I don't know about you, but I'm sick of watching movies and forgetting what happened in them before I even leave the theater. However, after watching Fight Club, I could not get it out of my head. I went to watch Bringing out the Dead that same day and couldn't even concentrate on what Nicholas Cage was doing, because Fight Club kept playing itself over and over again in my head. The next day I went out and bought Fight Club, Invisible Monsters, and ordered Survivor. I figured that if the book was half as good as the movie I would be satisfied. I read Fight Club every spare moment I had and finished it in two days. Let me tell you, this book is awesome! The movie keeps the intent of the book, but the book takes the storyline to a whole other level. No one but Palahniuk can mix together so many different story lines and odd images into a working novel. His imagery and style are breathtaking and if you're anything after me, as soon as you're done reading it, you'll want to read it again.

This is what those new age self-help books don't teach you. They don't REALLY show you how screwed up the world is with you trapped in the middle. Let Tyler Durden show you why your life is so screwed up. Is it because we've become obsessed with a corporate-infused lifestyle? Part of it. Is it because people have some sort of sick desperation in their lives? Yes. Is it because corporations have taken over our lives? Yes. Is it because people are scared to prove they're alive? Definately.

The plot basically revolves around an insomniac. Our unnamed protagonist goes to support groups to cure his insomnia, until another faker, a woman named Marla, begins faking her way through these groups. After his condo was blown up, he goes to live with Tyler, a man he met on a nude beach. Tyler's only request is that the two of them start a fight. When fight club becomes boring, Tyler decides to take it up, and fight club becomes Project Mayhem.

If you've seen the movie, you need to read the book. While the movie mainly focuses on the fighting, the book goes into a lot more detail about project mayhem. The movie probably skips about a third of the book. Plus, the book explains the true definition of what a space monkey is, the formula for homemade napalm, and the real secret formula for Tyler's soap. Only after you've read the book and viewed the key scenes in the movie does the philosophy of Mr. Durden become clear. Even if you think you know the movie, read the book. The first rule of fight club may be that you don't talk about fight club, but you will after reading the book.

You haven't read a book like this. And you really, really need to. Blame the millenium for the rash of New Age Thought books out of late (Celestine Prophecy, Ishmael, etc.), all promising to explain to you in narrative exactly why your life isn't turning out the way you thought it would. Fight Club isn't at risk of being lumped in with that lot, mainly because so many people who read this are going to misunderstand it.(hence movie reviews dismissing it as pointless homoerotic violence.) The medium is the message here, and to that end Chuck reinvents the concept of prose narrative. The storyline is less a narrative than it is a mural; a series of images and vignettes layered one on top of another to reveal the meanings "under and behind and inside" the mind-crushing mundanity of this, the American Nightmare. Each event, each dialogue, each bone-crunching scene is focused like a magnifying glass in the sun, like tallows in boiling fat, until pure meaning comes out. This prose isn't flowery, it's visceral. The ideas, consequently, hit you like a foot to the gut when you've never been in a fight. It changes the way you see things. It affects your with ideas you hadn't thought of, and wish you had.

Survivor the novel, by Chuck Palaniuk is a dark, satire filled fun land, with intriguing characters and a unique story line that represents modern day mutations that might occur.

I liked most of the book, it was very entertaining and deeply disturbed, all at the same time. Each character was intriguing, in his or her own way. (Chuck, you're doing a good job,keep writing.) The book was extremely unpredictable and fascinatingly bizarre it was full l of twists and turns that take you on an emotional roller coaster with the main character, (Tender Branson). Who becomes religious media messiah and later the worlds enemy. Overall it was a great documentary on how mixed up some peoples minds are, due to the environment or internal demons. Whatever the case, it was written with true talent that is indispensable when writing such a strange tale.

My only complaint is the ending, which i did'nt understand, but I suppose it fit the book's atmosphere, unexpected and in your face. But ultimately necessasry in order to feed you the full essence of the message the author wass trying to get across. It is up to you to interpret, so go buy the book. ( I have a feeling that this writing will be around for a long time, and will be picked apart and analyzed for years to come, so we can try to get a feel for all the implications and ideas of this book and other books by this author.

I didn't think it was possible for Chuck to top his first book Fight Club, but i think he did so with Survivor. I recently watched the fight club movie and it has since become my favourite, so i decided to go out and buy the book. I read the book and thought it was absolutely excellent. It really makes the reader think about materialism, and the other issues brought up in this book. I liked it so much i went out and bought the rest of his novels, including a signed copy of his newest Choke. I read Survivor on a plane if you can believe and thought it was one of the best books ever written. It's thought provoking and makes us look at the world and fame in a different light. It was also original in the way that both the chapters and the page numbers were like a countdown. The 'stairmaster' chapter has to be my favourite chapter in the book. It was just so wonderful and insightful. This is a great book with an thought-provoking and original plot. And Chuck continues to be one of the newest great writers of today.

