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    Lullaby
    Lullaby
    Lullaby
    Audiobook7 hours

    Lullaby

    Written by Chuck Palahniuk

    Narrated by Richard Poe

    3.5/5

    ()

    • Death

    • Mystery

    • Power & Control

    • Investigation

    • Identity

    • Amateur Detective

    • Power of Words

    • Love Triangle

    • Investigative Journalism

    • Power of Love

    • Haunted Protagonist

    • Detective Story

    • Dark Secret

    • Mind Control

    • Power Corrupts

    • Power

    • Journalism

    • Relationships

    • Family

    • Police Investigation

    About this audiobook

    NATIONAL BESTSELLER • From the author of the New York Times bestseller Choke and the cult classic Fight Club, a cunningly plotted novel about the ultimate verbal weapon, one that reinvents the apocalyptic thriller for our times.

    Ever heard of a culling song? It’s a lullaby sung in Africa to give a painless death to the old or infirm. The lyrics of a culling song kill, whether spoken or even just thought. You can find one on page 27 of Poems and Rhymes from Around the World, an anthology that is sitting on the shelves of libraries across the country, waiting to be picked up by unsuspecting readers.

    Reporter Carl Streator discovers the song’s lethal nature while researching Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, and before he knows it, he’s reciting the poem to anyone who bothers him. As the body count rises, Streator glimpses the potential catastrophe if someone truly malicious finds out about the song. The only answer is to find and destroy every copy of the book in the country. Accompanied by a shady real-estate agent, her Wiccan assistant, and the assistant’s truly annoying ecoterrorist boyfriend, Streator begins a desperate cross-country quest to put the culling song to rest.

    “A harrowing and hilarious glimpse into the future of civilization.”—Minneapolis Star-Tribune
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateJan 7, 2005
    ISBN9781440781025
    Lullaby
    Author

    Chuck Palahniuk

    Chuck Palahniuk’s fourteen novels include the bestselling Snuff; Rant; Haunted; Lullaby; Fight Club, which was made into a film by director David Fincher; Diary; Survivor; Invisible Monsters; and Choke, which was made into a film by director Clark Gregg. He is also the author of the nonfiction profile of Portland, Fugitives and Refugees, and the nonfiction collection Stranger Than Fiction. His story collection Make Something Up was a widely banned bestseller. His graphic novel Fight Club II hit #1 on the New York Times bestseller list. He’s also the author of Fight Club III and the coloring books Bait and Legacy, as well as the writing guide Consider This. He lives in the Pacific Northwest.

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    Reviews for Lullaby

    3.5/5

    2,469 ratings50 reviews

    What our readers think

    Readers find this title to be a captivating read, exploring complex moral scenarios. While it may not be as impactful as some of Palahniuk's other works, it still manages to leave an impression. The unique and weird storytelling style is unmistakable and keeps readers engaged. Overall, this book is highly recommended for those who enjoy Palahniuk's writing.

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      Another witty plot line from Chuck Palahniuk but not his most interesting work.
    • 3/5
      Not one of Palahniuk’s best, but containing some of the same elements which made his other works formidable, Lullaby is nonetheless hard to put down & explores complex moral scenarios that only Chuck could envision. Lacking the dark humor of Fight Club & Choke, Lullaby didn’t have the same impact on me, but had an impact either way.
    • 5/5
      I love this book!! Even better rhe 2nd time!! Highly recommend!
    • 4/5

      Chuck Palahniuk is never disappointing , different than Fight Club but unmistakably weird.
    • 4/5
      Bleak and readable story about what could happen if people were able to kill at will.
    • 2/5
      15 year-old me thought this was a cool book. I insisted it was a cool book bc there was no way I would read a book that was dumb.

