Would you consider the audio edition of infinite jest. It is an exuberant, uniquely american exploration of the passions that make us human and one of those rare books that renew the idea of what a novel can do. Over the course of his career, david foster wallace recorded a variety of his work in diverse circumstancesfrom studio recordings to live performancesthat are finally compiled in. David foster wallaces infinite jest is an audiobook, minus endnotes audio by andres jauregui on march 27, hachette audio released david foster wallaces magnum opus infinite jest most of it, at least as a 56hourlong audiobook. Infinite jest audiobook david foster wallace audible. In his own words audiobook, by david foster wallace. Infinite jest in the age of addiction the millions. James is desperately trying to get hal to hear him, but does not listen to what hal is saying.
Mar 03, 1996 reading david foster wallaces latest novel, infinite jest, i couldnt help thinking at times about 7yearold seymour glasss book length letter home from camp, published in the new. Why i cannot recommend the infinite jest audio book. Since listening to this book, i have found myself thinking of it often. Fast forward to the present and my new audible obsession. It has also been called metamodernist and hysterical. There are 28 unnumbered chapter breaks signified by a little circle, similar to 28 days in a lunar continue reading matt bucher. I cant recommend the purchase of the what at first appears to be the amazing ive heard good things about the audio. The mindbending novel, celebrated for its gargantuan length and. At the same time, hal wrote nine admissions essays, some book length. This performance by sean pratt is really humorous, sad and entertaining. 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.
Infinite jest is a 1996 novel by david foster wallace. It was also certainly cited and quoted a hell of a lot, announcing, as it seemed to, a conquering literary colossus. Since its publication, the world has moved past the events and. Ive often said theres no way to describe or synopsize infinite jest. Listen to infinite jest audiobook by david foster wallace, narrated by sean. The first thing pratt noticed when hachette sent him a formatted copy of infinite jest was, of course, the length. Tom bissell and the editor michael pietsch discuss infinite jest. The lengthy and complex work takes place in a semiparodic future version of north america, and touches on substance addiction recovery programs. Part i with a foreword by dave eggers audiobook by. I have not eliminated infinite jests map, but i have walked its length. But if you are seeking something other, then this book will not disappoint. These are the endnotes to david foster wallaces infinite jest, a gargantuan, mindaltering comedy about the pursuit of happiness in america. Absolutely, for the novice to this type of literary fiction, i cannot tell you how many times i have started and given up on the actual book. In short, if finnegans wake was a rancid fart that was proudly left to rip, infinite jest is a weak one, lacking sound and odor.
Instead of simply listening, he resorts to drugs and entertainment, dmz and his movie infinite jest, to communicate. Infinite jest audiobook by david foster wallace, read by. The novel is widely noted for its unconventional narrative structure and its experimental use of endnotes there are a total of 388. Infinite jest as infinite jest a supposedly fun blog. I have yet to find any site that shows the total length of the audio book, which makes me believe there was a. If youve never read it, starting infinite jest can be a little intimidating. A subreddit dedicated to reading david foster wallaces infinite jest over the summer. The recursive spiral of recursion is really hard to avoid with dfw to the point you think it is the point, which, of course, is itself recursive. The varsity tennis coach replies that its best to let the applicant speak for himself. There are moments so well represented that you feel yourself drawn into the story. Infinite jest kindle edition by wallace, david foster.
The lengthy and complex work takes place in a semiparodic future version of north america, and touches on substance addiction recovery programs, depression, child abuse, family relationships, advertising, popular entertainment, film theory, quebec separatism, and tennis, among other topics. Thanks to tim feeney for this very detailed account of each of the many characters in infinite jest. The plot of infinite jest takes place in a somewhatmoredystopian future uni. Incandenza himself died when he killed himself by putting his head in a microwave oven.
Over the holidays i took my third crack at infinite jest by david foster wallace all my posts on dfw and made it 800 pages. If youre used to the audiobook of infinite jest, the transition to the audio endnotes is ideal. This book is wandering, selfindulgent, overwritten, and gives ample evidence that the academics and literati are captivated by the deranged workings of a damaged mind wallace struggled with addictions and mental illness and killed himself a couple years after infinite jest was published. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. 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. Reading david foster wallaces latest novel, infinite jest, i couldnt help thinking at times about 7yearold seymour glasss book length letter home from camp, published in the new. Oct 19, 2016 every time i read infinite jest, i wonder how much of it is basically autobiographical with a thin veneer of difference and a heap of really, really tight prose. His masterpiece, infinite jest, is a 1,000page, polyphonic epic about addiction and obsession in millennial america. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while. Is there no ending to infinite book because there couldnt be. Why i cannot recommend the infinite jest audio book infinite jest. The novel is widely noted for its unconventional narrative structure and its experimental use of endnotes there are a total of 388 endnotes, some with footnotes of their own. James incandenza aka himself, who took his life shortly after producing a mysterious.
