By far Palahniuk's best work, in my opinion. ( )

Dark, weird, cynical, absurd, full of dark humour. My type of book! ( )

I didn't enjoy reading this novel at all.

I'm such a voracious fan of the dark humour/ satire/ social criticism combination which Vonnegut produces that I've hunted down nearly every novel he's written.

Still, I was put onto Palahniuk by a comparison to Vonnegut, and I have to say that don't see the similarity at all except for their use of lists and repetition as comedic schtick, and then, the schtick isn't what interests me in the first place.

As an author, Palahniuk strikes me as lacking the very depth that he criticizes society for lacking, and while this could be spun around as being a "satiric" or "ironic" element of his story, it rubbed me the wrong way as I found myself bored and completely uninspired by the story and the way the personalities of the characters were explored.

I mean really, Survivor was about some pretty heavy themes: suicide, death, faith (and brainwashing), fame, and mainstream pop-culture society. Yet, the only theme that was really explored was the fame aspect which is what all of the rave reviews on the back of my copy praise him for exposing. All of the characters felt flat and two-dimensional, and even the humor felt very derivative - most of it involved making pop culture references to our prescription drug culture, pornography, or consumerism at various circumstances.

For anyone who has thought about the nature of society and culture, and the mainstream on their own time this novel will just bore you to death. ( )

I have to read it again. Its one you have to finish before you judge it. ( )

incredibly weird, incredibly hilarious, incredibly incredible. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this Palahniuk novel and the absurd web he spins. ( )

This is an adult novel by the author of Fight Club. Tender Branson was in a technologically reverse cult (think Amish) until he was expelled at adulthood and sent into the "real world" to be a servant for the rich. This novel tells the story in retrospect as he is the only person left on a plane as it runs out of fuel on auto-pilot and he is telling his story to the black box flight recorder. Tender was a twin but instead of being the eldest he was a few seconds after and this means he cannot marry in the cult or have children but must serve those outside. His job for these rich people involves every minute of his day catalogued with some meaningless chore (i.e. 2pm, scrub fireplaces) Along the way he gets involved in a suicide help line where he "helps" people to suicide, and, more importantly every single member of his cult suicides! With a health worker watching him to make sure he doesn't top himself, he meets Fertility (the brother of a boy Tender told to kill himself) - strange woman who likes the voice on the "help" line but thinks that Tender in real life is a loser. In the mess that Tender has made from himself, his health worker suspects that he is NOT the last member of the cult and also that the remaining members were actually murdered. She fears that Tender will turn up dead also and, while helping him with his chores, turns up dead! Who is left in the cult that is killing the remaining members of the cult? A very intriguing book with unexpected plot twists and turns but definitely NOT for a school library unless it is Senior students only.

Despite the dark themes - a suicide cult, a serial killer, the manipulative nature of the mass media - Survivor manages to be a witty and uplifting book. Much of the wit comes from Palahniuk's prose style with his dry turns of phrase and his eye for the unusual simile, but there's also a liberal helping of satire in the text too, both in the way the general poplace view the Creedish Death Cult and Tender Branson's rise to manufactured celebrity. I also liked the small touch of the way the pages and chapters are numbered backward, giving a continual sense of a countdown.

As with his previous novel, Fight Club, things are not as may seem apparent; I missed the subtlety at first and needed to be pointed to it by another review. Unlike the previous book, the twist doesn't undermine the whole of the main plotline but subtly changes the ending and ties up a few hanging ends that I'd thought were inconsistencies in the narrative. ( )

Young guy from religous cult goes and - hang on, I've forgotten. Better go back and re-read before I say anymore. Still, I do remember enjoying this book very much. ( )

Survivor was not what I expected, but I liked it. The story of a man who survives a religious cult, slavery, and fame does not seem a likely forum for dark humor, but that is what Palahniuk delivers.

The first half of this book moved along quickly and Palahniuk's wit had me laughing out loud. He unwinds the story as a confession of a man who has "hijacked"an airplane (I'm not giving anything away here that wasn't revealed in the first chapter). Both the storyline and Palahniuks humor are gripping. I felt like the second half was a bit slow and repetitive, but overall the novel was enjoyable. ( )

This book is, in my opinion, the worst book I have ever read. It was the second book by Chuck Palahnuk I read, after Invisible Monsters (which I enjoyed).