      Chuck feels like the king of Edgy. Thank god after this book I went on to read books that my mum recommended to me.
    • 4/5
      A real estate agent who specializes in listing haunted houses. An international collection of nursery rhymes that contains an unexpected surprise. It's as though Chuck Palahniuk had two good story ideas, but something went wrong when he tried to combine them. The first few chapters are terrific and make you wonder "where is he going with all this cool stuff?" Turns out that I don't think Mr.Palahniuk had any idea where he was going. There's a lot of environmental awareness preachy-ness that works it's way in and there's a bunch of vandalism of antique furniture along the way, and whole sections on necrophilia that I could have done without. None of it ever combines into anything approaching a coherent whole, though. I'm generously giving it 3.5 stars because I get the feeling that I missed some key connections somewhere but I could easily be wrong, in which case 3 stars is about right.
    • 2/5
      Like all Chuck Palahniuk books I’ve read, this one is a bag and a half of crazy. Unlike Pygmy, Survivor or Damned… I just couldn’t find the vulnerable underbelly in the main character I could sympathize with. This book and Rant really left me cold, and more than a little grossed out. Hoping for better luck with the next one.
    • 1/5
      I have never read Mr. Palahniuk before and after reading this book I do not think I will again. It caught my interest because the description of the plot had so much potential as a really good "scary" story, or at the very least a mystery. Nope … it held the appeal of neither. For me personally it was a disjointed story populated with characters that I could not bring myself to care about. I could also have done without the graphic descriptions emphasizing the decidedly vegetarian slant to this book. My daughter loves reading his books and even made the one-hour trip to Toronto a few years back to attend a signing. I guess it’s a case of to each their own.
    • 3/5
      I loved this story right up until the last two or three chapters. I felt like the author fell out of his rhythm. Almost like he had stopped writing it, and picked up again a year later.

      Disappointed.

      Favorite line: "Maybe humans are just the pet alligators that God flushed down the toilet."
    • 4/5
      The Basics

      Carl Streator is an investigative journalist, and he has been tasked with finding a pattern among babies who died of crib death. He does find a pattern. The same book of poems in each house, marked on the same page. It turns out this is a culling song, and anyone who hears it dies. Now that Streator has this power, controlling it is turning out to be a challenge.

      My Thoughts

      Palahniuk wrote this book as a reaction to his father’s death, and it does concern itself heavily with the topic of death. How people do or don’t deal with it. Having the power to take life in your hands. Holding on when you probably shouldn’t anymore. It’s a short book to have said so much. That is Palahniuk’s power, in that he’s concise and yet remains poetic and capable of cramming so much message into a few words without wasting a single one.

      I do find trouble getting down to why I didn’t find this a five star affair. I thought the narrator, Carl, was relatable even in his faults, and his personal story was a slow, satisfying reveal. The overall story is a success for the most part, though I will say the reveal about the grimoire felt cheap, as if he wanted to hurry up and get to the point and that was the best way to do it. Other than that quirk, I enjoyed the plot.

      I think most irritating of all was Oyster. He was intentionally an annoyance, I realize that. I’m having trouble expressing this without spoiling the book, but a character this absolutely insufferable in a book concerned with people who can kill with their minds… It didn’t add up for me or pan out the way I would’ve wanted. I’ll say the book was very successful in making us feel exactly how Carl felt every time Oyster opened his mouth, and we wouldn’t have an entire story without that character with the way Palahniuk structured it. But he did his job too well. Oyster was too much of a douche, and the sheer frustration of that knocked this down a peg.

      That’s a personal nitpick over a book that was good and worthy of a read. Other readers may cope with Oyster better than I did.

