Chuck Palahniuk has been one of my favorite authors for some time now. After trying to catch up on his earlier works I finally gave in and decided to pick up one of his newest novels: national bestseller, Pygmy. As with much of his writing, Pygmy is filled to the brim with hilarious satire, cunning dialogue, and enough twisted stories to make a grown man queasy for days.

Pygmy focuses on a foreign exchange student named…Pygmy. He is sent from his totalitarian state and has a plan to carry out a massive act of terrorism. His interpretation of midwestern life is bitterly truthful as well as comedic in more ways than one. As the book continues along, we quickly find that his plan of attack, codenamed Operation Havoc, is a bit more complicated than he may have thought. Pygmy and his host family both learn that things may not always be the way they seem. Along his journey, Pygmy is confronted by various characters, all of whom help to complicate matters even more.

At first glance, Pygmy may come off as hard to read. Palahniuk has adapted a unique writing style. He writes in a way that is unique to the character; broken english, fragmented sentences, skewed perspective. At times this may seem to hinder one’s ability to enjoy the book, for I would not say that it is an “easy read.” Although after sticking it out to the end, I can firmly say that it was 100% worth it. After a while you begin to think like Pygmy and the somewhat broken dialogue seems to flow in a weird sorta way. A style that once threw me off in the beginning, and made me hesitant to continue reading, was now proving to me yet again how fantastic of a writer Chuck Palahniuk really is.

Palahniuk’s knack for creating lovable characters still remains true. After enjoying the first half of the book I found myself talking like the main character. Using phrases and structuring my sentences differently. Getting readers to sympathize with a terrorist is not something all writers could accomplish, although almost unsurprisingly Chuck Palahniuk is the man behind such a feat. As the novel progresses we learn more about Pygmy and get a deeper look into how he was shaped to be the person he is. We are taken for a walk in his shoes, and after it’s over, it certainly puts things more into perspective.

While the story at hand may not be the most realistic, it sill is extremely engaging and thought provoking. The cover of the book alone is enough to make you stop and think. It shows a boy holding his own severed arm, and within his arm’s hand is a red book. The boy has sacrificed his own arm so that he can hold this piece of literature even higher into the air. The view-point that Palahniuk shows us through Pygmy and his confidants is more than real and ever-so-appropriate at this time in american culture.

This book is definitely one of my favorites from Chuck and certainly one that kept me coming back for more. I thought for a time that Palahniuk’s glory days were behind him (Fight Club, Rant, Choke) but after reading this book it’s clear to me that he is only getting better and better. It’s almost like a fine wine, getting better with age. His ability to inspire young people to read, to think differently, and to one up himself every time around is all what makes him Chuck. His versatility as a writer in combination with his twisted imagination and fantastic sense of humor are all what make Pygmy such a good read. Any fan of Palahniuk should without a doubt check this one out.