Catch-22

Catch-22 is a popular satirical book by Joseph Heller. The novel is about Yossarian, an Air Force Bombardier during World War II, and his attempts to escape his tour of duty and go home. Yossarian believes that everyone is out to get him - the enemy by shooting at him when he flies missions, and his superiors by making fly more missions, so he is desperate to escape before he is killed.

The central theme of Catch-22 is a clause known simply as Catch-22: anyone who wants to fly more missions must be insane to endanger their life, but filing for insanity to be sent home is a sane act, proving that the person is sane and therefore will have to fly more missions. Meanwhile, the number of missions needed to complete one's tour of duty and be sent home is continually being raised, so that no one is able to complete their tour - combined with Catch-22, this makes an inescapable situation.

Catch-22 pokes fun at many facets of society, including bureaucracy, sanity and insanity, capitalism, morality, and love.

The book is comparable to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and anyone who enjoyed it (read: any CTYer) should give Catch-22 a read.

Catch-22 is also a popular band.