Customer Reviews

Pygmy

5 star:		(52)
4 star:		(45)
3 star:		(29)
2 star:		(24)
1 star:		(58)

 

 

First, if you've never read a Palahniuk, I don't recommend starting here.

Second, I am Palahniuk fan. Not a die-hard, but I've read all the books except Snuff, and many are favorites. I love Chuckie P. I love the mood his books create; his unique point of view; sense of humor; and particularly his typical writing style.

I rushed out to get this book because I was so excited about it. The concept, the premise, sounded amazing. I've gotten to page 100, and unfortunately, I can't make myself go on.

I get that he wanted to do something different with this book, but the writing is so convoluted, that I am just not enjoying it.

Here's an example: "Location former chew gum, chocolate snack, salted chips of potato, current now occupy with cylinder white paraffin encase burning string, many tiny single fire."

I thought it might be like A Clockwork Orange, where it takes you a bit to get into the flow of the writing, and once you do it's great. And I'm sure a lot of people will ultimately feel this way about the book. For me, it was too much work and not enough payoff. If there was humor, I completely missed it.

If you are interested in this book, I definitely suggest reading the first chapter which is posted on Amazon before purchasing it. It's written in the same style throughout, so if that style works for you, it may turn out to be a highly entertaining read. It just didn't work for me.

Begins here first review citizen me, web host Amazon review maker 36. Review fiction propaganda pamphlet "Pygmy." First voice confusion direct previous many review. Former many review say, "grammar bad," say, "too much work." This reviewer find opposite truth. Same now pamphlets Irvine Welsh, Anthony Burgess, need full glossary comprehend. Not so fiction pamphlet "Pygmy." Most glorious spreader fiction propaganda Chuck Palahniuk make for simple comprehend absurd dialect.

Familiar theme fiction propagandist Chuck Palahniuk repeat here. Ask reader Project Mayhem "Fight Club" picture imagine foreign terrorist organized, same now Operation Havoc. Many describe interpret outside point view Tender Branson "Survivor," same now hilarious observation agent number 67. Tender Branson values conflicted upbringing modern capitalist America, same now agent number 67. Familiar similar but progress definite. For official record, agent number 67 most funny individual but know only serve state.

"Pygmy" make joke capitalist America gimme gimme, same now make joke ideology serve only state. Most hilarious jab capitalist American shortcoming. Most disturbing portrait ideology serve only state. For official record, grand final end "Pygmy" most disappoint. Chuck Palahniuk compromise gushy nonsense finish. Fortunate not detract from story. Glorious fiction propagandist redeem from mediocre "Snuff." This reviewer find "Pygmy" rank top most remembered pamphlets "Lullaby," "Survivor," "Choke."

This is NOT an easy book to read. That's a definite. The writing style is, to say the least, VERY interesting. Convoluted. Weird. Just downright strange.

But the story is intriguing. And while I was hoping after each chapter that the writing would be a bit more normalized in the next chapter, nonetheless, I kept reading. I had NO idea, at the end of each chapter, where in the hell this story was going. It's not often (with the exception of DeMille) that I'll sit down and read a book in one sitting. And yet, it happened with Pygmy.

So what we have is a VERY strange read, with a VERY well crafted story, told in a VERY different way. I liked it.

Oh...and some of the lines in it had me absolutely rolling. It's easy to see where a recent immigrant from an un-named country in the Pacific (read...China) could see porn as video instruction manuals that consistently fail in its premise of impregnating women. Or that jr HS dances were American pre-mating rituals. Hysterical stuff.

This book is wildly unrealistic and over the top, and personally, I loved it. The writing style is more unusual than it is unreadable, and I didn't find it at all difficult to get through.

If anything, this book is better than Palahniuk's others for putting a mirror up to American culture and saying, "Hey look, guys! I can write a book that involves murder, rape, pedophilia, sodomy, abortion, drugs, teenage sex, school shootings, and the destruction of Washington D.C., and what are you bothered by most?! Bad grammar."

