Rant: An Oral Biography of Buster Casey

by Chuck Palahniuk

book data

6,288 ratings, 3.67 average rating, 956 reviews (more data...)

rating	frequency	%
5		25%
4		34%
3		26%
2		9%
1		3%

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published

May 1st 2007 by Doubleday

binding

Hardcover, 320 pages

url

http://chuckpalahniuk.net/books/rant

characters

Buster Casey

setting

The United States

isbn

0385517874 (isbn13: 9780385517874)

description

“Like most people I didn’t meet Rant Casey until after he was dead. That’s how it works for most celebrities: After they croak, their circle of friend

...more

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02/02/08

Shannon rated it:

bookshelves: festival-of-suck

Read in June, 2008

recommends it for: the drooling rabid

I can't do it. I can't finish this book. Usually Palahniuk creates fairly unsympathetic characters, as in this book, and that I'm used to. Becasuse it WORKS; the plotlines of his books are always ridiculous in a totally fascinating way, which makes up for the stupid characters. However, Rant bored the fuck out of me. I tried. I read more than half and I do not care about this nutjob guy and his rabies and his slobbering all over the ladies, or the driving around in cars being obnoxious or whatev...more

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08/13/07

Carrie rated it:

bookshelves: sci-fi

Read in August, 2007

First off, a disclaimer. I love Chuck P. like a brother. If the man was on dialysis I'd give him a kidney even if I only had one good one left and consider it payback for all the stories of his that I've enjoyed since discovering his work.

The lowdown: Rant tells the story of Rant Casey - a small town kid that turns his little town on it's ear before moving to the city to continue his work. The book is comprised of accounts from people that knew Rant with only second hand accou...more First off, a disclaimer. I love Chuck P. like a brother. If the man was on dialysis I'd give him a kidney even if I only had one good one left and consider it payback for all the stories of his that I've enjoyed since discovering his work.

The lowdown: Rant tells the story of Rant Casey - a small town kid that turns his little town on it's ear before moving to the city to continue his work. The book is comprised of accounts from people that knew Rant with only second hand accounts of his words and deeds and no perspective from our hero. In that way, it's almost Biblical.

Although it is science fiction and a pretty far departure on the whole from Chuck Palahniuk's previous books, it's not as far off from what I expect out of him as Diary. But Palahniuk's voice and eye are still there and elements of the book like character relationships and atmosphere are reminiscent of earlier books like Choke.

From the beginning, it's not clear where or when the setting is. The place seemed to me to be a small desert town. Time seemed to be anytime in the past century. It's a brilliant device that Palahniuk never wavers from in the first half of the book. It makes the reading a bit unsettling. The significance of that displacement just builds throughout the book.

The characterization in this book is pretty amazing. A strong and compelling vision of Rant is built as a charismatic, smart, wild man, but nobody describes him as such throughout the book. Nobody says, "Rant was crazy" or sexy or maddening or 6'2" with brown hair and hazel eyes, but as the characters tell of their relationships with Rant the picture of him starts to come into focus. The very memorable and alluring characters that populate the story by contributing to the oral history are intriguing and become fully fleshed out as the story progresses as well.

I really don't want to give it away, so if you haven't read the book, don't read the next line, but...

the most interesting thing about this book to me was the future Palahnik creates out of what seems to be the past time. It's very real and although it's not clear if it's 20 years down the road or 200, it's very believable which makes the book frightening to contemplate at times. I very much loved how the past of Rant's childhood could have been the 1930s or the 1990s or any time until Bodie talks about plugging in. The sci-fi aspect of Rant really set the wheels of the story into motion and made it so much more interesting than if Rant had been stuck in Middleton trading gold for teeth the entire book.(less)

