Lullaby by Chuck Palahniuk Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Lullaby
Book Review: Entrancing
Summary: 5 Stars
I was iffy about this book, I admit. I have read other Palahniuk novels (Fight Club and Invisible Monsters) and have been thoroughly captivated, but, for some reason, had my doubts about this one. After the fourth or fifth page, however, my fears were assuaged. I simply couldn't put it down. I will shy away from a breakdown of the story. I hate reading reviews that tell you what happen. Believe me, you will be surprised, you will laugh out loud, and, at times, you will wonder, "Why didn't I think of that?"This novel is great. It's a quick, almost obsessive read. I don't think that it will make it into the Pantheon of great literature, but I'll never forget it.
Book Review: Fabulous start that went off track
Summary: 3 Stars
I have to admit that this book I bought because of the reviews printed on its jacket. I rarely buy books this way. I read the first chapter and was so excited to continue but the story failed to deliver on its promise from the beginning. The whole plot of re-selling haunted houses and having the secretary check out new listings for vibes seemed very original but never went anywhere. At the point where Carl builds miniture doll houses I thought, Good! here's a great opportunity to tie the Helen and Carl characters together mystically - but that never happened. All the creative juices from the beginning wore out and the book became a repetitive rant on our culture, adn the plot became a boring road trip. I was disappointed.Book Review: First Palahniuk Read
Summary: 4 Stars
I have never read anything by Chuck Palahniuk before reading "Lullaby." The reason I purchased the book was to meet a girl...Cheesy but true. She told me she was really into his works so I bought this one because of the reviews on Amazon.
Not really knowing what to expect I was skeptical at first. But I read the book in two days. I really love the satire in this work. It is dark at times but I really enjoyed the read. I would suggest this book to anyone looking for something interesting and fresh.
I got a few more books by this author and can't wait to see what the characters go through.
Book Review: Folklore For A New Era
Summary: 4 Stars
Lullaby plunges us deeper into the twisted mind of Chuck Palahniuk. He flawlessly blends elements of horror, suspense, mystery, and even dark humor into an enthralling tale that could only come from his imagination.
Dealing with the idea of a culling song, a poem that can kill when read out lout or even thought, Lullaby tackles subjects like the abuse of power. Mixing in repetitive events that don't reveal themselves until close to the end, Wiccan folklore and the kind of statistics only Chuck Palahniuk could have dug up, this book will please fans of any literary genre and keep you reading until you've hit the back cover.
Book Review: For a borderless contemporary world
Summary: 5 Stars
When I first read what Chuck Palahniuk's book was about I had the feeling it sounded so much like the Japanese movie and book "Ringu", remade in Hollywood as " The Ring". But little did I know that "Lullaby: A Novel" has absolutely nothing to do with that story. What surprised me more --and it was a great one --is that this writer is back in his best shape. Not since his "Fight Club" has Palahniuk written such a good book.
All the thematic that are common in his work are present in his "Lullaby", but, this time, he is such a more mature writer that his development is much smoother and his critic to the 21st century society is sharper. That same angst that he used in "Club" is here, but, this time, it goes beyond the male hater -- more women can identify themselves with the thematic.
The narrative tangles with many themes, but in the end, it boils down to excess of information we are force fed with. We have so many resources of information nowadays, that it is too easy to make news --how reliable is everything we read? Who should we trust? And in the end, we know so much, but do we know what to do with all this information we have received?
Like Palahniuk says, the Big Brother is not watching us -- it is singing and dancing to entertain us and avoid people to use their minds. The African deadly poem is just a device to explore, the writer's funny --and why not?-- likely conspiracy theories. But this is not a book about conspiracy.
"Lullaby" grabs you for the Global World appeal --or maybe spell? -- that it has. An ancient African poem kills people in the United States in the 21st century. In other words, the contemporary word has broken all time and space borders. And this time everyone can actually be Citizens of the World -- World Travelers.
Not by chance, half of the book is a road trip. The characters, Carl, Helen, Mona and Oyster (yes, there is a man whose `name' is Oyster), are trying to run away from their pasts, their mistakes. But there is not such thing, be you at home, or on the road. Oyster has so many resonances that at some point one starts wondering if he is not a Tyler Durden is disguise --or at least they are friends.
Fueled with angst, but above all, Palahniuk's best way of dealing with passion, "Lullaby" has so much explosive that it is more a Rock `n Roll novel, that won't let you sleep until you've reached the last sentence.