Rating: 
Summary: Been there, done that.
Review: Maybe I'm getting too old for this type of book, or maybe the events of September 11 have put things more into perspective, but I couldn't really tolerate another cynical, nihilistic 20-something-white-guy sarcastic navel-gazing commentary on the shortcomings of the disposible modern American culture. (See: Brent Easton Ellis; Douglas Copeland). Hey, we've gotten the message about 30 times already! It's time to do something different with it! Choke wouldn't have been so annoying in that regard if it wasn't for the fact that Fight Club was so good -- and although FC is probably the pinnacle example of the aforementioned navel-gazing, it did go a lot further, was surprisingly "deep", had a well-structured plot, a number of interesting characters, and touched on other issues such as identity, loyalty, friendship, delusion and free-will, giving it an unusual and thoughtful spin. Choke, on the other hand, seems far more superficial, and amounts to a bunch of whiny "look how sarcastic and self-abusive I can be" anecdotes that, although they do supply a few funny moments, they do not tie together well, seem to contain little other meaning, and provide very little thought-provoking ideas. Its sort of like a bawdy Sienfeld routine. Unfortunately, this one leaves you with the feeling of eating mediocre week-old Chineese food leftovers from the fridge -- at some point some time ago, it might have been passable when fresh, but by now it's been done so many times and so much better that you just want to chuck this one in the trash. Hope the next one from Palaniuk has something new to say...
Rating: 
Summary: Best Palahniuk title so far
Review: If you've read Chuck's other three novels, you'll quickly catch on to some of his old tricks. A disenfranchised protagonist with an identity crisis who attends weekly support groups and makes his living off of some clever scam. A narrator with a miniscule attention span, a catch phrase repeated dozens of times throughout the story, a compendium of disturbing factoids from the shadowy underbelly of American life. Despite such oft-revisited themes, Palahniuk manages to deliver another addicting story in Choke, with even a couple more surprises. He's taken elements from his first few efforts and perfected his style in many ways. One big weakness is the book's climax and resolution. Toward the end of the novel, it seems Chuck had written himself into a corner and couldn't think of a good vehicle to carry the last few chapters. The tale digresses into an overly abstract (even for him) subplot about rock collecting, seemingly in order to wrap up the story with a symbolic illustration of the book's central "message." Palahniuk fans will like this novel for the same reasons they got hooked on his writing to begin with. At the same time, a breath of fresh air would sure be nice.
Rating: 
Summary: I was choking...
Review: I was choking to get through this one. I loveF.C. and Survivor but it took me a while to get through this one. But i thought the sex-addict premise was very original and cool, but the plot that based around it wasn't as interesting.
Rating:
Summary: dude, like totally overrated.
Review: like many people i was drawn to choke by the entertaining movie fight club; also the ... blurb on the back cover comparing palahniuk to don delillo caught my eye.... anyhow, i'm not going rant and detail ...; i just want to provide an antidote to all those incredibly glowing but naive reviews ("Palahniuk is an AMAZING writer"; "Choke is worth the time and trouble") above and below this negative one, to tell you that Palahniuk is a pretty terrible writer by almost any measure and this slim novel is about as hollow as the Strokes' Is This It CD (and about as fashionable too). i suppose that reading choke can make you think the book is dark, fresh and modern; you wouldn't be wrong if you're not conversant with much contemporary fiction. however, what feels fresh is actually careless, especially in its barely-fleshed characters and really really bad dialogue. i snickered many times. what seems to matter to Palahniuk are scenarios (sex in airplanes! fight clubs!), not ideas (...Delillo's White Noise) or vision (... William Vollmann's The Atlas) or even straight ahead narrative (Kavalier & Clay??). After awhile his scenarios stop being funny because you realize that you aren't being taken anywhere but just looping endlessly from the stupid to the pointless. bottom line is that this is a very amateur-ish novel that actually feels like it was hastily written over a weekend because the manuscript was due on monday. consider your self warned.
Rating:
Summary: Hard to Swallow But...
Review: I did not want to like this book---but I did. Dare I say that I even enjoyed it, and will remember some of the brutal images and language used in it for quite some time. I have even recommended the novel to friends. That said--- Choke is an entertaining novel about self loathing and discovery. The author's voice is terse, the tone of the work is often clinical, stark and lonely. Choke will make you feel both lousy and lucky at the same time. While reading, I laughed out loud, I gagged--and I groaned, in recognition, sympathy and disgust. Choke is worth the time and trouble. Enjoy.
Rating: 
Summary: Mr. Zeh's opinion of Choke
Review: Choke is a phenomenal book that is easy to read and very entertaining. I have recommended this book to several of my friends to read, and so far they have all liked it as well. If you have read Chuck books before, then this is a must read. This was the first book I read by him, and it is his best in my opinion. Check it out sometime if you get a chance. By the way, this is my favorite book and soon it will be made into a movie.
Rating:
Summary: Suffocating for Fun and Profit
Review: Chuck Palahniuk is an amazing writer. Every aspect of this book oozes with imagery and detail. Everything from a "powdery crushed velvet mess" of skin to "brown and glistening" pudding, Palahniuk paints the reader a vivid picture of the world and it's inhabitants. However this I just the painting, the frame is what makes it great. The story is written so that one chapter will discuss current events and the next will describe Victor's past. Eventually these two will meet and bring the reader to a full understanding of Mr. Mancini's situation.
The novel provides a fresh take on reality, pointing out the various faults, or emotions that society has as a whole. If you took the novel as educational, which it most likely is not intended to be, it very well could change your perception of life. However, it will most likely not prove that powerful to most.
In short the book is fantastic, everything from the characters, to the writing, to the structure all make this an absolute must read. It dodoes contain a good amount of sex, seeing as how Victor's a recovering Sexaholic. Some minor profanity. And A little drug use by some of Victor's coworkers. Basically if you didn't like fight club you won't like this book. BUT if you even moderately enjoyed Fight Club Check out or otherwise purchase this Novel SOON, QUICK, IMMEDIATELY! Choke is a book for those tired of the average book; it's a rude awakening into reality.
Rating:
Summary: The Weakest of Chuck's Books
Review: Choke was, unfortunitely, too much like Fight Club and Invisible Monsters to be exceptional. The narration isn't exciting, the flipping back and forth between past and present is overused and random and the characters are 2 dimentional. Thank goodness Lullaby will be a new story!
Rating:
Summary: If you are squeamish, this book is not for you, but....
Review: If you can stand some graphic detail of strange sex including rectal foreign objects, then you should love this book. Palahniuk has a tremendous imagination and he takes on such diverse territory. One minute he is skewering organized religion, the next minute he is taking on historical re-enactors. The plot is utterly ridiculous (like Catch 22) yet there is a gritty realism under the absurdities. The reader comes away with a little bit of insight about sexual addiction (maybe even all addictions); a little knowledge about the horrid storage spaces that we call nursing homes; and maybe some understanding how unromantic it is to live at minimum wage. I was fascinated by the realism that underlay the farce. To top it off there is a plot twist at the end that totally sucker punched me--I thought it was great.
Rating: 
Summary: Not a book to get stranded on a desert island with
Review: I've been saving up CHOKE for months for a needy moment, which came this morning when I expected to be spending a couple of hours in a doctor's waiting room. After plowing through fifty pages, however, I decided it would be more fun to just stare at the walls, which is what I did. It's an ugly book about the sort of people you'd cross the street to avoid if you saw them coming in time. Maybe it gets better. I don't intend to find out.
| 
