The first rule about fight club is you don't talk about fight club.

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.

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How could this be a book?

Is that even possible?

The movie alone was so unbelievable that if it were done wrong, it would've been a horrible mess. But it was done just right, and the results were amazing.

One of my friends had read the book and told me on many occasions, "You've got to read the book." I told him that I've already seen the movie, and again, he says to me, "You've got to read the book. It's great, and it's actually different than the movie in a lot of parts."

That worried me, because I absolutely LOVED the movie. It's one of my favorites. I remember trying to read a book that another one of my favorite movies, "The Fan," was based on, and it was not an enjoyable experience. The book was COMPLETELY different from the movie, and not in a good way. I ended up never finishing it.

So, I was hesitant at first, but about a year or two ago I decided to give it a shot. And am I ever glad that I did. "Fight Club" is an outstanding novel. The writing is so refreshing and shows us the mind of a promising new author, Chuck Palahniuk. This was his very first novel, and I found that so amazing. Because this was one incredible debut. I have read plenty of novels all from different kinds of authors, but I have NEVER read a debut as incredible or impressive as this.

To give you a brief idea of what the book is about without giving away too much is it revolves around the narrator, an insomniac who can't get a grip on his life. With insomnia everything is a distraction. He can't focus on his job, he can't focus on people, and most of all, he can't focus on his life. Soon enough, he meets a slippery soap salesman, Tyler Durden, who is about to show our narrator a new outlook on life. And this is where they invent "Fight Club." It doesn't take long before everything starts to get out of control....WAY out of control, to one shocking climax and finale. (Don't think you have the answers because you've seen the movie. TRUST me on this one.)

This is a humorous novel with some darkness to it. It is both funny and thrilling at the same time. The book is filled with some of the most memorable lines; some that were used in the movie, others that were not. This is dark satire at its finest.

Know this; reading the book and watching the movie are two different experiences. Yes there are similarities, and there are differences. The only thing is that unlike "The Fan," the differences in the novel "Fight Club" really work and doesn't take away anything from anyone who was a fan of the film. It still stays true to the idea and story. Chances are you will enjoy the differences. That alone gives you a reason for reading, since you know it's going to be a different ride.

After reading "Fight Club," I knew that Chuck Palahniuk had a unique voice and talent. And I have found myself to be right from reading some of his other novels. (So far I have read this, "Choke," and "Lullaby.") This is a very easy book to read. Not for people who get grossed out easily, though. If you have seen the movie, read the book. If not, still read the book. I can't really say which is better, the movie or the book. To me, they were both different experiences, and I found them both just as enjoyable. But one thing for sure, all the credit should be given to Palahniuk. After all, "Fight Club" came from his mind. A terrific read and one of my favorites.

94 of 100 found the following review helpful:

An exhilirating readJan 23, 2002
By Jeffrey Ellis "bored recluse"
Usually great books are either turned into mediocre films or else great films are made from mediocre books (and we won't even get into the sordid details of the novelizations). Fight Club is one of the rare instances where a great film was made from a great book. It is perhaps unfair to mention the film version while discussing the book as they are actually two very different animals. (And animal is the right word -- perhaps uniquely amongst contemporary novelists, Chuck Palahniuk writes novels that seem to live in the reader's hands, often threatening at any minute to lunge for the throat.) While most of the film's incidents are in the book and much of the razor-sharp dialouge is reproduced directly from the page, the book actually has a far greater satiric edge than the film. Whereas the film used the story as a celebration of nihilism, the book is far too self-aware to allow itself to truly celebrate anything. As such, it becomes less a call to action and more a devastatingly real portrait of a society that has become so commercialized and codified that even the once primal act of revolution becomes just another submission to pop culture.

Fight Club is the story of an unnamed narrator, an insomniac yuppie who spends his days helping insurance companies get out of having to pay their claims. He wanders through a meaningless life until he discovers the emotional release of attending therapy groups for people suffering from various deadly (and rather embarressing) diseases -- all of which the narrator pretends to have. When the arrival of another "faker" (the wonderfully dark Marla Singer, whose role is far less central in the book than in the film), the narrator finds even the shallow comfort of testicular cancer self-help groups has been taken away from him. Luckily for him, he happens to meet Tyler Durden around this time. And it is Tyler who introduces him to the concept of fighting. What starts as a few rounds in a bar parking lot soon transforms into the nationwide movement known as Fight Club. Every night, yuppies gather together and proceed to beat each other up and get in touch with the pure destructive instinct that society has forced them to suppress. From this violent but relatively benign concept, Tyler sets out to build up an even more extreme movement and our narrator finds his own life suddenly spiraling out of control. To go into any greater details would be unfair to those who have seen neither the film nor the book. All that need be said is that the story never goes where you expect it too and the final twists -- while seeming a bit outlandish at first -- ultimately make a great deal of somewhat sickening sense. As complex as the plot eventually becomes, Palahnuik handles it all with a sparse, deceptively calm style that makes this book the literal epitome of a "page turner" -- once you start reading, you are hooked and it is truly impossible to exit the hauntingly and humorously dark world he's created until you reach the end. Palahnuik proves himself to be an admirably subtle humorist and perhaps the funniest parts of the book comes from the reader's sudden realization that Fight Club has eventually become not so much a group of guerilla freedom fighters in the culture wars but instead simply a twisted mirror image of the weepy self-help groups that it seems to stand against. While the film's final twist remains the same in the book, the end results are far more different. While I personally favor the film's ending, both book and film build up to a strong conclusion that will stick with the reader long after completion. Both the film and the book are truly original works of American Art and to see or read one without the other is to miss out on two exhilirating, similar but ultimately quite different experiences.