While Chuck Palahniuk's PYGMY clocks in at 241 pages in the hardback edition, it reads like a short story, launching the reader directly into its world without warning, careening rapidly towards its conclusion and ending abruptly. It is richly detailed with linguistic tricks, that often read like poetry, to amuse the reader. It's pages are blotted with black censorship scars which, while superficial, still amuse. It has been rounded out with chapters that include the back story and training of the narrator, while an action-packed drama with martial arts and espionage is played out in linear time.

An observant American reader, having completed this book, is left with the glow of a new terrorist fantasy to worry about and the acute paranoid question, "Do they really think Americans are like that?". While most reviews have centered upon this story as a cynical portrayal of America, it should probably be better viewed as a cynical portrayal of the "perception of America by the outside world", which is a very timely subject and, not surprisingly, territory for GREAT humor. This is a paranoid, self-conscious American nightmare deeply rooted in the American image problem.

PYGMY is a brilliant modern work of humor that is a darkly cynical narrative of American paranoia, wrapped in the most unlikely "coming of age" story you will ever read. It is written entirely in minimalistic "Chinglish" sentences by a (probably North Korean) teenaged boy who has been transplanted to an unspecified mid-western American city to perform grass-roots acts of terrorism and topple the American way of life. With his head-full of anti-American propaganda, memorized quotations of histories greatest tyrants, communists and subversives, his brainwashed perceptions of traditional American high school culture, and his scientific understanding (or lack of understanding) of sex and sexuality, the youthful PYGMY embarks on the ill-fated mission he has trained for his entire life.

And it is totally hysterical.

Over the years I've read every Palahniuk novel, some of them several times and Invisible Monsters is still my favorite, and I look forward to each new work. PYGMY surprised me. It is the most compact/minimalistic prose and funniest book that CP has written to date. The Palaniuk hallmarks of a modern fantasy with sexual absurdity, anti-commercialism, obsessive-compulsive technical details, blatant disregard for social sensitivity, violence, and grotesquery are all employed in this book. It comes up short on including detailed human dynamics and the evolution of human emotions that are other hallmarks of Palaniuk stories, but the reader has to remember that the book only consists of the missives (called "dispatches") sent back to the homeland by "agent number 67" following military directives. And that is why this book works and what makes it so different. The literary trick of the novel being only "letters" written home by a exchange student frees the author to use colloquial language exclusively - a daring stunt executed gloriously. The Chinglish language is very popular humor right now and the author's choice of using Chinglish exclusively is to be commended. Palahniuk proves once again that he has his finger firmly on the pulse of pop culture. In past Palaniuk novels, pop culture issues have been at the core of his character's anxieties and modern dilemnas, but this time, the pop culture is in the presentation! It's clever and fun to read.

Take your time with this book, it is rich with bold humor that jumps off the page if you just have fun with it. Once you are familiar with its cadence it is a quick read, and a page turner, but if you slow down and appreciate the generosity of the author for taking the time to create this unique and funny book, you will enjoy it all the more. Admittedly, some passages had to be reread because it is just too foreign of a literary concept at moments and I got lost in a sentence, but that's ok, because it's like a roller-coaster ride for your brain - it's just fun. And some passages needed to be reread because they are just so much fun to read or I couldn't believe what I "thought" I just read and had to reread to be sure. For more fun, read passages aloud. Read them aloud to yourself or to your friends or family. When the prose is spoken aloud, the absurdity of it is outrageous and even funnier. You won't get far before your laughing and will have to stop.

I am giving PYGMY 5 stars because of its unique qualities and cutting edge story, but mostly because it's just so damn funny. This review was written after just finishing the novel this morning and I intend to immediatly read it again for a second time. I anticipate it will be even funnier and more enjoyable the second time around.

