Rating: 
Summary: Sophmore Book From Fight Club Author, Passes
Review: Upon rading the novel "Fight Club", I decided I would further my search for enjoyment in Chuck Palahniuk's second book, "Survivor". Once again I went into the book with an open mind and was not upset.The book Survivor begins with the central character dictating his life story aboard a doomed 747. Tender Branson, the main character, is recording his life in the black box of a 747 which is about to crash somewhere in the Australian outback. His twisted life includes the suicidal Creedish religion and his rise to fame as a crooked preacher. Along the way he meets Fetility Hollis, a girl who possess the gift of the ability to see the future. The book winds in and out of his strange yet interesting life. Palahniuk's second book is a success. The simple, yet complicated plot can easily be related to the everyday man. His writing style in the book is much like that of "Fight Club", whereas it includes many little bits of useless information. For instance, the main character is a house cleaner and ocassionally spouts off lines like "I know how to clean blood out of wallpaper," or "I know how to properly eat a lobster." I enjoyed reading this hauntingly strange book and recommend it to those who liked "Fight Club".
Rating: 
Summary: Another Brillent Novel By Chuck
Review: Smart but scary, dark yet funny, and of course no one can pull it off like Chuck can. Another brillent story by the wonder mad man.
At first I had no clue where he was going, and that will always happen in his books, but once I understood I was rapped in a story of a crazy, twisted, chuch geek.
As it so happens, I was in the time of my life where I was questioning the big God theroy, and this book helped me thnk and understand it alittle better. Not saying I bought into his [stuff] but it did make me think.
READ IT IF YOU DARE.
Rating:
Summary: Survivor stands alone
Review: Of all of Palahniuk's work this one is great for beginners and fans alike. It is my favorite of his works because it showcases his ability to juggle story lines and keep the story intriguing as it plods along faster and faster until you realize you read it all during the night and it is now dawn.
Rating:
Summary: The book that made me a reader
Review: We have all been taught how to do something, so we know nothing different than what we have been taught. Survivor focuses on how society is brought up to be part of the big corporate machine. It is a brilliant dispaly of how one must find their own destiny, and not have it dictated to them. Palahniuk creates an extremely satiristic, but comical novel on the subject of self discovery. Survivor has made me a Palahniuk fan for life. Two words of advice: READ IT!
Rating: 
Summary: Am I missing something?
Review: Well...to start, I really liked the screen adaptation of "Fight Club". As I understand it, "Fight Club" was filmed very faithfully...very close to the novel. But where to begin about "Survivor"? For starters, you'll never develop any real feelings pertaining to the novel's characters...they're bland, annoying and totally devoid of any personality. You'll constantly be shouting at Tender Branson, the lead character, to shut up over and over in your private thoughts. I found myself wishing the characters would just stop talking. They drone on and on and on and on...endlessly. And they don't even do it in an interesting manner!!! It's kind of like they've all had their souls sucked out of them...and you will too if you read this novel. Ugh.
Rating:
Summary: here he comes again...
Review: The book is laid out in a most weird way... It reminded me of Memento (the movie) as the first page has the number 289 and then goes down to 1. But it ended up nothing of the sort... This is certainly one of the best books I have read in some time. The hero is a useless piece of [stuff] but throughout the book you find yourself agreeing with him, and worse, even empathizing with him! He has so much of us - full of useful housekeeping information that is useless in telling you how to live this life... A engrossing book from a writer really out there...
Rating:
Summary: the best palahniuk book i have read!
Review: This is by far my favorite palahniuk book. I have read Fight Club and loved it. Unfortunatly I saw the movie first. Not much new in the book.
Survivor however has the same style and action. Tender Branson, our hero in this book, expresses everything dark and wrong within the human soul, in his actions and thoughts. This is his story, a survivor of a so called "cult" that had supressed his life to that of a mindless worker (which was so to keep him humble and honest). This is a look into a life in which everything that is told and understood disappears. Now Tender Branson is left to his own devices. He is alone and without the necessary guidence to live a normal life. You want him to survive but you know he just needs to be put out of his misery. If you like Fight Club or Invisible Monsters, this is a must read. Im looking forward to choke!
Rating:
Summary: AND A WEIRDO SHALL LEAD THEM
Review: Reading Survivor I couldn't help being reminded of Renaissance era writers and thinkers. Their minds were always aware of their own mortality, witness the presence of a skull in a lot of the art of the period. Youth was seen as fleeting and to be enjoyed while it lasted because it would never come again. In our time, thanks to plastic surgery and the illusion of the media, one can become immortal, whether they deserve it or not. Chuck is of the former era. He sees past all the illusion of modern life and chronicles it with not only Swiftian satire but also with great sensitivity and beauty. I know that must sound like a paradox. In the character Tender Branson, Palahniuk gives us not a hero for our times, but an everyman. I know, not everyone has grown up in a Branch Davidian type religious cult. Or haven't we? What is television? And what are the movie stars but our ever present angels that we wish we could be? Back to the book. It starts backwards with the pages descending from 289 to page 1. Because in essence it is being told that way. Branson has hijacked a plane, and right here let me say that he tells us he is not a muderer. All the passengers were let off the plane beforehand. His plan is to crash into the aboriginal wastes of Australia. While he still has fuel left, he begins to recount how he came to be on the plane, namely, his life story to be preserved by the flight recorder. Tender grew up as a member of The Creedish Death Cult. As one of its tenents, it requires that at a certain age its members go into the world to take up the most menial, meaningless jobs. What is better than to serve mankind in its most basic needs. He becomes the housekeeper of a faceless rich couple. They are so ghostlike that he never sees them. He only communicates with them over the phone. To Branson, life is so hollow. This is symbolized by the fact that to fulfill his role as gardener he plants the yard with fake flowers he steals from mausoleums. And noone notices the difference. With a stroke of luck (or is it?) his life changes. Someone calling a crisis hotline rings him by mistake and Branson gets the idea that he likes having the power of life and death over his callers and advertises his own hotline. Of course, he tells his callers to commit suicide based on what mood he is in. When he meets up with Fertility Hollis, the sister of one of his victims who just happens to have the gift of prophecy, his life begins to evolve beyond his control. And besides, someone is stalking ex-Creedish cult members and murdering them, further complicating his life. I loved this book. One of the hype quotes from Bret Easton Ellis says with Chuck "our generation has found its Don DeLillo". I have to correct that because Palahniuk is his own writer. And a greater writer than DeLillo whose Underworld almost made me have a seizure because of boredom. Chuck is the best speaker for our times that I know about. America has lost the ability to know what truth is because we are surrounded by so much illusion. This author is one of the very few who is not afraid to go against political correctness and to illustrate the spiritual unhinging of our country. That's not to say that he is mordant or depressing. What you feel in this work is a sense of loneliness but at the same time, hope. In some ways Palahniuk reminds me of the zen wandering for comfort and love that Jack Kerouac exhibited at moments. Chuck is better than him also. I look forward to his evolution into a great writer.
Rating: 
Summary: A quick and entertaining read, but not much more than that.
Review: The characters seemed distant. I did not care for any of them. Some situations seemed very improbable. Most of the novel seemed very sketchy and lacking detail where much detail was needed. It was an entertaining read nonetheless.
However, don't expect something more spectacular than Fight Club like I did, because it isn't.
Rating:
Summary: Chuck Does It Again
Review: An amazing story that uses a brilliant storytelling device. I don't know how Chuck keeps coming up with such innovative writing styles. If you like Chuck's past work, you can't miss with this.
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