Kirkus Star
THE KIRKUS STAR
Awarded to Books of Exceptional Merit

BROWSE BOOK REVIEWS




Chuck Palahniuk


Showing

Cover art for FIGHT CLUB
FICTION
Released: Aug. 1, 1996

"This brilliant bit of nihilism succeeds where so many self-described transgressive novels do not: It's dangerous because it's so compelling."
Brutal and relentless debut fiction takes anarcho-S&M chic to a whole new level--in a creepy, dystopic, confrontational novel that's also cynically smart and sharply written. Read full book review >
Cover art for SURVIVOR
FICTION
Released: Feb. 1, 1999

"Brilliant, engrossing, substantial, and fun: Palahniuk carves out credible, moving dramas from situations that seemed simply outlandish and sad on the evening news. (Author tour)"
A morbidly fascinating black fantasy about a young cult member's rise to fame and his fall from grace, written by West Coast novelist Palahniuk (Fight Club, 1996). Read full book review >
Cover art for CHOKE
FICTION
Released: May 15, 2001

"Palahniuk is a cheerful nihilist with a mordant wit and a taste for scatological humor. Fair warning: some may find his language and imagery offensive."
The author of Fight Club (1996) takes as the hero of his fourth novel an unlovable loser who doesn't blame Mom. Read full book review >
Cover art for LULLABY
FICTION
Released: Sept. 17, 2002

"Outrageous, darkly comic fun of the sort you'd expect from Palahniuk."
The latest comic outrage from Palahniuk (Choke, 2001, etc.) concerns a lethal African poem, an unwitting serial killer, a haunted-house broker, and a frozen baby. In other words, the usual Palahniuk fare. Read full book review >
Cover art for FUGITIVES AND REFUGEES
NONFICTION
Released: July 8, 2003

"For Palahniuk, the more acute the angle the better, but his is another solid entry in the Crown Journey series, with its premium on deep-dish subjectivity."
Novelist Palahniuk (Lullaby, 2002, etc.) squires readers through Portland at its outlandish best. Read full book review >
Cover art for DIARY
FICTION
Released: Aug. 26, 2003

"A loose-limbed nightmare both vaporous and all-enveloping: awe-inspiring."
Failed artist becomes wife of carpenter on picturesque island--then, in Palahniuk's remarkable sixth novel (after Lullaby, 2002), everything goes to hell. Read full book review >
Cover art for STRANGER THAN FICTION
NONFICTION
Released: June 15, 2004

"Dolorous yet exhilarating dispatches from the edge."
Palahniuk takes a break from his pitch-black, apocalyptic fiction (Diary, 2003, etc.) and spins a few yarns about real people--some not insane or suffering from a debilitating illness. Read full book review >
Cover art for HAUNTED
FICTION
Released: May 17, 2005

"Stomach-churning horror that takes a bit too much joy in its diabolic machinations."
A writers' retreat turns out to be more hellish than its participants would have imagined. Read full book review >
Cover art for RANT
FICTION
Released: May 1, 2007

"Not for everyone, but readers who like to walk on the novelist's wild side will rave."
Viciously incisive and lethally funny social commentary in a novel cast as an oral biography. Read full book review >
Cover art for SNUFF
FICTION
Released: May 20, 2008

"The sordidness might appeal to the Palahniuk's cult following, but it won't extend it."
The notorious novelist's excursion into the world of porn might well be his most moralistic work to date. Read full book review >
Cover art for PYGMY
FICTION
Released: May 5, 2009

"Stylistically exhilarating but not for every taste."
A series of dispatches written in fractured and occasionally hilarious English suck readers into the mind of exchange student and would-be terrorist Pygmy. Read full book review >
Cover art for DAMNED
FICTION
Released: Oct. 18, 2011

"The novel sustains a consistency of narrative voice, but there is little plot or momentum, until it climaxes at the end with a power play, identity transformation and O. Henry–ish twist, followed by the most frightening of all possible promises: "To be continued…"."
As the provocative novelist probably intended, reading this book is hell. Read full book review >