These are the endnotes to david foster wallaces infinite jest, a gargantuan, mindaltering. Vollmann, infinite jest is our most thorough dissection of americas addiction to. The buzzing, claustrophobic energy of infinite jest, wallaces mammoth 1,079page satire of america, immediately placed him in the company of pynchon and delillo wall street journal. The mindbending novel, celebrated for its gargantuan length and mentally demanding, nonlinear narrative, is particularly famous for wallaces exhaustive endnotes, which routinely interrupt the authors prose. Ive read it twice, and the characters already have their own voices for me. My first attempt was a list of advice on reading the novelthe submission of which prompted infsums dungeon master, matthew baldwin, to write back with. Im still trying to make sense of infinite jest io9. Signin to download and listen to this audiobook today.
Was the allegedly fatally entertaining and scopophiliac thing jim alleges he made out of her. Did you know that theyre releasing a new collection in november both flesh and not not sure about an audio release. Ive seldom been more engrossed in a novel, and more willing to put in the time of. Specifically the oversized shelf, adjusted to accommodate textbooks, magazines, and tomes of infinite dimensions, a realm from whence literature rarely returns. Infinite jest is the name of a movie said to be so entertaining that anyone who watches it loses all desire to do anything but watch it. I see characters as figures on a spreadsheet, like a, b, c, and so on. Events mentioned or described in infinite jest 1996 are listed below in chronological order based on textual evidence. Learn and understand all of the themes found in read pdf infinite jest online, such as power overpower under.
Calling to mind that infinite jest was published in 1996, dont think crystal meth is a new phenomenon. I guess this is a first for me and ill get straight to the point. I was thinking of getting infinite jest, since i could not make any headway with my paperback version. Infinite jest, david foster walaces massive 1,079page tome, is one of the most beloved books of this millennium, but it is also one that through sheer dint of its size has taken on almost religious reverence. Endnotes, the first one, infinite jest according to audible released 042012 that is. Infinite jest is a 1996 novel by american writer david foster wallace. It has been categorized as an encyclopedic novel and made time magazines list of the 100 best englishlanguage novels published between. In a sprawling, wild, superhyped magnum opus, david foster wallace fulfills the promise of his precocious novel the broom of the system. Apr 12, 2012 why i cannot recommend the infinite jest audio book infinite jest i guess this is a first for me and ill get straight to the point. I love infinite jest, but im not sure if i want to listen to it. The novel infinite jest is the story of this addictive entertainment, and in particular how it affects a boston halfway house for recovering addicts and a.
Some readers have found it useful to rip the book in half for easier reading on the subway or on the beach. When i remember the first time i read infinite jest there are two things that. The novel is a interconnected sequence of events, told out of timeline order, that focuses on addiction in all its forms. To be fair, the essay, penned on the topic of and shortly after 911, was by wallaces own admission written very fast and in what probably. Set in an addicts halfway house and a tennis academy, and featuring the most endearingly screwedup family to come along in recent fiction, infinite jest explores essential questions about what entertainment is and why it has come to. These are the endnotes to david foster wallaces infinite jest, a gargantuan, mindaltering comedy about the pursuit of happiness in america. The novel infinite jest is the story of this addictive entertainment, and in particular how it affects a boston halfway house for recovering addicts and a nearby tennis academy, whose students have many budding addictions of their own. The following was drafted by matt bucher maintainer of the wallacel listserv and author of this post, and augmented by input from nick maniatis administrator of the howling fantods, a site devoted to dfw, and kathleen fitzpatrick professor at pomona college, who teaches a course entitled david foster wallace theres no wrong way to read infinite jest.
A gargantuan, mindaltering comedy about the pursuit of happiness in america set in an addicts halfway house and a tennis academy, and featuring the most endearingly screwedup family to come along in recent fiction, infinite jest explores essential questions about what entertainment is and why it has come to so dominate our lives. Since pratt narrates both the notes and the text, this is one easy way to distinguish the endnote narrator from my narrative narrator pratt is. Signed with a typical wallace smiley added on the title page without further personalisation. Here, as in all of his work, wallaces achievement was to make thinking about the effects of postmodern life, and thinking about thinking about them, one of. Any work that is put into this novel is rewarded ten fold and the complexity and interlinking nature of it makes it one of the most rereadable books i have ever come across despite its length. Perhaps through a sort of literary stockholm syndrome, people that read infinite jest tend to worship it afterwards. Fifteen years after infinite jest was first published, and three years after i interviewed author david foster wallace shortly before.
