[ book tip by Bradford Middleton ] The renowned author of Fight Club returns with his eighth novel and it presents an interesting stylistic development by incorporating the postmodernist theory of meta-narrative as being central to contemporary literature. This presents some obvious problems in understanding the central figure of the novel, in that it outlines a number of people’s views of Rant, to the extent that he has three different names throughout the novel. These contradictions could leave some readers scratching their heads but Palahniuk does suggest that this style has also been used in George Plimpton’s biography of Truman Capote and Jean Stein’s work on Edie Sedgewick.
To take this tool and relate it to a fictional character is original but does it really work? Well yes, Palahniuk offers an oral biography of a white redneck who develops a disease which is slowly wiping out the human race and it is easily understandable if you concentrate on who is saying what and their relation to Rant. 
It is not an easy read but it is worthwhile if you are initially pulled in by the simple nature of the text. Short concise chapters make it ideal as a companion for a coffee break and the story does tend to pull the reader in and its development is nothing short of startling. Death almost stalks the pages, if someone isn’t dying then Palahniuk is often looking at ways that the countryside can kill, with a particular fixation on spiders and dogs. Overall this is an entertaining and original story told in an interesting manner. If you have any interest in the state of contemporary American fiction then you should definitely check this out.
 

[ book info ] Palahnuik, Chuck: Rant. An Oral Biography. (Book language: English) Jonathan Cape, 2007 (2007). ISBN: 0224078577.