The Invention of Sound

There is nothing particularly masterful about Palahniuk’s newest novel, but The Invention of Sound succeeds in its simplicity and feverish pacing. Palahniuk weaves together the pieces of broken, flawed characters using shades of The Truman Show and Dexter. The novel isn’t as grotesque as it is being marketed as, but the gore persists in a campy, 80’s slasher flick type of way that proves to be more reason to laugh than reason to cringe.
After reading Doomed and Beautiful You(easily Palahniuk’s worst piece of fiction), I genuinely thought Chuck has lost his charm, but Adjustment Day and The Invention of Sound have restored my faith in a man that will be remembered as one of the most prolific novelists of his generation.

Every time I begin to read a new Chuck Palahniuk book, either consciously or not I wonder if it can live up to the mind-scrambling beauty of its predecessors. I also wonder if I will be able to show some self-restraint and be able to consume it at a reasonable pace in order to fully digest every nuance on a first read. Regarding, “The Invention of Sound,” published 9/8/20, the answers are yes and no. Only Chuck could have written this story; its inventiveness and inimitable execution could only have sprung forth from his mad genius. I held on to the book after getting it for a month or so, looking at its bright pink, green, and yellow cover with black and white lettering, which should count for something; however once I cracked that puppy open it was all over.

There are two main characters in, “The Invention of Sound.” The book is divided into three main parts, but it is not divided into chapters. It switches between the characters almost by surprise, by seeing the name of the other in the next paragraph. Parts one and two have the characters on their own trajectories, where the third has their stories converging, as is often the case in Chuck's books. Tom Robbins says, “There are no throwaway sentences.” Likewise in Chuck's books, there are no throwaway characters.  Pay attention to each new one that is introduced.

Mitzi Ives is a Foley Artist that has taken over the family business from her father. Foley Artists are responsible for sound effects in movies and music. Mitzi's specialty, like her father's was before her, is screams. The screams Mitzi produces and sells have made her a very wealthy woman. At the same time, the creation of the screams that movie producers want to buy come at a heavy cost to Mitzi's soul.

Gates Foster is a “dad-shaped” office worker who has been on a seventeen-year mission to find his abducted little daughter, Lucinda. The loss of Lucinda is a burden he takes full responsibility for and what he devotes his every waking hour to correcting. A grief support group for those who have lost children helps, but Gates' magnificent obsession can only be forgotten for small bits of time.

Anyone who knows Palahniuk books knows he writes transgressive fiction, a genre that dares to go where nobody has gone before. The readers will walk the networks on “the dark web” where predators seek to exploit children. They will walk with a Dexter-esque killer driven by an unholy rationalization. They will learn about the seedy underbelly machinations of Hollywood stars and star-makers. The reader will also learn the nitty-gritty of how all of those sounds in movies – and enhancements in musical recordings – happen.

Be prepared to dig in to this deliciously dark story that had this reader alternating between squeamishly pushing forward and laying a hand on her trembling heart while wiping tears away. Be prepared to mow through “The Invention of Sound” like a double-deluxe banana split. Chuck, thank you for what you do. I'll follow you wherever you lead.

I always want to love chuck's books, but they have been worse and worse over the years. Subversive literature has its place -- and I respect it -- however this feels like a graceless late career Manson record. I'm sure some will love it. It just wasnt for me.

The Invention of Sound by Chuck Palahniuk is one crazy story that connects a serial killer, a foley artist, con men, and a grieving father of a lost daughter. If you have ever read anything by Palahniuk who is most famous for writing the mind bending Fight Club, you know you will experience something totally unique and that is what is delivered here. A story I can not imagine anyone else producing other than Palahniuk. The writing is very good, Palahniuk makes some of the craziest observations; also he knows his history when it comes to sound editing, you will come away from this book knowing a lot about the interesting world of foley sound; which is the creation of fake sounds in movies. The cover features a watermelon getting split open which is the sound used for a skull cracking in movies. This book is mind bending, as it will make you the reader ask is this real, is this a drugged out fantasy, is this mental break, or is this a dream. I would read something in this this story and ask that question and read a little further to find out if it was real or not. There is some readers who will driven mad by this, I for one enjoyed it because you who always get the answer on what was real. This wasn't my favorite Palahniuk which is Choke and Lullaby but it is up there for me. Thanks to Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for giving me an Advanced Reader Copy. The Invention of Sound is Published on 9-8-20.