The truth is it might be the worst novel ever written, or at least published, but given the fact that wallace has stiff competition from the burgeoning spawn of pc elitist writers, not to mention his own pomo kith, such as rick moody, dave eggers, and that. Jan 16, 2007 the novel infinite jest is the story of this addictive entertainment, and in particular how it affects a boston halfway house for recovering addicts and a nearby tennis academy, whose students have many budding addictions of their own. Our website also provides download infinite jest pdf in many format, so dont worry if readers want to download infinite jest pdf online that cant be open through their device. David foster wallace was born in ithaca, new york, in 1962 and raised in illinois, where he was a regionally ranked junior tennis player. Infinite jest by david foster wallace, first edition, signed. But if you are seeking something other, then this book will not disappoint. Infinite jest audiobook david foster wallace audible.
Wallace wrote to a friend that the fuckers cut by 600 pages from the first version. During week 2, youll encounter the delightful and infamous endnote containing the. Infinite jest by foster wallace, david and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Feb 26, 2016 12 if you think infinite jest at 1,100odd pages is a long book, be advised that it started longer. Infinite jest is both sad, depressed and funny and even 25 years after it was published in 1994 remains relevant to the modern age. Rather, each reading is a meal the whole tome is practically a steady diet. Infinite jest is a novel written by david foster wallace. There are those days, after all, that our poor eyes are simply too strained to take in that bedside copy of infinite jest youve been meaning to finish.
Sep 10, 2016 its been a bit of a journey on this one. On march 27, hachette audio released david foster wallaces magnum opus infinite jest most of it, at least as a 56hourlong audiobook. Why i cannot recommend the infinite jest audio book infinite jest. I do things like get in a taxi and say, the library, and step on it. Infinite jest has been listed as one of the top 100 all time greatest novels of 19232006. Infinite jest by david foster wallace, first edition abebooks. Stream and download audiobooks to your computer, tablet or mobile phone. Apr 02, 2011 fifteen years after infinite jest was first published, and three years after i interviewed author david foster wallace shortly before his suicide, ive finally decided to finish his most. And the bouncing backandforth is a feature, not a bug. A work of geniusinfinite jest is a grandly ambitious, wickedly comic epic on par with such great, sprawling novels of the twentieth century as ulysses, the recognitions, and gravitys rainbowwith a sophisticated lexicon and mesmerizing syntax reminiscent of william gaddis and william t. At the macro level, infinite jest consists of numerous anticonfluential wallaces word episodes set a dozen years or so in the future as was the broom, at a time when numerical designations for years have been sold to corporate sponsors.
Equal parts philosophical quest and screwball comedy, infinite jest bends every rule of fiction, features a huge cast and multilevel narrative, and questions essential elements of american culture our entertainments, our addictions, our. In infinite jest, the characters actions are so bizarre that you cant forget where you left off. It is built from our personal experiences, our values, what we have read and watched and. At the top of a hill is the enfield tennis academy, and at the base of the hill is the ennet house. I cant recommend the purchase of the what at first appears to be the amazing ive heard good things about the audio. Set in an addicts halfway house and a tennis academy, and featuring the most endearingly screwedup family to come along in recent fiction, infinite jest explores essential questions about what entertainment is and why it has come to so dominate our lives. In fact, its take on the very nature of entertainment itself perhaps foresaw the age of vanity and social media, as seen through the prisms of tinder, facebook, twitter and instagram. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. Part i with a foreword by dave eggers audiobook cover art. Apr, 2009 a gargantuan, mindaltering comedy about the pursuit of happiness in america set in an addicts halfway house and a tennis academy, and featuring the most endearingly screwedup family to come along in recent fiction, infinite jest explores essential questions about what entertainment is and why it has come to so dominate our lives. Whether its drugs, sex, or fame, the novels primary goal is to examine the need for these addictions and show that it is possible to addicted to addiction itself.
