INTRODUCTION Chuck Palahniuk is best known for the satirical and controversial subject matter of his novels and for his exploration of such themes as alienation, consumerism, masculinity, and existentialism. Palahniuk's reputation as a "transgressive" author stems largely from his first novel, Fight Club (1996), a meditation on the modern state of masculinity. Fight Club was well received at the time of its publication, but it was ultimately the 1999 film adaptation of the same name-and its cultlike following-that sparked a broader interest in Palahniuk's work. His novels feature dark subject matter, intricate plots, socially marginalized characters, nonlinear narrative structures, idiosyncratic historical research, and a minimalist prose style that has been compared to that of other contemporary American writers such as Gordon Lish, Amy Hempel, and Denis Johnson, as well as to the satirical fiction of Bret Easton Ellis. In a 2002 interview with Adam Dunn, Palahniuk stated that his fiction is ultimately concerned with the efforts of alienated individuals to find meaning by engaging with a community, even if that community has misguided or dangerous goals. His work has been both praised and criticized for championing culturally marginalized behavior. While some critics have dismissed his novels and short stories as puerile and nihilistic, others have found a romantic sentiment in Palahniuk's commitment to writing about society's outcasts. Palahniuk stands out among contemporary American writers for the extent to which his personal life and public persona have influenced the reception of his work. He is known for holding dramatic public readings, at which his readers occasionally act out scenes from his work. Palahniuk's personal biography, which includes a tragic family history and a high-profile coming-out as a homosexual, has also inspired readers to make connections between his life and his work. Palahniuk has alternately courted and resisted this association in his public statements and nonfiction writing. He is perhaps best characterized as a nonconformist writer who specializes in depicting the dramas of alternative cultures to mainstream American consciousness. BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION Palahniuk was born on 21 February 1962 in Pasco, Washington, to Fred and Carol Palahniuk. When Fred was a child, his father (Chuck's paternal grandfather) murdered Fred's mother before turning the gun on himself, events the author later cited as formative in the development of his view of the dark possibilities of human nature. Palahniuk was raised in Burbank, Washington, until the age of fourteen, at which point his parents separated. He then went to live with his maternal grandparents on their cattle ranch in eastern Washington. Palahniuk graduated from high school in 1980 and attended the University of Oregon, where he earned a bachelor's degree in journalism in 1986. After a brief period spent working for local papers in Portland, Oregon, he took a variety of odd jobs, including stints as a diesel-truck mechanic, technicalmanual...