the realism with the stories of Sammy and Lew, along with the utter absurdity in the tales of Yossarian and the chaplain, makes the cynicism it conveys hit with greater force.

Some parts of this novel truly felt impactful, leaving a lasting impression. However, there were also other parts that seemed to lack any real punch or significance. The humor within the book wasn't utilized to its full potential, and the writing style came across as pedantic and difficult to penetrate.

Despite spending a considerable amount of time disliking this book while reading it, the final lines about the sun turning dark have an almost haunting quality and will probably always remain etched in my memory. It's as if those few lines manage to redeem, to some extent, the overall experience of reading the novel.