Fight Club

Palahniuk's bestselling debut novel, which was made into a movie starring Brad Pitt and Edward Norton, is revisited with this rousing narration by Jim Colby. With such memorable past performances from the two Hollywood actors, the challenge of breathing new life into this story is immense. Happily, Jim Colby delivers a raw intensity that is spot-on for the twisted mind of the protagonist. As the evil Tyler Durden, Colby is astonishing, capturing every inch of the character's darkness while still projecting his sense of humor. The result is a performance that draws its inspiration from Palahniuk's well-crafted characters and not from the memorable acting roles most will remember upon starting the first track. L.B. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine

August 25, 2008
The 2008 audio edition of Palahniuk’s ground-breaking 1996 novel provides a timely opportunity to contemplate the direction of Generation X and the wider, popular culture over the past dozen years. The white, male, 20-something angst of the story’s unnamed protagonist and his mysterious partner in crime, Tyler Durden, may now sometimes seem like slightly dated grunge rock. Also, the themes of domestic terrorism and insurrection certainly play differently in a post–September 11 world. Yet Palahniuk’s power to provoke our collective sacred cows remains undeniable. The narrative—with its delusional twists and turns—presents serious challenges on audio. James Colby cleverly plays deadpan cool through much of the early plot exposition so that the chaos that eventually takes hold becomes all the more eerie and surreal. He pulls off the convoluted climactic revelations with emotional authenticity. The listening experience may be too jarring for general audiences merely hoping for a commute diversion. However, the release offers today’s crop of young urban hipsters an opportunity to connect with the voices of a previous decade. A W.W. Norton paperback (Reviews, June 3, 1996).