david foster wallace

Are you reading the short stories (in which case I understand the whistle) or Infinite Jest (which is my benchamrk for awful reading experiences . . . ? Man, that book was hard hard hard work.

i read infinite jest last year and it blew my mind apart. so intense and smart and powerful, now im finishing up the second of the two short story collections, both of which have been also incredible (and very funny). its been so long since i read a bad book... but infinite jest, "house of leaves" (mark danielewski) and the "wind up bird chronicle" (haruki murakami) take some damn beating.

I'm so with you on House of Leaves and the Murakami (Murakami is one of those essential writers that . . . leave yr mouth dry) - but Infinite Jest. No. Not there. I loved the short story / microfiction / nonfiction. But Infinite Jest felt like an amazing idea (a film so compelling you have to watch and rewatch until you die) wrapped up in a whole lot of tennis. I think Infinite Jest is such an anal book. But that could well just be me. I don't get Thomas Pynchon either (and I've tried really really hard!!)

I started Infinite Jest and had to give up.....there are so many other things I want to read. As for Pynchon.....I very much like some of his passages and the little historical sidetrips he takes. Trouble with all these modern epics....they never seem to get resolved....just the way things are I guess....