22nd Rule of War (Excerpt)

Author: Joseph Heller [USA]
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-05-10
Features: In a U.S. Air Force base, absurdities happen one after another, and everyone there has gone mad. This book is a classic portrayal of a mad world and the best novel reflecting World War II. At the end of World War II, on a small island of Pianosa, eight miles south of Elba Island in the Mediterranean Sea, Captain Yossarian, a bombardier, acts like a spooked bird, engaging in nearly mad efforts to preserve his life amidst chaos, absurdity, and terror, disregarding all authority and beliefs. On this island, his only purpose in life is to avoid combat flights. Therefore, he repeatedly feigns illness and checks into the hospital because he discovers that it is the best place to hide. In the end, he finally deserted and fled to Sweden.