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05/02/08

Trin rated it:

bookshelves: american-lit, fiction, sci-fi, time-travel

Read in May, 2008

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

Yeah, I just read a Chuck Palahniuk book; I feel like I’m back in high school and should begin loudly listening to Garbage CDs and writing “I <3 Spike” all over my notebook any second now. In fairness, Palahniuk does finally seem to be breaking out of his mold at least a little; I skipped reading Haunted because I wasn’t in the mood to be squicked, but what had been irritating me about all his previous books was that they all seemed the same. They all utilized a near-identical style ...more Yeah, I just read a Chuck Palahniuk book; I feel like I’m back in high school and should begin loudly listening to Garbage CDs and writing “I <3 Spike” all over my notebook any second now. In fairness, Palahniuk does finally seem to be breaking out of his mold at least a little; I skipped reading Haunted because I wasn’t in the mood to be squicked, but what had been irritating me about all his previous books was that they all seemed the same. They all utilized a near-identical style of narration, just with different “choruses” thrown in. And I say this as someone who was totally obsessed with Fight Club (though more the film than the book) and still gets gleeful amusement out of her memories of Invisible Monsters. (Which was also the book that introduced me to the concept of “felching”! Chuck, you and Lauren Groff need to have a word.)

Rant, presented in the style of an oral history, is not only quite different in its telling from Palahniuk’s previous books, it’s different from anything I’ve read in a long while. The myriad POVs are cool in that I always like to see characters through a variety of different perspectives. However, the character of Buster Casey, a.k.a. Rant, remains frustratingly obtuse. Palahniuk spends quite some time on his childhood, in which we are treated to lengthy descriptions of menstrual blood stains (mental category: did not need), and strangely less on his adulthood, though we do get lengthy descriptions of his ability to tell what his girlfriend last ate by licking her pussy (mental category: REALLY DID NOT NEED). Palahniuk certainly never runs out of new ways to shock and horrify. Unfortunately, that kind of thing was rather more tantalizing to me when I was in high school.

However, like I said, I really did feel like Palahniuk was stretching himself a bit here; he’s got a sort of interesting time travel plot going on, and I actually really liked the characters of Shot and Echo, and the idea of the dystopian Daytimer/Nighttimer future society. So I guess where I think this book really suffers is in the simple fact that there’s just too much going on. I mean, just on the most basic level there’s: 1) Rant’s fucked up childhood, 2) rabies outbreak, 3) party crashing, 4) future dystopia, and 5) time travel—and these never stop being rather disparate things. Worse, as I mentioned before, Rant remains a total cypher. I think this book would have worked a thousand times better if he’d felt like a real, vibrant anti-hero. Instead, we get pages and pages of Rant the cunning linguist. (Seriously, WTF? Was that supposed to be sexy? Echo seemed to think it was sexy, and otherwise, she seemed almost sensible. I have some weird kinks myself, but OMG NO.) I loved the idea Palahniuk almost seemed to be reaching for toward the end, about the ways Echo and Shot and the other party crashers would remake the world, but it’s surrounded by so much muddle. Ultimately, this felt like the first draft of what could have been a legitimately incredible novel; as-is, it’s just kind of…confusing.(less)

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04/24/08

Scott rated it:

Read in June, 2007

Wow. How can I possibly describe this book?

Mediocre? Unfocused? Half-assed?

I am a big fan of Palahniuk. I love Fight Club, Invisible Monsters, Survivor, Choke, Diary, and Lullaby. I even like Haunted a bit. I think he is great at picking some aspect of American Culture and flipping it over so it's soft white underbelly is clearly visible.

Unfortunately, with Haunted, he appears to have developed a taste for the 'big gross-out.' Rant continues that trend. And w...more

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07/18/08

Nicholas rated it:

bookshelves: biography-memoir

Read in July, 2007

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

Pure Palahniuk. Good story. Hard to follow and end was sort of a cop out. The foreshadowing was good. and as usual the essence of the book is in the quotes.

Quotes:

"Anywhere you find yourself you can improve your skills."

"Despite the dreary scenery, it's all very sexual, these towns. It's only the individual who attains an early beauty and sexuality who becomes trapped here. The young men and women who acquire perfect breasts and muscles be...more

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06/22/07

Jason Pettus rated it:

Read in July, 2007

(Full review can be found at the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography [cclapcenter.com].)

So before anything else, a horrible confession: that this is the first novel by Chuck Palahniuk I've ever actually read from cover to cover. Yeah, I know, shame on me! And the reason this is such a big deal, of course, is that I'm an obsessive fan of the movie version of Fight Club, adapted from another of Palahniuk's novels, a film I have officially now seen one zillion freaking times. ...more (Full review can be found at the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography [cclapcenter.com].)

