Heller's classic novel of the brutal insanity of war and of the iconoclastic Yossarian, who wants only to go home, clearly shows itself to be the spiritual parent of M*A*S*H. In both, the only way to remain sane is to be even crazier than the people around you. Heller's aim is unerring as he punctures overinflated military egos and exposes a system designed as much to destroy its own soldiers as those of the enemy. Frightening, funny, delightful, and gruesome by turn, it really is must-reading.