It has been categorized as an encyclopedic novel and made time magazines list of the 100 best englishlanguage novels published between 1923 and 2005. 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 infinite jest only to discover that in. Jan 17, 2016 if youve never read it, starting infinite jest can be a little intimidating. For those who have actually read infinite jest, youll probably get more out of my very spoilerheavy summary of what happens just after the end of the. But the most addictive force in infinite jest is a seemingly innocuous videotape referred to simply as the entertainment. At the same time, hal wrote nine admissions essays, some book length, which were stellar. But the novel still contains many highly entertaining and provocative sections. What its like to record the audiobook version of infinite jest. 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. Partly since it makes the book more accessible and partly because it lets you enjoy the flow of wallaces prose. Infinite jest is difficult to summarize, not only because of its length but also because fundamental questions about narrative theory must be addressed in order to do so. Jul 11, 2016 after twenty years, david foster wallaces grand overture on humans and addiction, infinite jest, has only become more powerful. After starting and stopping infinite jest twice before, i believe i now have a fairly strong method for making progress.
Infinite jest does begin as hals story, but it makes no promises of remaining so. Each of the characters occupies a distinct place in the fictional world. Infinite jest is a 1996 novel by american writer david foster wallace. David foster wallaces infinite jest is an audiobook. The good news is that it is not a thousandpage paragraph or even a thousandpage story. David foster wallaces infinite jest is an audiobook, minus. Written by david foster wallace, audiobook narrated by sean pratt. It would have been annoying to pull up a pdf each time what other book might you compare infinite jest, part iii.
It is the most fun book of this length that i have ever read. Amazon still says temporarily out of stock for the playaway, with no other detail other than a publication date of february 2012. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading infinite jest. Infinite jest is one of those books that a lot of people know of but have never read. Filmmaker, founder of the enfield tennis academy, committed suicide by putting his head in a microwave over. I stopped not because it was too difficult or not interesting, but because i simply wasnt in the mood for such a commitment at the time. It was aimed at people who have read or are considering reading infinite jest, which should be a group unusually tolerant of verbosity. I cant recommend the purchase of the what at first appears to. I have yet to find any site that shows the total length of the audio book, which makes me believe there was a problem in production. Every time i read infinite jest, i wonder how much of it is basically autobiographical with a thin veneer of difference and a heap of really, really tight prose. Collected here for the first time are the stories and speeches of david foster wallace as read by the author himself. The depressed person by david foster wallace 1998 pdf.
Oct 18, 2016 infinite jest explores the idea that all humans are addicts and examines how the chosen drugs particularly entertainment of late 20th century americans eat them alive. He did though, leave behind a hugely impressive body of work and infinite jest, in my opinion, having read everything he has written over the years, is his crowning glory. Part i with a foreword by dave eggers to be better than the print version. I was going to wait on it, but not that even infinite summer is talking about the end. This index is based on tim wares infinite jest index pregnant pause fact it is wares index except for a few ads ive added and i post. 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. Its like wallace was trying to ward off any potential readers.
Wallace wrote to a friend that the fuckers cut by 600 pages from the first version. Favorite sentences and paragraphs from infinite jest ben. To talk about infinite jest means you have to bring up the length of the novel, the immense use of end notes there are 388some spanning several pages, and atypical use of grammar and punctuation. David foster wallace february 21, 1962 september 12, 2008 was an american author of novels, short stories and essays, as well as a university professor of english and creative writing. Unquestionably, infinite jest required great ambition and focus to write, and requires a bit of ambition and focus to read as well. Wallace is widely known for his 1996 novel infinite jest, which time magazine cited as one of the 100 best englishlanguage novels from 1923 to 2005. Infinite jest explores the idea that all humans are addicts and examines how the chosen drugs particularly entertainment of late 20th century americans eat them alive. Listen to infinite jest audiobook by david foster wallace, narrated by sean pratt. Avril thinks shes being a perfect mother, but sees and hears only herself, not its effect on hal.
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. Feb 26, 2016 12 if you think infinite jest at 1,100odd pages is a long book, be advised that it started longer. May 25, 2015 david foster wallace was a maximalist. Some of the notes have footnotes themselves, and one of them is a. 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. This book is wandering, selfindulgent, overwritten, and gives ample evidence that the academics and literati are captivated by the deranged workings of a damaged mind wallace struggled with addictions and mental illness and killed himself. Na have you listened to any of sean pratts other performances before. So this infinite jest summary guide will be an attempt to create an explanation of david foster wallaces infinite jest which, if truth be told, is doomed to fail even before it begins, but id. This is an amazing book, the low rating isnt for the book itself but for the audio book. He was also a tragic figure, hanging himself when changing antidepressants in 2008. Jims father talks at length to a silent and pronetocry jim. What its like to record the audiobook version of infinite. Equal parts philosophical quest and screwball comedy, infinite jest bends every rule of fiction without sacrificing for a moment its own entertainment value. I was unable to follow the plot arc to the very end.
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