Begins here evaluation of reader me, subject book of fiction story title "Pygmy". Thinking machine of this reader much enjoy processing story this book. First thinking machine of this reader much difficulty process sentence structure. However, thinking machine fast adjust new sentence structure, all gratitude to monumental talent revered author Chuck Palahniuk. Thinking machine this reader even begin think thoughts style this book. Under gentle guiding talented hands revered author Palahniuk, this style result very efficient way convey personality of agent name "Pygmy". This reader particularly feel enjoyment characters cat sister and pig dog brother. Only dissatisfaction this reader termination phase this book small degree abruptness. However, this complaint no diminish enjoyment of this reader. This reader recommend yellow story book "Pygmy" of Palahniuk for enjoyment of other reader. Could be hands of this reader extract decadent American credit card wallet, make whiz-bang Payment Purchase this book at bloated American book store city *******.

Don't get me wrong, I usually love Chuck's work - even the stuff everyone else hates. So, it pains me to have to give this novel a single star, which apparently in Amazon-speak means "I hate it".
For one thing, the book is written in a broken English reminiscent of scenes from bad racist parodies of Asian cultures in sketch comedy TV shows. Conceptually, this works given the premise of the book; practically, it makes the book incredibly difficult to read for more than a chapter or two.
Even ignoring the difficult language the content of the story itself is boring - something I have never been able to say about one of Palahniuk's books. Even the few "shock value" moments failed to draw my attention more deeply into the story.
Simply put, there is really nothing about this book that would make me recommend it to anyone. If this was the first Chuck Palahniuk book I'd ever read it would be hard to convince me to ever attempt to read another.

NO SPOILERS HERE!! I hate when these reviews give too much away. As descriptions of the plot are readily available, I'd like to just make this a reccomendation. About me: I read everything Chuck publishes, I find his writing beautiful and poetic, and my favorite books of his are Lullaby and Invisible Monsters. This is up there with those two, possibly beyond (I'd wager vast amounts American currency the reviewer who compared CP to Stephanie Meyers did not actually read Pygmy). Although it is written in an unconventional style, by the third "dispatch," you get into the rhythym of it. In fact, this style lets Chuck play with words in a way that is so engaging, I breezed through this in a couple of nights.. I'm bummed that I got it through it so quickly, but, as with all of his books, once you know the ending, you have to go back and read it again - and it's definitely re-readable. It was probably fun to write, too ("Foot shod boot associated profession boy of cows.") This is dark and hilarious, and like most of his books, oddly romantic. I was in awe of every sentence, and the way this was constructed. Astonishing work by esteemed most revered American author Chuck Palahniuk!

I wouldn't say I'm the most ardent Palahniuk fan. However, I've read enough of his work to know what to expect.
I do think this book is extremely entertaining and, like most of his books, I could tell he worked very hard preparing for this book. However, this book is filled with a lot of 'rising action' (forgive the teacher speak) with not a lot of climax. Immediately after finishing the book, I felt let down to a degree. It seems Palahniuk invested a considerable amount of time building the characters and the narrative and then, towards the end of the book, wraps everything up in a predictable package.
The book seems to be a statement on taking ideologies to the extreme and the negative effedts of doing so. And, I appreciate Pahlahniuk's statement on/indictment of both.
In short, a great beginning with a lackluster finish.

Chuck Palahniuk may be the only author who could lead readers to laugh about terrorism. His new novel, Pygmy, describes the exploits of a group of teenage exchange students sent to the United States from an unnamed country. Their mission: Operation Havoc. The thirteen-year-old first person narrator is called "Pygmy" by his hosts, and while the language used is English, the grammar and sentence structure can be a challenge to read. I remembered my own struggles as a young teen trying to read the dialect in Huck Finn. Typical of Palahniuk, the level of description for both sexual content and violence are likely to stress the most tolerant readers. Pygmy bears no resemblance to High School Musical, yet teens typically act in ways that stretch the limits of any rules constraining behavior. The model U.N. and the science fair described on these pages will make most readers laugh out loud. Religion plays a role in Pygmy that will offend some readers and bring guffaws from others. Pygmy didn't go to your high school, but he could have.

Rating: Three-star (Recommended)