So before anything else, a horrible confession: that this is the first novel by Chuck Palahniuk I've ever actually read from cover to cover. Yeah, I know, shame on me! And the reason this is such a big deal, of course, is that I'm an obsessive fan of the movie version of Fight Club, adapted from another of Palahniuk's novels, a film I have officially now seen one zillion freaking times. And why do I like that movie so much? Here's why I like that movie so much:

--Because it takes a profoundly original and compelling idea and makes you think it's going to be the theme of the entire project, just to later prove that it was actually a ruse to hide an even more profoundly original and compelling idea as its real theme.

--Because it unmasks the simmering hatred of the modern world so many young intellectuals have these days, this incessant desire to do something, anything, to break out of the usual corporate-manufactured, safely lobotomized, "synergetic cultural experience."

--And because the story pulls off such heady things through a slim, minimalist personal style, which much like Vonnegut attempts to use the least words possible to convey the greatest amount of information possible.

And thus do we come to Palahniuk's latest novel, Rant: An Oral Biography of Buster Casey, which just randomly happens to be my first book of his simply because of opening CCLaP this particular year. And you know what? It too manages to pull off all the things just mentioned, and in fact does it even better; that this book even manages to head into legitimate science-fiction territory at points, even while being a grounded examination of the human condition at the same time. It's dense for sure, with a plot that's impossible to keep up with at times; but if such things, for example, made you love Donnie Darko instead of detest it, then you're seriously going to want to run out and pick up a copy of Rant as soon as you possibly can.

In fact...(less)

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05/28/08

Danya rated it:

recommends it for: anyone who has ever experienced road rage

wow .. and can't really even begin to comment on this . Complete mindblower with a really sadistic and twisted view of our society !
Loved it !

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10/09/07

Anica rated it:

Read in January, 2008

recommended to Anica by: this crazy librarian
recommends it for: I'm not sure...

Definitely the weirdest book I’ve read by Chuck Palanhuik so far. So bizarrely gross and sick I almost stopped reading it. But I was hoping the stranger the beginning, the bigger the payoff. It was worthwhile, but I wouldn’t recommend this to a casual acquaintance. They’d probably call a psych watch on me.

It starts off about this crazy kid called Rant who intentionally catches rabies and spreads it to as many people as he can. But it’s written like a screenplay, with eve...more Definitely the weirdest book I’ve read by Chuck Palanhuik so far. So bizarrely gross and sick I almost stopped reading it. But I was hoping the stranger the beginning, the bigger the payoff. It was worthwhile, but I wouldn’t recommend this to a casual acquaintance. They’d probably call a psych watch on me.

It starts off about this crazy kid called Rant who intentionally catches rabies and spreads it to as many people as he can. But it’s written like a screenplay, with everyone chipping in their side of the story. It was hard to get into because I had no idea what anyone was talking about for the first 150 pages. Then you start to understand he lives in this Matrix-type future, and while he may be this incredible mastermind, he’s also the pawn of a time-travelling serial-rapist, in a bigger battle between social classes. He moves from his hillbilly town to the city, and that's when things get even crazier.

This is my understanding of it:
Green Taylor Simms is Rant. GTS is 23 when he crashes his car and goes back in time 60 years. He goes to his OWN house and had sex with his/Rant’s great-grandmother Hattie. Hattie had his/Rant’s grandmother Esther. Then he came back and raped Esther who had his/Rant’s mother Irene. Then he raped Irene, who had Rant. Every time, Simms’ senses are getting stronger because he’s multiplying his influence in the gene pool that ultimately leads to Rant. Simms is also killing all the mothers in their old age. Simms tells Rant to go back in time and kill his mother Irene to make them both immortal. Instead, Rant goes back to try to stop Simms from raping his mom. He’s too late, so he changes his name to Chester and marries his pregnant mom and raises the kid who turns out to be him/Rant. As a father he encourages Rant’s crazy rabies-seeking behavior because only people who have their ‘ports’ damaged by the disease are able to time travel. Green Taylor Simms crashes car as an old man and disappears. Chester Casey disappears in single car wreck, with Neddy in passenger seat.

