An exhibition featuring the drafts and correspondence of Kurt Vonnegut, celebrated American novelist who died in April, opened this week at Indiana University’s Lilly Library.

“Mustard Gas and Roses: The Life and Works of Kurt Vonnegut” showcases drafts of manuscripts of Vonnegut’s writings, correspondence, photographs, first editions of novels, and memorabilia to illustrate aspects of Vonnegut’s life and work.

Indianapolis-born Vonnegut won acclaim after the 1969 publication of his breakthrough novel Slaughterhouse-Five, a work inspired by the World War II bombing of Dresden, Germany. The exhibition title, “Mustard Gas and Roses,” is a reference drawn from the novel, which is also the source of the enduring catchphrase “So it goes.”

The Lilly Library acquired the bulk of Vonnegut’s manuscripts and letters in 1997, but the author continued to forward additional letters and packages to the library, each addressed in his own hand, until the end of his life.

“He anticipated the present exhibition with what seemed special pleasure,” Lilly Library Director Breon Mitchell says of Vonnegut. “He knew that four undergraduates who loved his works had been the moving force behind it.” 

Wells Scholars Seth Bowers, Lisa Dunk, David Pavkovich, and Sarah Taylor curated the exhibition. 

“He was justifiably proud that young people everywhere still read and admired his novels, and that even grade-schoolers were learning about him,” Mitchell says. “One of the last exchanges he sent us was about a surprise phone call he had made to a group of fifth-graders in Los Angeles. When the class sent him their drawings in thanks, he replied in kind and added: ‘P.S. Your artwork will be preserved for all eternity with my papers at Indiana University.’”

Among the items on display in the exhibition are the drafts of Breakfast of Champions and The Sirens of Titan that Vonnegut stapled and taped together into scrolls; a selection of the numerous rejection letters Vonnegut received before the publication of his first short story; and materials concerning Kilgore Trout, an unsuccessful but immensely prolific science fiction writer, who was one of Vonnegut’s most prominent recurring characters. 

Also on exhibition is a board game “General Headquarters” which Vonnegut described as his most challenging writing assignment. The game, dated September 18, 1956, is played by two players on a standard checkerboard and is meant to simulate the tactical dilemmas encountered by soldiers in war. Vonnegut had hoped the game would appeal to veterans wanting to exercise the tactical skills they had learned as soldiers, but its complicated instructions prevented “General Headquarters” from being produced commercially.

The Lilly Library, IU’s library for rare books and manuscripts, houses more than 400,000 books, 130,000 pieces of sheet music, and approximately 7 million manuscripts.  It is one of 18 libraries on campus administered by the IUB Libraries to help students and faculty succeed in their academic goals.

The exhibition runs through September 8. The Lilly Library is open 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. Saturday. Tours are offered to the public at 2 p.m. each Friday. The Lilly Library, 1200 East Seventh Street, is free and open to the public.