Brawney Vonnegut, acrylic on canvas 2007

Indianapolis celebrated the life and work of Kurt Vonnegut with "2007: The Year of Vonnegut" by encouraging everyone in the city to read at least one of his books. Now that we're rolling along into 2008, let's keep going with this idea. So maybe you've never read Vonnegut and want to know the best book to start with. Well, it's like the Reverend Lovejoy's description of the Bible: "It's all good." And if you've already read his work, that's no excuse because the fiction and nonfiction of Vonnegut really holds up under repeated re-readings. I'm re-reading "The Sirens of Titan" and really savoring it, finding plenty of new facets to enjoy. And speaking of facets, there's a whole other area of Vonnegut's creativity to enjoy, his graphic artwork. Check out www.vonnegut.com for more info and examples of his drawings (one can order t-shirts and something called "GelaSkins" that fit over iPods and feature Vonnegut artwork). Another nice thing on that website are notes from his family thanking his fans.