NOW FINISHED: Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace
Hmmm. I cannot for the life of me figure out what to say about this book. (Yet.) Except that I am surprised to maybe discover that DFW wanted his parting shot to be some sort of declaration of his love for A Clockwork Orange. Which, I might add, is a very, very short book. He could learn a thing or two from that, I'd say.
Was there an ending somewhere in there, among the 1000 pages, and I just missed it?
Actually, I can see where there are several things I am supposed to puzzle out, which may be a cheap shot from an author who babbled at us for nearly 1100 pages...
Maybe I can ponder this while I'm in Honduras. Yes, that's right, I'm leaving on a jet plane in the morn. So I had to finish the Jest tonight so as to be able to bring the next book I'm going to read and not also lug the heavy thing on the plane for the only 30 pages I had left. And so I finished it.
I'm feeling terribly unresolved.
1 comment:
That seems to be the reaction of most people directly after they finish IJ, myself included. But then the book started to creep on me. I found myself thinking about certain scenes with a clarity one would think had been muddled during the 1100 page hike. I still reference it more than any book I've read in the last two years.
It has, I suppose, insinuated its self into my thought-matrix, and it doesn't let go. I am now thinking it may be time to read it again.
So, long comment short, I'd recommend giving it some time to sink in before writing it off as blabber.
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