I could not get into the story at all and it has turned me off of reading anymore Palahniuk books for a while. ( )

probably my favorite chuck palahniuk. his least sexual, most story based. a crazy story at that. they were going to make a movie out of it but then 9/11 happened. an excellent read in the strangest of fashions only palahniuk can pull off. ( )

I do believe this book is brilliant.
I really like how it's written with it's simple style and the storyline is interesting. There are a lot of things said about consumerism and also about society in general, which are two of Chuck Palahniuk's themes (They're in Fight Club, at least, I've not read everything). The ending isn't necessarily as it seems, and if you're paying attention you'll understand what really happens at the very end. If miss it like me, it's on http://chuckpalahniuk.net/ somewhere, or you could just re-reading it and see if you get it that way.
I'm struggling to explain why I think it's as brilliant as it is. I simply think it's great so why not have a look and see for yourself? If you liked Fight Club, you'll probably also enjoy this. ( )

Many, if not all, of Palahniuk's books are rather "sex-heavy", and this book is no exception. But, unlike some of his other works, the sex doesn't get in the way of this one. The story - a group of apocalypse cult members who are trained in housekeeping and suicide - is engaging, and difficult to put down. The main character was likable for all his faults, and even though you knew he was about to meet his untimely death, you still wished somehow that the story would end happily. A delightful touch - the book starts at page 289 and ends with page 1. ( )

Another great Palahniuk book, with more of a religious twist. Here again, I think he touches on the concept of belief and fanaticism. The death cult which the protagonist belongs to, is not so far from the reality we sometimes see on the news. One of the classic Palahnuik mechanics he throws in here is the cruising around the country in modular home pieces. He seems to always have this element of bizarre acts that is somewhat revolutionary (politically or at least behaviorally), somewhat like in Choke where the protagonist goes around the fancy suburban backyards sipping the beer left out in dishes for slugs. Those settings for conversations are always something I could never come up with, but after your 5th Palahnuik book, they are expected. ( )

Survivor is a novel through which Chuck Palahniuk demonstrates his discontent with the media and consumerism. In this satire, Tender Branson, who is a former member of the Creedish religious cult, dictates his life story into the black box of a plane that he hijacked. The novel begins at the end of the story, thus giving the reader an interesting perspective on what they are to expect for the rest of the novel. Branson’s lifestyle transformed from humble to vain and self-centered when he went from being a servant to the Creedish community to being a religious icon.
This book relates to utopias and dystopias because in it, Palahniuk creates two dystopias. While heavily criticizing the world that Tender Branson becomes absorbed in, he also does not recommend the opposite extreme, which is represented by the dystopian Creedish lifestyle. As Branson became a superstar, he became dependent on the culture of modern media, which was a bad thing because the entire time it had been leading to his demise. On the other hand, Palahniuk created the Creedish culture which is a lifestyle in which people have little identity, and what they say, do, learn and think are all controlled by a higher power. Branson’s confinement to this kind of world is what led him to immerse himself so heavily into the world of consumerism.
This book is one that engages the reader completely and forces them to think about things that may have never crossed their mind. It challenges the reader to inspect the world that we live in today and how we personally fit into all of that. I enjoyed this book because it was comical while still being able to convey the message that Palahniuk is sending. It is a good book that people should read so that they can view the world of media and consumerism from a critical, outside perspective rather than that of a consumer. ( )

This story isn't going to turn out to be what you expect by reading the blurb on the back cover--no, the story isn't about a survivor of a plane crash, but the survivor of a religious cult who goes from being a slave to his religious ideology to being the slave of another kind of ideology. Palahniuk takes us along for the bump, painful ride with Tender Branson, painting a bleak commentary about religion, fame, and society. ( )

Wow. In my book this is second-best after "Fight Club" out of Palahniuk's novels. It really kept me guessing. It doesn't feel too "preachy," either. ( )

It was good. Not my usual fare, but it kept me entertained. ( )

My favorite Palahniuk book. This is his best because it's just in the middle as far as readability. Fight Club is a little hard to read for some and Lullaby, although good, is pretty much straight forward. If you haven't read any of his books. This is the book to start with. ( )

This is one of my favorite books. The author of Fight Club pens an outrageous tale that once again knocks religion, sex and comercialism. I don't want to give anything away, but needless to say it has a unique voice with a little darkness blended with some sarcasm. ( )

Very immersive, compelling read. Provokes discussion about our societies and feelings of belonging. ( )

On the inside of this book, Bret Easton Ellis blurbs that "Maybe our generation has found its Don Delillo" in Palahniuk. If only. Instead of Delillo's elegant wordplay and use of language, "Survivor" showcases a style of writing that grows increasingly less subtle as the book goes on, until the reader finally comes to stuff like this: "Wow, the way the shadow of that Creedish death monument thing if falling across Adam's grave is so symbolic." Followed a few lines later by "You sure picked the right place to smash in your brother's skull. It's so totally Cain and Able I can't stand it."

