Kurt Vonnegut was an American writer who wrote books, stories and plays. He was born in 1922 and died in 2007. He wrote books that are both funny and sad, and often have science-fiction elements. Many of his works have become popular, like Cat's Cradle, Slaughterhouse-Five, and Breakfast of Champions. He used made-up words and stories to show people how to think about life and its difficulties.