Catch 22

The other weekend I read Catch 22, it was one of the funniest books I've read. It also had a brilliant development of themes. One was the power and stupidity of bureaucracy. This is where the book gets its title, the main character Yossarian wants to escape military duty by being insane. You are insane if you choose to fly missions, and only need to ask to not fly but if you ask not to fly then you show you are aware of the danger and therefore not insane. Numerous other Catch 22's are used which strengthen this ideas of the absolute power of bureacacy. In line with this it is very much a 60s novel, being blatantly anti-war and anti-authority, though it probably distinguishes from this by lining its criticism also at world war 2.