Frankly, neither could I. Especially since the story started off pretty well. Tender Branson (okay, that name should have been an omen) is a former member of the Creedish church. "Former" because most of the members committed mass suicide about 10 years ago when the cult was being investigated for child abuse, etc. The survivors were generally Creedish who had been placed on work assignments outside of the church district, destined to work forever at menial jobs while sending $$$ back to the church. But once they heard about the suicides, they start killing themselves, too, with perhaps a little help.

Eventually, Tender is (almost) the sole survivor and gets caught up in a giant marketing machine that turns him into a national religious icon in the "hypocritical evangelist" mode.

And this is where the books goes off the rails with its unbelievably heavy-handed approach to showing the dark side of fame, fortune and religion in this country.

I guess it's possible Palahniuk is playing some kind of double game here, where sentences such as "The symbols of forgetfulness, poppies, land in the road and she sprints over them" are meant to somehow be ironic or something ... but I don't think so.

In summary, while I think Palahniuk has a great book in him, this isn't it. ( )

Dull, badly written 'comedy'. Incredulous plot, forgettable characters and a limp ending that we are told at the beginning - is there any reason to read beyond the first chapter? ( )

Like every other Chuck novel I've read, once more the satire and general commentary on society as a whole leaves me loving it. It's slightly disjointed...almost surreal at times. Lending to that is the set up of the novel. The pages and chapters slowly countdown...continually reminding you that the main character is on a plane that will be crashing by the time you reach the end. ( )

So far with the exception of Haunted (being my favorite Palahniuk book) Chuck Palahniuk is rather predictable. It feels like his side anecdotes, mixed with a disillusionment and unconventional, mostly psychotic characters are the reasons to read. Outside of that these books seem to be rather predictable. there is always some character who usally hasn't been laid since god knows when if ever completely sick of the way he lives trying to break out of that. He comes upon a girl he's not so sure about, he likes her, but he doesn't. The girl interacts and becomes involved somewhat in his crazy life or why he's dealing with life and then the main character goes on some crazy kind of around the USA trip and ends back somewhere around where he started finding out the girl has some really oddball tie to why this whole mess started in the beginning. I know it's over simplified, but dealing with those bare bones, the charier is Fertility a psychic and Tender Branson a survivor of a death cult living a slave like life for people he works for. He sets up a suicide help line and encourages those people to kill themselves, and for some reason thought the book he shows allot more concern for human life than I'd expect. Fertility a psychic knows everything and is completely bored of her life, every charicter in a chuck Palahniuk book is bored with their life and wouldn't mind dying, or is at least rather self destructive. In Lullaby it's Carl Streator who makes allot of people drop dead just by thinking of a Lullaby and for some reason still ends up wanting to save people. I know there is an explanation. I just think if I had such little use for human life, being either character I'd spend more time ending life than caring if I saved it. In Fight Club and Invisible Monsters this wasn't quite as much the case, but they are similar to all the other novels I've read so far dealing with either myth, fame and some odd twist that the more you palahniuk novels you read the easier it is to look for.
I do really think he does a good job with his books and enjoy reading them, I didn't think Haunted was so similar, (as a collection of short stories with a plot line I'm not so sure about, I think I will need to reread it). And I don't think he's bad for writing about these strange perspectives and disillusionment with life, I certainly feel allot of the things he is saying. Nor do I think he's lacking originality. I just do feel like the plot and characters are kind of a vehicle for all the anecdotes and lists connected work environment knowledge he expresses into a sort of insight or philosophy. Which is also not bad because who does that as much as him?

The two things are I really intend to read all his books and do enjoy them, I just feel I've been reading them too fast and need to take a break before I get to Diary, Choke, Rant, etc... There are plenty of other authors to read. Because frankly I feel like I'm reading the same book with a similar character stuck in a different work environment with a different background. It's a little hard for me to focus unless I come back with a general curiously for the concept of the book and oddball information not because I just can't stop reading his books, I feel that I could be just a little to sure what I can guess a book I haven't read by him is going to be like, and for someone who really likes the unpredictable it's not entirely encouraging.

Also, when I know some of the topics he's talking about and describing to me, I can't help that feel I'm trying to be shocked but fail. I think if society becomes anymore jaded than it is (People may think of his books as kind of bland, that they have a punch but the punch isn't quite hard enough, that will yet to be seen though.)

my writings a bit predictable, and I feel bad being critical to an author who has so much of his own personality and style that I can relate to, I suppose I just don't put as much critical thought into books or authors I just don't care about forgetting much, and ones I do care about I try to be nothing but honest.

As a whole Survivor is pretty good, it had some really good lines worth remembering, but it's not a book I'd be particularly inspired to re-read too soon. ( )