Questions:
“Charles” Casey was a traffic flow engineer. 16 years ago, he rear-ended Echo’s parents, his body was never recovered. Does he become Green Taylor Simms?

Tina Something disappears after crashing a Dodge Viper – is she the 25-year-old bride who survives the crash into a train? (Pg 265-7).
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08/10/07

Pwntalive rated it:

Read in July, 2007

recommends it for: flowchart heads

I cant keep this book straight. So im going to break it into 3 sections for my own leasure.

Part One: ok
So basicly rant is this screwed up kid in the american heartland. Grows up in the middle of no place, getting kicks from snakebits and coyote scratches. The kid is basically a testbed for every animal born disease you can contract with out buggering something.
This portion of the book sets it apart from the classic chuck story arc because we see the individual WHILE the...more I cant keep this book straight. So im going to break it into 3 sections for my own leasure.

Part One: ok
So basicly rant is this screwed up kid in the american heartland. Grows up in the middle of no place, getting kicks from snakebits and coyote scratches. The kid is basically a testbed for every animal born disease you can contract with out buggering something.
This portion of the book sets it apart from the classic chuck story arc because we see the individual WHILE the screwing up takes place. Not after, not years later. At various times references are made to future events, but for the most part the foreshadowing is left alone instead for the twisted tales of this messed up kid, doing... well, kid stuff.

I think at this point the story could be left alone, for various reasons this could be a serial in the back of a magazine. Rant Casey: a boy in 4 parts or some shit. You know, keep the readers coming back every 28 days for more.

Part Two: Do what now?
At some point during the middle part of the book you realize things are not all what they seem. Characters start interacting with dynamics you wouldn't expect, plot elements that dont get explained; its generally confusing. Its at this point that i usualy start getting into whatever chucks got planned, but this time im all cought up it just trying to get cought up. I was tempted to go back to go over the parts i was sure i missed. the SciFi elements i was expecting just poped up and no one seemed to care.. very strange.

Part three: Ok, i get jokes.
By this point in the book the narrative is wrapped like on of those 90's tribal knot tattoos. Sorta confusing, but mostly annoying. The periphery info we've been bombarded with since page one suddenly all seems to be making sense. If you weren't paying attention before you might just want to give up now. Starting overs not an option, half the fun of this one is the realization that youve been lead along the whole time. I dont know how often Stephine Kings lead me on some switchback path, just to abandon me like someones unwanted dog on a country road. Chucks got you by the nose here, and hes not letting go. Where ever this novel ends, hes taking you with him.

I found this an interesting exercise. Being more familier with the mans writing style and the arc of his career, i can honestly say this is one of the "do not miss" Palahniuk books. If you think he got a little incestuous during the early 2000's this ones a refreshing dip in the gene pool.(less)

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07/18/07

jen rated it:

(review of isbn 0385663498)

bookshelves: fiction

Read in July, 2007

I'm not a Chuck P fan simply because he is "edgy" or because I get off on the so-called depravity of his often violent and sexual themes. I know a few folks like that. What I enjoyed most about this book was the structure, the measured reveal. Based on the oral tradition, each chapter is composed of brief statements from a cast of dozens. Individually, these narrators are hopelessly unreliable, but taken together they form a whole picture that is more true than any single testimony...more

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07/11/07

R. rated it:

bookshelves: 2007

Read in May, 2007

Rant kicked so much ass.

Part of the joy is the idea of a car...with a flaming Christmas tree on top...flying through the air into a body of water...to the, you know, strains of Philip Glass' Violin Concerto II.

Part of the joy comes from the fact this is the first third of a trilogy, apparently.

Part of the joy is that the book is entirely a greatest-hits package of Chuck's strengths...remixed in the "oral biography" form. Like, like if Guns n' Roses...more Rant kicked so much ass.

Part of the joy is the idea of a car...with a flaming Christmas tree on top...flying through the air into a body of water...to the, you know, strains of Philip Glass' Violin Concerto II.

Part of the joy comes from the fact this is the first third of a trilogy, apparently.

Part of the joy is that the book is entirely a greatest-hits package of Chuck's strengths...remixed in the "oral biography" form. Like, like if Guns n' Roses wrote ten variations on "Sweet Child o' Mine" and handed the mastertapes over to...to Moby!

