Slaughterhouse-Five Book Review Slaughterhouse-Five was published in 1969 and is a science fiction, anti-war novel. It was placed on the New York Times best sellers list, and was put up for several nominations worldwide. Kurt Vonnegut wrote Slaughterhouse-Five based on his own past experiences of World War II. Throughout the story Vonnegut incorporates many themes; war and death, truth and witness, and science fiction. Vonnegut starts Slaughterhouse-Five in the very first chapter, explaining how the idea of writing an anti-war novel came about. Vonnegut’s friend’s wife, ---, was worried that he would write a book “sugar-coating” war. She did not want him expressing how normal it was to take such extreme actions, such as the bombing of Dresden.