      Final Rating

      4/5
    • 5/5
      Another fantastic Palahniuk book, one of my favorites. The theme is all about control, something I always fear of losing. Reading it gave me shivers, thinking of all the times I have been controlled in my life without knowing it and the possibility of it happening on a larger scale is terrifying. People let themselves be controlled all the time and some don't even recognize it. He brought more cynicism about the world to this book and it made his humor shine. I laughed and felt haunted all at the same time. Read it!
    • 1/5
      Ecch--all over the place. I think he was going for edgy but just settled for irritating. An extremely quick read.
    • 5/5
      Gewöhnungsbedürftige Sprache, verwegener Erzählstil, ein seltsames aber logisches Ende und ein sehr merkwürdiger Humor. Mich hats begeistert und sehr amüsiert! Roger?!
    • 3/5
      This is definitely not one of my favorite Palahniuk books. The humor is nearly non-existent, and the story is very slow at times. If it weren't for the ending... and lets face it, Chuck Palahniuk is good with endings... this book would be a waste.
      Recommended for die-hard Palahniuk fans only.
    • 3/5
      I'm so paranoid, thanks Chuck. Lullaby plays on every single one of my fears, from the most primal fear of ghosts and bloody things to the modern day liberal neo-hippie fear of slow death by overstimulating media and/or ecological apocalypse. It's a very manipulative book (and a thrilling ride) but I can't help feeling like sensational novels and science fiction (of a sort) are yet another form of overstimulation, even when firing the imagination on all cylinders and calling for an end to spiritual death by pop culture.
    • 3/5
      Interesting, engaging, well written. Funny and dark, this is Chuck Palahniuk at his best.
    • 4/5
      I liked this book-- didn't love it, did't hate it. It's the story of a baby's lullaby that has the power to kill instantly, even if thought in someone's direction, even if by accident. An potential epidemic ensues, especially if the book of poems falls into the wrong hands. A motley cast of characters attempts to gather and destroy all copies, but each has his/her own personal agenda. Not for the feint of heart, but not as course as some of the Palahniuk's other works.

      The Cons: Palahniuk's characters are very 1-D, caricatures conceived of entirely to forward the plot. They do not resemble real people in anyway. That's OK, probably his intent, but makes it difficult for me to have any empathy or get drawn in tho the story emotionally. We're talking about a story about babies dying-- that could really get to me if told from a human point of view.

      The Pros: I thought Palahniuk did a wonderful job of weaving in the parable (the lullaby story) with his underlying theme--- who should have power over life and death and when is it justified to wield that power? The additional storyline of the eco-distasters from kudzu and similar was a nice touch, as it showed another completely different angle on the larger theme. At first the answers seem obvious, but as the plot thickens the grey area broadens and the characters themselves do not agree on when killing is justified. Very thought provoking.

      This is a quick easy read. I wouldn't want to devote much time to Palahniuk's books, as the writing itself doesn't engage me, but for what it is, it's a decent read. 3.5 stars.
    • 1/5
      I have about 2,000 photos to edit from earlier tonight so I shouldn't be writing this by Sei Jin's review of Choke reminded me how much I hated this book. It's utter crap and it doesn't even deserve the one star I gave it. It is tripe in all shape and form. I think Kilgore Trout could write a better novel while unconscious. It's bloody awful. If I hear/read the words "culling spell" never again it will be too soon. Drivel...look it up in the dictionary and there's a picture of this so called novel. Chuck was actually coming to speak in Chicago not too long ago and a friend invited me to come along and hear him...I said no because there was just too much of a temptation for me to go up to him and ask for that three and a half hours of my life back.


      Overrated author..don't believe in burning books but if you're cold this winter and have a fireplace, I'd choose this one first.
    • 3/5
      This was highly recommended by a friend whose literary tastes I respect and often share. I can see some of the things she probably liked in it. She likes the fantastical and quirky, particularly served up in a literary style, and I can certainly see both virtues in the book--I just didn't particularly like the kind of quirky--or the kind of style. It's a Blair Witch kind of plot. The lullaby of the book is an African "culling song" found in Rhymes from Around the World. The thing is (as our narrator, a rather jaded reporter, finds out) read it and anyone in the room at the time dies. It's a wild premise, and I do think Palahniuk develops it creepily well and often with an off-beat, often black, humor. A blurb on the cover from People said admiringly that "among sick puppies, Palahniuk is top dog." And yes, often I did find him one sick puppy--the necrophile character was the least of it. I found pretty much all the characters repulsive.

      And the style? It's in a first person present favored by a lot of literati, and in the right hands that prose style can be lyrical. This never was because it's far too choppy and staccato to flow. Lots of sentence fragments, short sentences, short paragraphs, short chapters. I found it annoying--so much so, I'm unlikely to ever try this author again.
    • 3/5
      This was a bizarre read. Ill be honest, when I read the summary for it, I thought it was just going to be a bunch of babies dying. This was not the case. Its about a journalist who discovers a lullaby that, when read to another, causes the listener to die.

