Rating: 
Summary: The best new writer of our generation
Review: I've read all of CP's books (except Lullaby...yet) and I find him amazingly original. In a nutshell, this is a fantastic read. It's a little bizarre (not a bad thing), but I wouldn't recommend it if you're a first time CP reader. I'd say read "Fight Club" first. Book sheds interesting light on maternity and humility.
Rating: 
Summary: Okay, but not great
Review: I was handed this book by a friend who just read it, said it was "okay, but not great." That pretty much sums up my opinion as well. I can see how someone could really like this book. It's quirky, has some dark humor, and I suppose it's even shocking if you've not been exposed much to similar literature. It's just that I've read books that do the same sort of thing a lot better, and it's also not the style of book I tend to enjoy. I found the story to be a bit lackluster and repetitive. A lot of chewed up food, a lot of sex in uncomfortable places, and a lot of depressing nursing home description. The narrator eventually reaches a sort of epiphany, but by the time he does, I really didn't care any more. The book held my attention long enough for me to get through it, but had no real effect on me. I'm surprised in reading the reviews how many people describe the book as "shocking" or "not for the squeamish or faint of heart." It made me wonder if I've read a few too many explicit books. Yeah, there's a lot of sex in the book, but it's no more graphic or shocking than in other books I've read. In fact, it's often described euphemistically enough that it's like reading about a sexual act as described by a sixteen year old boy, someone who's enthusiastic about sex, but still a little embarrassed when it comes to actually giving sexual organs and experiences their real names.
Rating:
Summary: Also See; Fasination
Review: Truely this was an excellent book. I got wrapped up in the story and it's mystery that I read it in 2 days. It was funny, intelligent and very sexual. I recommend it.
Rating: 
Summary: hard to choke down
Review: ... I absolutely hated this book, and it's not because I'm too squirmish to read stuff about sex -- and in fact, one of the only enjoyable/funny things about his main character was the way he used 'are you a sex addict?' checklists and their meetings to find new ways and methods of having sex/masturbating/etc.
But overall, I felt the subject matter was used mainly for shock's sake alone and that a catalog of disgusting facts does not a plot nor a character make. I found Palaniuk's writing repetive...
All the characters are detestable, which is fine if they're interesting, but I found them all flat.
At the end of the book, I felt I had learned nothing about society or what it's like to be a sex addict, or even what it would be like to have a crazy nutcase mother -- so instead I was left with only a feeling of having wasted my time.
Rating: 
Summary: "Bizarre" isn't the Right Word....
Review: ...but it's the first word that comes to mind. Before we get this review started, a word of warning: THIS IS NOT FOR LITTLE KIDS. THIS IS NOT FOR PEOPLE WITH WEAK STOMACHS OR ARE EXTREMELY SENSITIVE. Okay, with that said, I found Chuck Palahniuk's "Choke" to be a very strange, perverted, dark, and bizarre novel....but it's supposed to be. And, it's a very creative novel, despite if you love the novel or hate it. I had read "Fight Club" after seeing the movie, and I found the novel to be just as entertaining and creative, if not more. So, I wanted to read another novel by him, so I picked this up. Wow....nothing could've EVER prepared me for this. "Choke's" main character is Victor; a compulsive sex addict who creates heroes by purposely choking at restaurants and allowing himself to be saved. He does this to feel better about himself, and to help pay for his very sick and dying mother's medical care. And as the story and novel goes on and on, the more twisted and darker it becomes, adding up to one hell of a shocking climax. The novel is told by the narrator, just like in"Fight Club." He still uses the same sense of thinking, the same amount of sarcasam, and the same dark humor found in "Fight Club." And yet, it's still just as refreshing. I never thought of novels told by the narrator to be all that great, until I read his work. Again, this is not for kids, and this is not for those who get offended easily. It is a VERY sexually explict novel; I don't think I have ever read anything so sexually graphic! It's going to be one of those books where you're going to be embarrassed to read in public, fearing that somebody just might snatch it out of your hand and start reading it aloud. As intense as the sexual content is, it fits the story. I found "Choke" to be a really entertaining and thought-provoking novel. Palahniuk has a way of words, and knows how to create a very dark world that none of us have ever seen. Again, this novel is not for the weak and sensitive. If you liked "Fight Club," or any of the other novels by Palahniuk, chances are you will enjoy this one as well. While it may not be one I'm going to read over and over again, it is one I am glad that I took the time to read. Sorry that this review is so short, and believe me, I'd LOVE to tell you more. However, this is a book in which you must be careful how you describe it. If you give too much away, then you just might ruin it for the reader. I feel I have given the right amount of information that you need to know. The great thing about this novel is even after reading the back of the cover, you still don't know where this story is going to go, until it sucks you right in, whether you're ready or not. "End" isn't the right word, but it's the first word that comes to mind.
