Fight Club

Title: Fight Club

Author: Chuck Palahniuk

Date Finished: September 29, 2011

Personal Book Count: 35 out of 75

Genre/ Subject: fiction

First Line: Tyler gets me a job as a waiter, after that Tyler’s pushing a gun in my mouth and saying, the first step to eternal life is you have to die.

Why did I pick this book?: it was recommended to me by someone a long time ago.

Summary and Review: taken from goodreads.com-

“Chuck Palahniuk's outrageous and startling debut novel that exploded American literature and spawned a movement. Every weekend, in the basements and parking lots of bars across the country, young men with white-collar jobs and failed lives take off their shoes and shirts and fight each other barehanded just as long as they have to. Then they go back to those jobs with blackened eyes and loosened teeth and the sense that they can handle anything. Fight club is the invention of Tyler Durden, projectionist, waiter, and dark, anarchic genius, and it's only the beginning of his plans for violent revenge on an empty consumer-culture world. ”

I shake my head to think that this book has become a phenomenon. But then, as crude and violent and not relatable as it was, there was something very appealing about it. I'm not sure what to think or whether it was a good book or not. But I'm still thinking about it. If nothing else it was a mindf**k. I think on an odd level, it's vaguely relatable. Can't we all relate to the straight laced side of the main character? (Did we ever find out his name?) And Marla and Tyler, in some ways, our friends we had or friends we wanted. Maybe they represent the wild or impossible. The plot at times was hard to grasp. Imagine something so big, it takes on a life of its own, and is unstoppable. As I read, the word 'cult' came frequently to mind, although I'm not sure if it was ever mentioned (it was almost a month ago I read it). Could it ever happen? Maybe. But I like to think the author was portraying the worst-case scenario. Am I glad I read it? I'm still undecided (it had some really gruesome, icky parts). But with that said, now I really want to see the movie to see how they compare. Because the commercials for the movie (that I remember) looked nothing like the book, or maybe they just showed the good parts...

Did you read the book? See the movie? What did YOU think?

Agree? Disagree? Recommendations? Any insights, suggestions, or comments on the book or format, or blog at all are most welcome. If you have read this and/ or review it yourself, please let me know. Can you think of any books like this? Give me a recommendation! =D