In Palahniuk's "Survivor" there are all the elements of satire in Tender Branson's account of his tale, which sucks the reader into his bizarre world. This book was a great follow up to Fight Club. It not only took fans on another wild ride, but also presented the tragedy of mind in a victim who suffers a trauma at the hands of a cult/family, which could be interpreted as a metaphorical representation of society. It is a fun and humorous book that deviates from the character of Tyler Durden and signals what can be expected of Palahniuk in the future. I loved this book for its humor, sarcasm, and interesting look at the education of youths. A great little love story, a huge dose of comedy and facts that only Chuck can deliver in prose, "Survivor" is another impressive work that should be held on to and read over and over.

Despite the fragmented style of this book, it is very easy to read. At times it's also very humorous in that all of the charactors are grotesque exagerations of people. The problem with this book lies in the writer's constant use of plot twists. There are so many woven into this story that, eventually it becomes like a bad Dickens novel (not that Dickens wrote any bad novels). Everything in the story is so intertwined, so coincidental that as it progresses, it becomes less and less believable. It almost seems as though Palaniuk is trying to outdo his previous works --trying to remain shocking to his audience. By doing this though, he handicaps his story. While his style is interesting, and the story is pleasant to read (it could easily be read in a day, or two), I think that in trying to compete with his earlier novels, Palaniuk made a lesser one. If you are interested in This particular writer due to a certain movie starring Brad Pitt and Edward Norton, I would suggest reading his earlier novels (Fight Club, and Survivor)instead of this book. This one is, in my humble opinion, the weakest of the three novels.

This was my first Palahniuk novel, and it definitely won't be my last. The plot was wild, and the twists and turns had me glued to the pages. The characters were hilarious and sad at the same time, reminiscent of twisted, self loathing pieces of modern society.

The main characters may seem one dimensional at first, but grow to develop deep flaws and sensitivities that only leave the reader searching through parts of the book wondering, "what actually caused this?!". I found this becoming a pertinent question while I read, probably due to the fact that the traits mirror a darker side of our society, intensified and characterized in a hauntingly accurate manner. Especially haunting is the way in which Palahniuk depicts humans attempting to defy their pasts, and overcome their self loathing, unsucessfully.

The novel is told from the viewpoint of a bitter, jealous ex-model, and in my mind, Palahniuk does an excellent job of allowing this bitterness to come through his writing. Stylistically, the book is choppy, not only in its general format (written in stream of consiousness), but also in its sentence structure. No, I do not believe that Palahniuk failed 8th grade grammar. Rather, I feel that this choppy sentence structure and poor grammar were completely intentional, meant to illustrate the personality of the narrator, who is obviously not a scholarly character. Had Palahniuk employed any other style, the novel may not have been so sucessful.

That said, Invisible Monsters deals with some sensitive topics (sex changes and other surgeries, for example) and might not be the best choice for someone who is easily offended. Also, reading over the reviews, I see that the the style (choppy and soap-opera like, similar to the beginning of Brave New World) proves to be difficult for some- I guess that's just personal preference. However, don't let this scare you- you'll get the hang of it quickly, and from then on, you'll appreciate the style, as it gives the novel a distinct rhythm.

If nothing else, Invisibile Monsters is a fantastic read, and will not leave you bored for even a second. I would especially recommend it to lovers of imaginative, "out-there" books, anyone who enjoys satires, and anyone looking for a plain good book, with a reallyyyyyy interesting plot.

If I had to recommend a single Palahniuk book, other than the justifiably overhyped Fight Club, it would be this one. Not as meandering as Choke, self-righteous as Survivor, and as brief as Lullaby. Invisible Monsters is another one of his books that plays itself as a film within your head...you try not to gasp in horror and laugh at the same time. It has a solid story and a concrete ending! Palahniuk needs to follow this model using his style as a assault on your imagination. I'm suprised that this is not as popular as Fight Club...seeing as how this is every bit as stylistic as it was. For those of you that can't get Brad Pitt out of your head when you read about Tyler Durden, this is a good one to pick up before a film version steals that purity from you. It's cheaply priced and a fun read...the pages blaze by.

If you would like to have your belief structures and social conventions challenged by one of the best new voices around, I highly recommend this book. If you want to be spoon-fed conventional blubber, stick with the bestseller list. By his fourth novel, Choke, Palahniuk further refines themes suggested in his earlier books, while employing new (and to an extent previously taboo) subjects as the context within which his slightly-off characters frolic and suffer to our delight. Vincent Mancini, the protagonist of Choke, wrestles with such of life's little complications as sexual addiction, Alzheimer's Disease, and the emotional need for validation, salvation and personal transformation. Those who enjoyed Invisible Monsters, Fight Club and/or Survivor will find familiar comfort in Palahniuk's sound-bite linguistic style, which frantically drives the book toward whatever conclusion is in store. I read the book in two sittings, insatiably curious as to how (and if) the pieces fit together. My thanks to Chuck Palahniuk for making life a little more . . . err . . . interesting. Here's to hoping that he is presently scheming away at a new novel.

