Survivor: A Novel

Suicide death cults, psychics, mass murderers and Super Bowl halftime riots only make up a small yet essential part of this wildly entertaining and completely original tale of one man's journey from outcast to celebrity. Leave it to Chuck Palahniuk to paint such an intriguing and twisted tale. I've been a fan of his for some time now, so my adoration of this novel wasn't much of a surprise for me, but I must say that even I was floored with how impressively captivating this novel really was. I remember back when I was first getting into Palahniuk. This particular novel didn't seem to strike me very much; I actually thought it sounded rather boring. Instead I read `Invisible Monsters' and `Choke' and `Diary' and I became more and more intrigued at just what this man was capable of. Chuck is the type of author that can astonish even when his novel is less than brilliant. Even the likes of `Choke' and `Diary', his two least effective novels for me (I have yet to read `Snuff' though) completely captivated me and still linger in my subconscious; so it's safe to say that he is above and beyond talented and remarkably memorable.So that brings me to `Survivor'. I don't know if you know this about me yet (I've mentioned this in a few reviews) but I am definitely a `mood reader' or whatever you want to call it. What I mean is that I like to try and put myself in the atmosphere best suited to the novel I am reading. When I read `Blindness' I read it in the dark, only at night, with a flashlight shone solely on my book. I wanted to feel the blindness surrounding me. When I read Ballard's `Crash' I read it in my car on my lunch breaks. I had to feel the confined spaces which permeated the novel. So, with `Survivor', I read it in an airplane on my way to vacation this past week.I mean, when a novel opens with a man hijacking an aircraft only to record his personal life story and then plummet to the ground in a horrific plane crash, where else are you going to read it?One thing that I've found about Palahniuk as an author is that to review his novels in any real detail does him, and the eventual reader, a huge disservice. It makes things very hard for me, because if you've read any of my reviews you know that I like to talk; a lot. I have a lot to say about just about everything I watch and or read and or listen to, so same goes for `Survivor'. For your sake though, and for respect of the author, I'll keep this brief.In my opening paragraph I mentioned that the whole `cult, psychic, murder' thing was small part of the story, and I know many people reading this that have read the novel will be quick to scream "no, it's the whole shebang", but the thing is; this novel is about something much bigger than that. `Survivor', first and foremost, is a social commentary unveiling the ugly truth behind the media circus that is celebrity. The truth that lies behind `Survivor' is that anyone can become a celebrity whether they want to or not, and if you will make someone else rich then you better be prepared to find for you life because you will quickly become nothing more than a puppet in a sick and twisted world of fame.As fabricated and far-fetched as `Survivor', and really just about any of Palahniuk's novels may seem, there is a blatant honesty that permeates each page.I've read just about everything Mr. Palahniuk has written (I'm halfway through `Rant' and have yet to read `Snuff', `Haunted' or his latest `Pygmy') and I can honestly say that while he is not my favorite writer he is one of the most intriguing, original and engrossing novelists working today, and it is a pleasure to read any and everything he puts out there. `Survivor' is without doubt one of his best works and is a must-read for any fan.

"Testing, testing. One, two three. Maybe this thing is working. I don't know. If you can even hear me, I don't know."Tender Branson is on an airplane all by himself, cruising on autopilot at about 39,000 feet above the ground. The only other thing on the plane is the black box, which he is planning to recite his life story into it, so there are no mistakes about his life when he is found dead. So nobody calls him a monster, or a murderer.What he is about to reveal is his life in the so-called Creedish Death Cult, and how he came about to being the last survivor Twisted and unpredictable events land him into the spotlight, bringing unexpected fame and recognition in this hilarious and dark satire, "Survivor." Chuck Palahniuk strikes once again, bringing life and wickedness to this wildly entertaining novel. You are about to find out all about Tender Branson, and all of the things that had happened to him, leading up to where he is now, alone on the plane, and ready to face death. Although according to his daily planner, he should probably be cleaning one of his many employers' houses, or telling them how to eat a lobster the right way. This novel will stun you from start to finish, and will never let go of you until the final sentence.As impossible as I would've thought, I actually enjoyed this novel more than "Fight Club," and that is one of my favorite books. This book had me laughing aloud in so many parts and so many places. I think it's a much better novel than "Fight Club." I know not many people will agree with me, that is fine. This is strongly my opinion and nothing more. The narration and dialogue is so crisp, so sharp, so dark, and yet so funny and entertaining all at the same time. The writing is so original an groundbreaking. To think that I used to hate first-person narrations. Palahniuk is a very impressive author, and is able to show us that he isn't afraid to tackle on issues that may be frowned upon by others. This is a great satire that takes a bitter look at fame and organized religion. It also proves to be a much more funnier novel than "Fight Club," or at least I think so.It is so refreshing to come upon a talented author, such as Palahniuk. This is by far one of my new favorite books, and I have just got done reading it for the second time. You'll be sad when you finish it, but will be excited to re-read it. "Survivor" is a magnificent and unforgiving tale of fame, religion, and superstardom. Take nothing for granted and expect the unexpected. Once you start, you cannot stop reading.I must go now, because according to my daily planner, I'm supposed to be somewhere else and try to better myself as a human being. Besides, I don't want to give too much away. The greatness that lies within this terrific read is that you cannot predict what's going to happen next. Read the novel and take the trip.

El libro esta impecable, y la ediciòn es muy bonita

Good

te atrapa desde el principio y tiene un ingles muy facil de entender. es extraño y poco a poco vas entendiendo que esta pasando.

If the opening of the book doesn't get you, then give up. It opens at the end... There's a guy (Tender Branson), in a plane, that's going to crash, and he's inevitably going to die - and he knows it. Look at the page numbers - they count down i.e. the last page is page 1. So what you get is Tender's painful life, recorded onto the black box recorder of the plane, in a race against time before he and the plane crash into the Australian outback.Tender Branson is born into a Deliverance Day Cult, sold into servitude, and there he stays until one day the whole cult commits suicide. As all cult members (inside and out of the cult village) have been programmed to do the same, the government sets up a survivor programme whereby they try and stop the remaining members following suit. This is fairly unsuccessful as Tender ends up as the only one left alive. This is where the books takes a turn and he is swept up by a media agent who turns Tender into a pre-packaged, TelePrompTed, made-for-TV messiah.Other reviewers have already covered the subjects that this book touches upon. It's angsty, it's nihilistic, and it's got a couple of good one-liners. It's quite far-fetched but it's based in enough reality to keep it interesting. It's a pacy read, it raises questions about modern society and it's well written. Don't know what else I can say other than I really enjoyed it.

I usually value a story with how long it takes for its effect to wear off in my mind, this (not surprisingly) wore off quite quickly. At the beginning it was odd and boring, right in the middle it gets quicker and more interesting but something was missing, there were always gaps I could not fill in. Just as it was getting more exciting, nothing really happened afterwards, too many loose ends, too many question marks. When the story finished, I did not get it, what was the story about? Gwen's part was cool throughout up till the last minute, where it stopped making sense! The thing is, I did not know whether to like it, or hate it. And in couple of days, I forgot most of the details. There were no surprises.