Whether you are a word gourmet or gourmand, infinite. The infinite atlas project is an independent research and art project seeking to identify, place and describe every possible location in david foster wallaces infinite jest. I felt compelled throughout to read it aloud, such was the almost poetic quality of it. I received an email earlier today from a reader who had excitedly received their unabridged audio book of.
Pamphile, quebec avril mondragons grandfather decides to invest in delawarebrand punch instead of cocacola. As the novel unfolds, various individuals, organizations, and governments vie to obtain the master copy of infinite jest for their own ends, and the denizens of the tennis school and the halfway house are caught up in increasingly desperate efforts to control the movie as is a cast including burglars, transvestite muggers, scam artists. A subreddit dedicated to reading david foster wallaces infinite jest over the summer. I received an email earlier today from a reader who had excitedly received their unabridged audio book of infinite jest only to discover that in. The endnotes arent included in the audio and i can see why the publisher omitted them out. This woman has been slowly eating infinite jest for a year. Set in an addicts halfway house and a tennis academy, and featuring the most endearingly screwedup family to c. Infinite jest by david foster wallace, paperback barnes. Aug 14, 2012 a gargantuan, mindaltering comedy about the pursuit of happiness in america set in an addicts halfway house and a tennis academy, and featuring the most endearingly screwedup family to come along in recent fiction, infinite jest explores essential questions about what entertainment is and why it has come to so dominate our lives. When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your my library section along with the audio. Written by david foster wallace, audiobook narrated by sean pratt.
Infinite jest by david foster wallace free download. I received an email earlier today from a reader who had excitedly received their. Vollmann, infinite jest is our most thorough dissection of americas addiction to just about. Why i cannot recommend the infinite jest audio book. First edition of wallaces epic postmodern satirejubilantly anecdotal, winkingly sardonic new york timesin scarce firstissue dust jacket, boldly signed on the title page by the author, who has crossed through his. Unquestionably, infinite jest required great ambition and focus to write, and requires a bit of ambition and focus to read as well. Infinite jest is a rare text that has the ability to do both seamlessly. The novel is widely noted for its unconventional narrative structure and its experimental use of endnotes there are 388 endnotes, some with footnotes of their own. A writer of virtuostic talents who can seemingly do anything the new york times somewhere in the notsodistant future the residents of ennet house, a boston halfway house for recovering addicts, and students at the nearby enfield tennis academy are ensnared in the search for the master copy of infinite jest, a movie said to be so dangerously entertaining its viewers become entranced and.
Initially the audiobook did not include the endnotes except as a text. Infinite jest endnotes i recently purchased the audible edition of infinite jest, this comes with a pdf copy of the endnotes. Infinite summer blog archive how to read infinite jest. At the top of a hill is the enfield tennis academy, and at the base of the hill is the ennet hou. He received bachelor of arts degrees in philosophy and english from amherst college and wrote what would become his first novel, the broom of the system, as his senior english thesis. Audiobooks are a great alternative for those of us who spend the workday with our eyes glued to a computer screen. With regard to the basic 14 plot line, the setting for the majority of the action is enfield, a fictional suburbia town outside of boston. Endnote 110 hal and orin discuss quebecois politics. Infinite jest by david foster wallace turns 20 today, and im still confused by it all these years later. I cant recommend the purchase of the what at first appears to be the amazing ive heard good things about the audio, excellent vocal performance audio book of infinite jest. A few weeks ago, i wrote the foreword for infinite summer, a summerlong collective read of infinite jest, david foster wallaces bigass novel and one of my favorite books. Infinite jest first edition signed david foster wallace. I havent done both versions, but i decided that pausing when an endnote is.
Infinite jest by david foster wallace the new canon. They are not boring bibliographic details, but rather an integral part of the text. Page 12 of 12 read infinite jest with a few hundred. Thick octavo, original blue paper boards, original dust jacket. Infinite jest by david foster wallace, first edition.