I actually picked this book up in the "How To" section of my local bookstore. No lie. I could spend hours trying to decipher the accidental or intended implications of such a placement, which stinks of either conspiracy or revolution, I can't tell which.

Anyway, seeing as Fight Club is my all time favorite movie, it only seems logical that I'd gravitate towards ol' Chucks work. Why it took me so long I can't say. Having read none of his other books, I can't really compare them. I can say that I will be purchasing them shortly. Choke is brilliant and extremely funny. It's not often that a novel can make me laugh hysterically in public, but this one did.

The premise of the book and one of it's strengths is the theory that if you make someone else into a hero, they'll love you forever. The protagonist repeatedly fakes choking to death in restaurants to pay his dying mothers hospital bills, but at the same time, he demonstrates that even the most ordinary people have the capacity for the extraordinary. It's sick and beautiful at the same time. Peppered with addiction, sex, insanity, medical references, urban legends, and a ton of Oedipus issues; Choke is about confronting your past, or being consumed by it. Like Fight Club (the movie that is. I know, I blaspheme.) it's about tearing down who you think you are to find out who you really are. It's about rebirth and redemption, perception and illusion.

It's about all that stuff and more, but bottom line, it's just a blast to read. If you like Vonnegut, Irving Welsh or David Foster Wallace, chances are this book is for you. It will probably make you laugh, it might even make you think, but it will definitely entertain you.

I go to high school, and in English class they make us read boring novels about fake people who would have died hundreds of years ago, as if relating their stories to everyday life will help us at all once we leave the God forsaken classroom. And they call these "classics."

But it's stories like Chuck Palahniuk's CHOKE that can truly be interpreted and applied to today's culture. Depressing, humorous, and deep in philosophy. While I found Survivor to be more memorable than Choke, Choke is still leaps and bounds ahead of any other non-Palahniuk novel I've ever read.

Choke is more of a story than a bible, but it has a very fullfilling ending that leaves you in a pensive mood. Get this book if you've enjoyed other Palahniuk works, but if you're trying this author out for the first time, go with Fight Club or Survivor.

And remember, Don't Read Ahead!

If you liked Survivor, Fight Club, and Choke, just savor the feeling of a good re-read. Those books were terrific, but this is trendy rehash--in fact, it's sloppily written, just POOR. And I'm sorry--I really WANTED it to be great, as I'd looked forward to it for months. But not this time. Palahniuk is just repeating himself now, and it's sad, really, what his work is becoming.

I must admit, I had high hopes coming into the long-awaited Lullaby. Like most of you, I have read Fight Club, Survivor, and Choke(planning on Invisible Monsters) and was eagerly anticipating Lullaby like a virgin on prom night. I think fans of the visionary that is Chuck Palahniuk will enjoy this dark and esoteric, yet amusingly fun novel. Perhaps those less versed in the original, sordid, and cynical prose of Chuck would be better served to commence the Palahniuk journey with the incomparable Fight Club.

While Lullaby is anything but pedantic and mundane literature, the character development was a bit lackluster and the storyline perhaps somewhat convoluted and unrealistic. Having said that, I must admit that Lullaby was a compelling, if not bizarre read nonetheless. One annoying anachronistic snafu that I must point out is how author Basil Frankie "lifted off the Internet" some of his material for his book Poems and Rhymes from Around the World - despite having written it 20 years ago. That's about as likely as hell freezing over. This group of eclectic and unendearing characters was by all means the weakest group written by Chuck thus far. I recommend Lullaby for diehard Chuck fans like moi, but not for first-time readers.

There's a reason why Chuck Palahniuk is my favorite author: He's quite possibly the most offensive modern writer on the planet. I'm not talking offensive for the sake of being offensive. Every line is scathing, but with a direction. A clear target. He's always got something to throw the spotlight on and make us see things from a different angle.
And maybe this is just my sick sense of humor, but the offensive material makes it just that much more intense. Everything hits with that much more impact. They say that a good book is written based on real-world events and personal experiences. If this is true, Palahniuk's adventures expose the dark underbelly of human existance. He boldly goes where every other writer is too afraid to go. I'm talking about this because Palahniuk's newest novel, Lullaby, touches on some of the most offensive and controversial material he's ever touched on: Dead babies, necrophelia, religion, and paganism just to name a few.
Getting to the synopsis, Lullaby is (to put a 300-some-odd-page story short) about a journalist on a sudden infant death syndrome assignment, who stumbles on a "culling song" in a poems book that, when read or even thought towards someone, instantly kills them. Of course, this sets off a caper-style chain of events where our hero meets several other dysfunctional characters who take off on a road trip to destroy all copies of the culling song.
Going into too much detail would ruin some of the surprise, and dull those cringing feelings you might experience when you read some of the most offensive lines of the book. Simply put, this book is sort of a mixture of that mushy after-sex feeling and the painful muscle spasms of a dry-heave session. A bittersweet sort of feeling that leaves the reader with a head full of profound thought, a stomach full of nausea, and a smirk in the corner of your mouth that you might not even know is there.