Rant by Chuck Palahniuk

For those of you not in the know, Chuck Palahniuk is the author of Fight Club, which I haven't read, but the movie is kick ass. Anyway, Rant is about the spread of a supervirus in a world where society is segregated between those who sleep during the day/night. The "patient 0" who spreads this virus is known as Rant. The story is told through a series of interviews/accounts of people who met Rant at one point or another. I found this to be one of the books greatest strengths, showing just how differently two people can see a person or event. There was the usual collection of Fight Club esque fringe activities that are often to be found in Chuck's books, which were amusing and vaguely appealing in a 16 year old "rage against the machine" kind of way.

I would have said the book was very good, were it not for the idiotic ending. I've spoken to several people who thought the ending was clever and unexpected, but I found it ridiculously contrived and unnecessarily magical. That said, the book isn't so much about the story as it is the characters telling the narrative, who are consistently amusing. I found the used car salesman's parts particularly enjoyable. If you manage to not let the ending annoy you, this book is well worth a read, although it's not as good as some of his other work. Survivor in particular.