I got hooked in from the very first chapter, with the odd "voice" of the narrator, his strange upbringing and his mother's insane character. The second chapter was so raw, real, and at the same time completely ludicrous that I was with Palahniuk for the whole ride. Except... he kind of lost me along the way, what with the scenes in the Renaissance Pleasure Faire-type workplace that I thought were too outside the realm of any kind of reality to serve as the satirical whimsy he was attempting; the choking in restaurants escapades that concluded in a sort of corny way; and other misteps I felt just didn't match the enthusiasm, creativity and twisted pathos that he tapped into at the start of the novel. I would read "Fight Club" because I really enjoyed what Fincher did with the film, but as for anything else of his, I'm not so sure I'd spend the time. I like his writing style, but the style can't sustain a novel (for me) if the story and characters fall apart within that sparkling wordplay. (Read 7/02)

Sending to Pumpkyn, per her request. Hope she likes it. Looking forward to reading her review. She sent me Irvine Welsh's "Filth" as a trade, which I plan to read sometime before year's end.

hi Justin!! I got the book today. Thanks so much! I will read it after I am finished with my current book. Lately I've been swamped with so much school & work I haven't had time to read :-( I will post a review here when I'm done.