61 of 69 found the following review helpful:

FIGHT CLUB ROCKS - 4 STAR SPECTACLEMay 04, 2000

Chuck Palahniuk's debut novel, "Fight Club," is one of the greatest, provocative, and enlightening books written for our generation. It's a must-read, with a brilliant story, a writing style wonderfully crafted to depict the real world for as disgusting as it is, and a mischievous character who goes by the name of Tyler Durden, who's out to change the grotesque problems of modern-day society, for good.

--And great brain food. There are some issues and statements given in this book that really make you think especially about how we're defining "progress" for humanity. How do we define success and progress, but by how big of a house we have, or how much we have in the bank, or how pretty our wives look? In this book, the anti-society society "Fight Club" determines success by how little you have.

"Only until we lose everything, are we free to do anything."

Tyler Durden, Fight Club--the movie

Modern-day consumer-driven cultures have begun to press down on people to the breaking point, and now Tyler Durden has started his own therapy group that is growing rapidly in number by each session. It's a therapy group, unlike most of the others, and instead of giving you guided spiritual meditation and opening your chakras, it promotes violence, pain, and self-destruction. It's a group where aggressive males are sporting organized fight sessions to empower themselves by hitting rock bottom. Its called "Fight Club," and it's rapidly spreading in bars all over the United States.

But I've probably said too much already. "First rule of fight club is you cannot talk about fight club, and the second rule of fight club is you cannot talk about fight club."

It's one of the fastest books I've ever read, and it left me completely hooked, all the way until the end. The only thing I didn't like was all the room for expansion. Palahniuk really could have exploded on some of his ideas and perspectives a whole lot more, but it was still a great book and very reader worthy.

Another dissapointment was the cost for this book. After 20th Century Fox made the snazzy cover art for the book, they also jacked up the price to 13 bucks a copy, which is very ironic, especially when Fight Club's motto was to screw perfection and neatness. But that's show-bizz.

My recommendation: Watch the movie first, get blown away, then read the book and get more in-depth with the story.

"Fight Club" is an inspiring and completely awesome story. Watch the movie. Read the book. Both are great, and after you've been as enlightened as much as possible, start your own Fight Club. :)

27 of 29 found the following review helpful:

I know this because Tyler knows thisMay 29, 2000
By Trixie "cupcakejones"
If you're coming to the book after seeing the film-it's ok to raise your hand here as your reviewer did also-you'll see the screenwriter pretty much took the book's contents verbatim. What's missing are a few funny moments like Marla's unwitting part in the soap-making process and some disturbing details of her's and Tyler's sex life. Plus a different and more satisfying ending (c'mon, you didn't think the narrator and Marla were really in love did you?)Palahniuk's jump-cut, stream-of-consciousness style take a little getting used to, but this is a clever black comedy that leaves you with more to think about than the punchlines when it's over. It's about a culture of numbness, where Huxley, not Orwell, was right and the only way to feel is to drive yourself to the limits of physical pain or destroy something beautiful. You've probably seen the movie and giving away plot details would just detract from the experience. Just read it!

25 of 27 found the following review helpful:

The Bible For All Space MonkeysMay 23, 2001

This is what those new age self-help books don't teach you. They don't REALLY show you how screwed up the world is with you trapped in the middle. Let Tyler Durden show you why your life is so screwed up. Is it because we've become obsessed with a corporate-infused lifestyle? Part of it. Is it because people have some sort of sick desperation in their lives? Yes. Is it because corporations have taken over our lives? Yes. Is it because people are scared to prove they're alive? Definately.

The plot basically revolves around an insomniac. Our unnamed protagonist goes to support groups to cure his insomnia, until another faker, a woman named Marla, begins faking her way through these groups. After his condo was blown up, he goes to live with Tyler, a man he met on a nude beach. Tyler's only request is that the two of them start a fight. When fight club becomes boring, Tyler decides to take it up, and fight club becomes Project Mayhem.

If you've seen the movie, you need to read the book. While the movie mainly focuses on the fighting, the book goes into a lot more detail about project mayhem. The movie probably skips about a third of the book. Plus, the book explains the true definition of what a space monkey is, the formula for homemade napalm, and the real secret formula for Tyler's soap. Only after you've read the book and viewed the key scenes in the movie does the philosophy of Mr. Durden become clear. Even if you think you know the movie, read the book. The first rule of fight club may be that you don't talk about fight club, but you will after reading the book.

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