Fast forward one million years. With the benefit of a thousand millennia of hindsight, ghost Leon Trout relays the story of the end of life as WE know it, circa 1986, and how the tiniest fraction of us survived to start again and evolve into something beyond our wildest imaginations.
As the world begins to self-combust all around them, a small group of adventurers have gathered at an Ecuadorian hotel in preparation for the "Nature Cruise of the Century," an incredibly hyped up tour of the Galapagos Islands and the strange creatures that live there. As the political situation in the country has fallen apart, the host of celebrities originally slated to take the cruise, including Jackie O'Nassis and Mick Jagger, have backed out. No matter, as by the time the ship finally sets sail, there is little hope for survival for those on board, let alone the "Nature Cruise of the Century."
The real star of the show here, as in all his books, is Vonnegut himself. A master satirist, Vonnegut never was much for touchy-feely sentimentality, and "Galapagos" is no exception. He has a way of pointing out the incredible absurdity of life, underlining its inherent hilarity, but always tempering his bleak outlook with a semblance of tenderness for all of us weirdos crawling around on this big blue ball. "Galapagos" has many moments of laugh out loud hilarity and some bracing revelations about life (via the filter of Vonnegut's outlook).
If you have read some of Vonnegut's other works, including (most famously) "Slaughterhouse-Five," the style and perspective of "Galapagos" will come as no surprise. If you have never read his work, "Galapagos" is as good an introduction to his singular oeuvre as any you are likely to find.
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