Rating:
Summary: Weak
Review: This was my first Palahniuk book, and very likely my last. While I enjoyed the film Fight Club, this effort seemed to recycle many of the same elements of that story with much less at stake. The central character is a loser sex addict who revels in appearing to be emotionless and cynical. His offhand sex addiction, and the scenes concerning that, is presumably supposed to be "gritty" and "shocking" to the reader, which is kind of a ridiculous notion in this age. Is there anything that can be truly "shocking" in literature anymore in the wake of Burroughs or more recent novels like American Psycho (which by the way, is a modern classic) and Trainspotting (another amazing book)? The plot (such as there is), revolves around the protagonist's relationship with his mother, a situationist/anarchist now in an expensive hospice for the insane. He pays for this via an elaborate scam whereby every night he pretends to choke in restaurant so that someone can save his life. Then he writes to these people and emotionally blackmails them into sending him money. This is cute and clever, but if you stop and think about it, unlikely to work both in terms of money (he supposedly makes $3,000 month through this), and practicality (food industry people tend to know each other, and it wouldn't take long for his scam to come to light). Flashback chapters shed light on his offbeat childhood in a halfhearted attempt to explain his current malaise. His day job involves working in a colonial-era historic village, somewhat like Williamsburg. This is a nice milieu for some rather funny scenes, but little else. It seems there's some mystery about who his father is, and over the course of the book this becomes more and more important until it overwhelms all else, unfortunately, the reader is unlikely to care. This is a muddled and weak book just barely redeemed by being terrible by three really funny scenes.
Rating: 
Summary: More?
Review: Reading Choke is kinda like finding out all Rage Against the Machine songs sound like that.
Rating:
Summary: See also: Fight Club
Review: I had read Fight Club, loved it, loved the movie, and heard about his new Lullaby coming out, which sounded intriguing... I was really into Choke for a while, and the prose was fun to read, for a while. It does feel like he sticks to the same types of gags, same characters, and I don't feel like this book told me much that Fight Club didn't. Palahniuk's writing kinda reminds me of the TV show Jack-ass (which I really like, incidentally) where what he's describing is his way of saying "I do this in real life, too. Aren't I weird?" I definitely felt that he intends to shock, not necessarily touch. My final assessment, other than that I did finish the book, and mildly enjoy it, is that with only 40 pages left, I fell asleep reading it...Just when Palahniuk starts to get you interested, he goes off on another screwy path describing druggie faux-colonists or tantric sex positions on airplanes. While amusing, it wasn't exactly enlightening.
Rating:
Summary: More outstanding fiction!
Review: You know a book is going to be interesting when the first sentence reads like this: "If you're going to read this, don't bother." And so begins Choke, a book that actually centers more on sex addicition than it does the "choking" plot. Victor Mancini is a med dropout who has devised an interesting scam to pull in cash by choking at restaurants. His saviors are made to be heroes, and they reward him with cash in return. In between choking gigs, he works in a colonial tourist attraction, visits his mother in an Adult Care home, and has more sexual exploits than I could count. Palahniuk's humor is at it's best yet in this novel, and I enjoyed it even more than Fight Club, if that's possible! Do yourself a favor and pick up this offbeat story right now! "Mandatory" isn't the right word, but it's the first word that comes to mind.
Rating:
Summary: All Choked Up
Review: "Choke" was my first experience into the world of Chuck Palahniuk. I am probably in the minority in that I have not read "Fight Club" or seen its translation to the big-screen. So based on what I did know about that work, my expectations were set for a gritty, darkly humorous reading experience. Palahniuk not only delivers on grittiness and dark humor but also throws in a generous dose of shock value too. I believe I am not prudish or easily shocked, but I will readily admit to a raised eyebrow and a dropped jaw on several occasions while reading "Choke." However, I often felt that Palahniuk was simply competing in a game of self-one-upman-ship. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but I do not think I will be recommending to a whole lot of folks in my circle who prefer more "traditional fare (which may just be 95% of fiction out there when being compared to Palahniuk). Palahniuk is certainly worthy of being included in the genre of "gonzo" fiction - experimental, pushing the edges, no limits. Some of the scenarios Palahniuk's protagonist, Victor Mancini, finds himself in and around are pure genius. However, they often just seem strung together in an attempt to form (maintain?) some semblance of a narrative. If given the opportunity, I would rate the book -- 3 1/2 stars. Palahniuk certainly deserves kudos for his originality and sheer brashness -- but I can not help but believe he has better stuff in him than "Choke."
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