Part of the joy comes from the main character deciding to break the habit of time...go back through it and save his mother from being killed (thereby creating the hole for a plot for one of the two other books).

Part of the joy comes in receiving a Just Married bumper sticker in the mail for contacting Doubleday and telling them...in effect...that you were bit by a spider (or, what happens when you click on the spider at their promo site).

Part of the joy comes in recognizing party-crashing culture in my own life...OK, you guys remember the night: I had my El Dorado all gassed up, and Dave--well-respeced R.A. Dave--was dressed up as a woman that some of us guys had dropped jaws and were like, "Dude. You're so hot, and that's not cool. Wow, uh, Dave. Wanna sit next to me?" and we went sharking through Spokane one street and the next, and the next with about six or seven people (three up front, four in the back?) blaring, at Lady Dave's request, an 8-track of Bing Crosby's Greatest Hits and Chella ended up flirting with a carload of boys and, finally, we all ended up at Denny's at 2 in the morning, fixing the local sports commentator's car (he didn't know how to change a tire, but between Carlos, Me, and Sean, we got it done), eating pie, drinking coffee, and watching Chella get uncomfortable around this new guy and, generally, probably, making the guy second-guess what was wrong with this chick that her friends were such an Addam's Family *snap-snap*.
(less)

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06/21/07

Frankie Mossman rated it:

Read in September, 2007

It is worthy of a car crash, something we slow down to look at despite the cliche of it all. A haphazard of loosely related events that vomits into a novel with a poor plot and charather development, but you just can't stop reading hoping that it will all come together in the brilliance that Palahniuk demonstrates in novels like Lullaby, Choke, and Survivor Type.

Yet it doesn't, at least not for this reader. The sensational and often grotesque details fall flat with a "been there...more

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03/22/09

Zach rated it:

Read in March, 2009

I must be jaded, because I didn't feel the disgust or outrage of other reviewers at Rant Casey sniffing maxi pads and condoms (actually, I had to think hard to remember what they could be talking about being so "gross-out" and "obscene"). But then, this is the third Palahniuk novel I've read.

Like his others, it's a page-turner and a relatively quick read, although deceptively dense. Also like his others, frequently funny. And even more so than his others, often...more

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06/23/08

BJ rated it:

Read in June, 2008

Never read Chuck. Seen Fight Club of which he authored, but never read him. Let's just say not sure I will read him again. Everything is raw. To be expected. Violence is raw. Sex is raw. Construction of every sentence is raw. Let's just say NC-17 is probably the correct rating. Over-the-top raw. I enjoy raw but this at times is just pure smut and constant hyperbolic literary antics that I can do without.

But, is there anything here worthwhile....yes, Chuck feels that modern ...more

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06/13/08

Shannon rated it:

Read in June, 2008

Here's what happened as I read that book- I enjoyed it. Then I got angry.

I enjoyed the pacing during the middle part that was mostly chronicling the party crashing, appreciating where he'd pulled inspiration- secret raves, art car culture, cruising culture, etc. I definitely picked up vibes of Ballard's Crash too- that almost became too obvious to me. I liked the overt political use of Night-timer vs. Daytimer. All of that, including the early history of Rant, was finely crafted s...more

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05/31/08

Adam rated it:

Read in June, 2008

Man, did I enjoy this book--I am already a big Palahniuk fan, though, so use that as your basis if you're somehow thinking of basing your decision to read this solely on my recommendation.

Without really getting into the plot (because, as with most CP books, it's best to dive in without knowing what to expect at all), I will simply say that "Rant" contains the usual marks of most Palahniuk books-- which is to say: bizarre characters, excellent storytelling, fiery language, ...more Man, did I enjoy this book--I am already a big Palahniuk fan, though, so use that as your basis if you're somehow thinking of basing your decision to read this solely on my recommendation.

Without really getting into the plot (because, as with most CP books, it's best to dive in without knowing what to expect at all), I will simply say that "Rant" contains the usual marks of most Palahniuk books-- which is to say: bizarre characters, excellent storytelling, fiery language, messed-up scenarios, and a satirical bent.

