Malachy Jackson Site

Note: this is not a review. I will not attempt at an unbiased look at this book. Of course I’m biased, I’m a person. I’m simply going to tell you my journey with this book, why I love it, and why I love Chuck Palahniuk’s work.

Recently, I grew dissatisfied with the library at Canterbury Christ Church University. Not enough fiction, especially not by the authors I’m interested in reading (for context, there’s about three floors of books in that library, and only a handful of shelves dedicated to literature on the top floor, the rest is non-fiction). So I decided to visit Canterbury Library (fun fact, Canterbury Cathedral is directly referenced in this book at one point).

I made my way to the typical stops: D in the science fiction section for Philip K Dick, M in the fiction section for either one of the Murakamis, E for Ellis, M for McCarthy, W for Welsh, B for Burgess, and of course, P for Palahniuk. I read five of Chuck Palahniuk’s during my reading renaissance of 2025 and generally consider him to be my favourite author. I own four more of his books – Lullaby, Diary, Rant and Invisible Monsters – but put off reading them due to my disappointment with Snuff. Shock Induction is Palahniuk’s latest book, and took it home out of curiosity after returning Less Than Zero.

To be transparent, I’m not the best reader. I do it a lot, but I can’t do it for hours. It’s rare that I really, truly enjoy a book, beyond my pure curiosity for it. It’s rare that a book can make me feel a real emotion. Two books I’ve read since starting my reading renaissance have been truly hard for me to put down: Battle Royale and Shock Induction. Two books since starting my reading renaissance have brought a tear to my eye: Qualia the Purple and Shock Induction.

It’s probably my favourite book that I’ve read since reading A Clockwork Orange as a teenager, the book that really showed me a real book could be something you could enjoy reading and not just a miserable chore. Similar to A Clockwork Orange, much of Chuck Palahniuk’s writing engages with the reader directly, talking to them as if they were a person instead of being simple narration, Shock Induction going as far to have sections in second person perspective, contain references to the book you’re holding as a physical object, and have instructions for the reader at home.

It’s always difficult to concisely express why I love something. That’s why I don’t write reviews. I imagine no wants to read ten pages of me gushing. In short, it takes the satire and societal critique that Chuck Palahniuk is known for, and updates it for Generation Z. A man who’s been writing since the nineties proves that he never lost touch with the world. It speaks to what I’ve been through, and want you find on the internet, a generation of young adults raised as ‘gifted kids’ then plunged into a world hell-bent on making you feel worthless. Combine this with a genius writing style that explains and then employs hypnotic techniques to put the reader into a trance. Combine this with a mystery plot about multiple seemingly unconnected story threads including the American department of education attempting to tackle the reading crisis, a string of teen suicides, a secretive school for gifted kids and a main character with deadbeat parents who makes herself intentionally deaf with an aspirin overdose. It’s style, it’s characters are all classic Chuck, but it’s put towards such an interesting end I’d call it the highlight of my journey with it.

If any of that interests you, please check it out. Also, go to your local library. Get a library card. You’ll be surprised at what you can find there. What you find might just be your Shock Induction.