rant.jpg Unlike other Chuck Palahniuk books, it has taken me a few months to actually get my teeth into this one. I received Rant: An Oral Biography of Buster Casey already back in May, but it wasn’t until last week that I actually started reading it. One of the reasons for the delay was due to the form in which the book was written — an oral biography.

Author’s Note:

This book is written in the style of an oral history, a form which requires interviewing a wide variety of witnesses and compiling their testimony. Anytime multiple sources are questioned about a shared experience, it’s inevitable for them occasionally to contradict each other. For additional biographies written in this style, please see Capote By George Plimpton, Edie by Jean Stein, and Lexicon Devil by Brendan Mullen.

So, unavoidably, the biggest talking point on Rant is not the actual story, but in the form it’s been written. This can also form the result that the story itself (cough) maybe doesn’t have the equal depth as Chucks previous books… but the new format does keep it interesting.

As an ongoing Chuck Palahniuk reader, I found this book as a step backwards — back to 2001 — which in Mr Palahniuk’s case (in my opinion) is a good thing. Rant is more in line with his first books released pre 9/11 (Fight Club, Survivor, Invisible Monsters, Choke) than the ones released post (Lullaby, Diary, Haunted).

So if you have read other books by Chuck Palahniuk, and liked them, you will definitely enjoy this one. If you’re new to Mr Palahniuk, I would recommend any of the four books released before 2001 instead of Rant. Maybe Choke or Invisible Monster, since both are on their way to the big screen (Choke and Invisible Monsters on IMDB), and it’s always good to have read the book before you have seen the movie.

Due to the format of Rant, I do believe it would be a really interesting film… too.