One of the reviews on the back of the novel compares Palahniuk to Kurt Vonnegut-- and while I might have disagreed with this assessment based on his earlier novels, "Rant" arguably does have the most in common with a Vonnegut book-- though where Vonnegut writes about apocalyptic scenarios with a twinkle in his eye, Palahniuk seems to have both a twinkle in his eye and a fang for a tooth. No, there's nothing as stomach-churningly foul as some of the bits that appear in "Haunted," but there's definitely some of the grit and grimace that pervades all of his other books.

As with most of CP's books, you will find yourself inclined to flip back through the pages-- the book is definitely rewarded by multiple readings (or at least a post-mortem re-skim).

When telling some friends what I was reading, I was frequently met with comments like, "Oh, I'm over that guy" or "when will he break from that formula?" I must say, I really do find each of Palahniuk's books unique-- they've each got their own "hook," particularly with regard to the method in which the story is told. In "Rant," we are presented with an "oral history"-- one can imagine that it reads something like the transcript of a documentary film, with the various characters being interviewed with regard to various circumstances surrounding our protagonist. And, as with most of his books, Palahniuk really has a field day toying with the form and the structure of the book. It is really delightful-- occasionally bitter, occasionally gruesome, frequently laugh-out-loud hilarious, and never boring. I'd definitely recommend "Rant" to any fan of Palahniuk, casual or otherwise. And for those of you who've dived off the CP train, I'd maybe say that if you're even generally a fan of his work (and/or the work of Kurt Vonnegut), you may want to give it a go.
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03/20/08

Ritz rated it:

bookshelves: autores_preferidos, autor_p_q, horror_suspenso_terror_thrillers

Read in March, 2008

recommends it for: Israel Calzadilla, Mayumi Nojiri y a todo al que le guste Palahniuk

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

¡Hilarante! Divertida, paranoica, esquizofrénica, alucinante.

Hace tiempo no me divertía tanto con un libro, ni siquiera con el anterior de Chuck, Asfixia. Es más me divertí tan apasionadamente como con Nana. ¿Debo recordar que me expreso desde mi experiencia absolutamente subjetiva y que predico para conversos?

De entrada Rant. La vida de un asesino se presenta distinta a las anteriores novelas y advierte la “NOTA DEL AUTOR: Este libro está escrito al estilo de...more

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08/23/07

Melissa rated it:

Read in August, 2007

Palahniuk's ability to create vivid imagery is undeniable and the way “Buster Casey” is structured makes it an addictive read. Unfortunately, the story is so bad you feel guilty about reading it when you come down from the immediate gratification high and the hallucinations go away.

The story is told in a series of narrations from the perspective of several different characters. Each character describes their take on the title character and event’s surrounding him. The narrators...more

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05/06/07

Luke rated it:

Read in May, 2007

recommends it for: twist-ites

I've read almost everything to come from the scattered and twisted mind of Chuck and in the beginning this book seemed to hold the freak flag as high as the rest. The banner slid down the flagpole as the book moved along, but still the icon of brutality and the smile of shame could still be seen. The book seems to run in three seperate parts, one when the main character, Rant, is a child and the depraved and deadly things he gets into. The next part is when Rant moves to the city and begins his...more

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03/18/08

Laura rated it:

Read in July, 2008

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polls

Which is your favourite fictional Chuck Palahniuk novel?

Rant: An Oral Biography of Buster Casey

32 votes, 11.3%

Fight Club: A Novel

71 votes, 25.1%

Survivor

42 votes, 14.8%

Lullaby

17 votes, 6.0%

Invisible Monsters

52 votes, 18.4%

Haunted

21 votes, 7.4%

Snuff

1 vote, 0.4%

Diary

13 votes, 4.6%

Choke

34 votes, 12.0%

283 total votes

3 comments Sign in to vote!

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quotes from this book

"Most folks knowed here's a lie, but moms and dads not wanting to admit their own lying about the Tooth Fairy and Santy Claus and all. Us lying to our folks, them lying to us, nobody wanted to admit to being the liar. None of the other fifth-graders ratted on Rant or me, since they want to keep the money and figure more's coming. Everybody caught trapped in the same Tooth Fairy lie. You can get plenty of folks telling the same lie if they got a stake in it. You get everybody telling the same lie and it ain't a lie, not no more. " More quotes...