      This was unique and I don't think Ive read anything like this before.
    • 5/5
      An absolutely brillant book.
    • 1/5
      I don't expect high literature from Chuck Palahniuk but I thought this was rather dire. I guess the main problem are the characters who are all extremely unlikeable. Our lead is all too willing for most of the book to kill people who slightly aggravate him (and thus why he doesn't kill his god awful travelling companions I do not know). Oyster is even worse with his desire to cull the innocent population of the planet. Helen is not all that bothered by the collateral damage they rack up either. Mona is slightly more likeable but that's really not saying much.

      The whole idea of the novel, which seems good on paper, is, I think, actually very poorly executed. It's not just all the copies of the book lying around and all that entails. It's also about the whole stupid idea of the grimoire, which takes the novel further out into ridiculousness.

      Even Palahniuk's rants felt rather feeble in this one. Unlike in his other books there seemed to be a slight lack of conviction. The awful repetition of certain sections of prose was also very annoying. I wish he'd shut up about the "calm-ophobics" and all that lot.

      Bah, it makes me feel bad just thinking about it. Really not a very good book. If it hadn't been on the short side I doubt I'd have managed to finish it.
    • 3/5
      not my favorite of palahnuiks but a great twist at the end!
    • 5/5
      This is without a doubt one of my personal favorite Palahniuk novels for a lot of reasons. I feel this novel starts off great and takes less time to really engage you then some of his other works. From the first few pages, I really felt engaged and "into" the novel. And that feeling stayed the same throughout the entirety of the novel. This novel also had a very good thriller feeling at times. Especially during the middle of the novel, it really felt like the characters were in a race against time with such clear conflicting motives and it kept the reader on edge to see what would happen at every turn. There was a real sense of imminent danger looming in the novel that some of our characters were trying to prevent from happening, and this created a very thrilling experience. The overall message of the novel also really hit home at the end of the novel. The spread of information in our era is fast as well as wide. And if dangerous information reaches this network, it can have scary effects. This is a great novel to for both Palahniuk fans and people looking to give him a shot alike. I think it is one of his more enjoyable novels for those who have not had any experience with him and want to give his work a shot.
    • 4/5
      A nice quick read that turns things around on you so many times. A neat trick from an author like Palahniuk, where you're already expecting a twist or two.
    • 4/5
      What if words could kill? What if you could think something so powerfully it could kill?

      Palahniuk explores this concept in Lullaby, a story about a song that kills those who hear it.

      This is really his turning point, where his stories went from exploring strange ideas into him becoming a sort of horror novelist. His characters are still as bizarre as ever, and the story is very, very fucked up. That being said, the combination is still more older Palahniuk. The story reads more like Survivor than Haunted.

      A good read that will leave you wondering what the author was taking when he wrote it.
    • 5/5
      Like many of Palahniuk's books, any one of the plot lines going on among the characters would make for an interesting read, but the culmination of the whole creates a story that speaks of his signature style.

      The story mainly follows a journalist investigating crib deaths, who discovers that a "culling song" is the cause, and the interesting characters he meets, such as a Realtor who only sells, and resales, haunted houses.

      I've read a few of Palahniuk's books, and this one is by far, my favorite. His style of writing can be a bit confusing if you haven't read any of his work before, but it is very easy to follow otherwise. The story was so intriguing that I didn't want to put the book down, and it was a quick read.
    • 5/5
      I absolutely love Chuck Palahniuk and this books is one of my favorites by him. I highly recommend this to anyone who is cycnical, needs a little cynicism or just wants to here someone tell it like it REALLY is.

      Yay for chuck Palahniuk. Yay.
    • 3/5
      A reporter discovers a poem published in a children's anthology is actually a "culling song," and will cause the death of whoever hears it. This is definitely an interesting premise, and executed cleverly, but I didn't end up really connecting with or caring much about the characters--whether by my own fault or the authors--so I can't say I enjoyed this one as well as some of Palahniuk's other work. I'd say skip this one, and pick up a copy of his Diary or Haunted instead.