by George Giannakos and Robyn Yager | Slowing down a little and breaking out a good book is never a bad idea. But what to read? You could walk into any bookstore and roll the dice on a recent release, but here’s another option: pick up a book that you last put down 5, 10, or 20 years ago. For the next book in Scout’s Read It (Again) series, we’ve picked Kurt Vonnegut Jr.’s 1969 anti-war satire, Slaughterhouse Five.

Why You Should Read It Again: “All this happened, more or less…” so Kurt Vonnegut Jr. opens his cult, World War 2 classic. After the famous line it’s just go go go with protagonist Billy Pilgrim. It’s a light read – both physically and mentally – and it’s pretty hilarious, albeit in a really dark, war-seriously-sucks kinda way. And if aliens (ahem, Tralfamadorians) and time travel (to both the past and the future) don’t make you want to pick up the book again – perhaps this link with multiple pages of the novel’s take away phrase “So it goes” tattooed on people will.

Pair It With: The book has no direct mention of any particular drink, so one must get a little more creative. Considering how it’s the end of summer and Slaughterhouse Five blends comedy and tragedy seamlessly, I think it’s only appropriate to take a stool at the long bar of Hasting’s Save-On-Meats and grab yourself a thick and boozy Bacon Bourbon Chocolate Milkshake. If that isn’t a blend of comedy and tragedy, then I really don’t want to know what is.

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