quick follow-up re Vonnegut's passing...

As is now widely known, Kurt Vonnegut passed away last night (see previously mentioned, genuinely well written, NYT article). I have received and/or seen two things I wanted to pass along:

Rob Stuart of Frenchboro Books email me the following in response to the news:

In the early 60's, before email and blogs, a few of us might have too much to drink, and we would call Vonnegut (and if Vonnegut, then always also Claude Sitton, who was writing extraordinary stuff from the South for the NYT, for which he eventually won a Pulitze--and yes, a few others) and we would leave slobbering messages of appreciation, adoration, and exhortation, thanking them for expressing what we liked to think were our ideas as well, but really because they gave us hope and courage--and heroes!

Also, Wonkette has a nice post and some great comments, including:

I was a kid when I first read Vonnegut and Joseph Heller. All I could think was OMG! Adults are even more pissed off than I am.

One of my most treasured posessions is a letter Kurt wrote me when I was a freshman in college complete with the ass-terix in the signature. 'Harrison Bergeron' was satire when he wrote and now it is public policy. Life imitates parody.

and

Kurt Vonnegut wrote books with pictures of assholes juxtaposed against depressing truths. He wrote the truth because he loved people. He died today. He hated semicolons; so it goes.

I can feel a rereading binge coming on...