The Plot: Gates Foster lost his daughter 17 years ago, when she was only 7, he has spent that lifetime wonder if she is alive or dead. Lately he has been obsessed with child predators and working on tracking them down like a vigilante. On a plane he has a breakdown, swearing he heard his little girl call for him. he then accuses a fellow passenger of being a kidnapper because the girl looks so much like his daughter. A friend of a local support group for kids that have died early bail him out. Mitzi is a foley artist known for creating a realistic scream, she learned the technique from her dad and has since taken over the business. Gates Foster is on the brink of madness when he realizes where he heard the his daughter from a movie, is he paranoid, crazy, or is he on the right track to discovering the truth about his daughter.

What I Liked: the twist, there's so many, and it keeps changing you perception of people. The history of Sound design I found really interesting, me, having worked on a couple of independent short films doing foley sound, loved the history, and how it was told. The flipping back and forth from Mitzi to Gates works great while they're stories don't intertwine. The uniqueness of the story is so refreshing for some one who reads so much, I had no way of knowing where this story was going, and just enjoyed the ride. The wild subplot about the conmen, I don't know if it is was really necessary to the overall story but man was that plot crazy.

What I Disliked: Flipping back and forth between Gates and Mitzi while they are in the same place, listening to different things was super confusing for no reason. Why wouldn't you just listen together.

Recommendations: I recommend this crazy, crazy, story. If you enjoy stories that are wild ride that you can't predict, then this is the story for you. The story is mainly mystery, which too my knowledge is Palahniuk's first, even though all his stories have an aspect of mystery. I rated The Invention of Sound by Chick Palahniuk 4 out of 5 stars. The Ranking of best to worst of Chuck Palahniuk's work that I have read, Choke, Lullaby, Diary, Fight Club, The Invention of Sound, Survivor, Haunted, and Invisible Monsters. Most of these titles I have read at least 15 years ago so maybe my taste have changed. I know a lot of my friends who say the one that I have as worst Invisible Monsters is their favorite.

As a long-time Palahniuk fan, I enjoyed reading this one and blew through it in a few hours. It has all your classic Chuck-isms, from bleak, beaten characters to witty cultural observations, and is definitely better than his last one, Adjustment Day. However, it feels a bit like he's just going through the motions at this point. The characters aren't as fleshed out. The dialog isn't as crisp. The book itself is very short.

Well well.. I was very excited for a new release from Chuck Palahniuk and he did not disappoint. Took at least ten pages to really get into the book, but all of the pages following left me to read this book in one sitting. Very easy to read, cringeworthy per usual, and oddly satisfying.

I’ve got to be honest; I am not quite sure how to feel about this book except that I felt really cringey when I was done reading it. I don’t think I would ever recommend it to anyone, which is my reasoning for the low rating. It was a very fast read, which I think helped a little bit or I’m not sure if I would’ve been able to actually finish this one.

I started this book understanding what was going on for the most part. However, by the time the book ended, while I understood some of what happened, I still was so confused on other parts. I had to look back in the book on several occasions to see if I had actually missed something. I know some books are intended to have an ending that keeps us guessing, but this one just left me feeling unsure about what I had thought I known.

The other issue I had with this book was the nature of some of the content. There was a lot of talk about child abuse and child pornography, which was a little sickening to me and hard to stomach. I’m sure the author intended for that, but for me, I just didn’t really enjoy that. I can usually handle dark and twisted books, but something about this one was just really hard for me to deal with.

I think you have to have a distinctive taste to really like Chuck Palahniuk’s writing, so maybe this just wasn’t for me. I’ve seen mixed reviews, so I know there are people out there who totally loved it.

The story starts good. The characters are interesting enough and the story is intriguing. About half way through the book it almost seems like he was trying to finish on a deadline. The plot just gets boiled down to garbage, there's hardly any good closure, and it seems he just throws everything he can at it to see what sticks. I am a big Palahnuik fan and was really hoping this one would get me back into him after the garbage that was "Beautiful You". Did not do the trick.

The story starts good. The characters are interesting enough and the story is intriguing. About half way through the book it almost seems like he was trying to finish on a deadline. The plot just gets boiled down to garbage, there's hardly any good closure, and it seems he just throws everything he can at it to see what sticks. I am a big Palahnuik fan and was really hoping this one would get me back into him after the garbage that was "Beautiful You". Did not do the trick.

Chuck Palahniuk has written some great stuff but his later books just aren't up to the standard of his earlier work. The shocking violence and dark themes used to add to the story and now they feel like cheap tricks. It's like he thinks he has to come up with something just to shock, whether it serves the story or not. If you are looking to get into his novels, buy an earlier one. If you know what Chuck is capable of, this will be a letdown.