Catch 22 by Joseph Heller

In a dictionary, Catch 22 means an impossible situation where to get something done you have to do/have a second thing but to do/have the second thing you have to do/have the first thing. In Yossarian's case, a bombardier in the American Air Force during World War II, there's a catch stating that if you're crazy then you may be grounded( dismissed from flying more missions) but the moment you are, you become sane again so that means you have to fly more missions. Yossarian is desperate to quit and so he uses a wide range of tactics to get out of flying because he also has a phobia of dying. To him, the enemy is anyone who is trying to kill him and not only does that involve the Germans who shoot at him everytime he crosses their territory in a jet but Colonel Cathcart too, who's obssessed about being promoted and therefore keeps on raising the number of missions the men must fly. Life's tough, will Yossarian and his pals ever live through it?

I enjoyed this satirical novel because many of scenes are quite hilarious despite the fact that some are tragic and also because the characters are all quirky and eccentric. Under the humour, however, this book does carry a serious message. Even though the men should be fighting against the enemy, most of them quarrel amongst themselves and it's interesting reading about the schemes many of them (especially the Colonels and Generals) are always plotting against each other.