4 ms·

Infinite Jest, although it might take you a few tries to get through it. Part of the fun though.

by yasp 8y ago

yarrel 8y ago
I loathed "Infinite Jest" having got through it in one try. The advice I have since received is that I should have started with DFW's shorter pieces. I'm not going to now, but I do feel it's good advice given the love I've seen people who followed that route generally gain for his writing.
- everybodyknows 8y ago
  As one who shares your reaction to IJ, I would mention that his journalism is very different read. The dozen or so I've got to ranged from good to brilliant.
- euroclydon 8y ago
  Infinite Jest helped me discover my upper limit for bleakness. Turns out is 500-600 pages. I need someone to admire in a book. It’s a dangerous criteria — usually turns out to be some Pollyanna.
sanderjd 8y ago
Re-posting a dead comment that I don't think should be dead. I totally disagree - I loved Infinite Jest when I read it a bunch of years ago, and think I still would now - but it's not an invalid perspective. It's true that the problems and angst of privileged largely vapid mostly young people are not as bad as those experienced by many (most?) people in the world. But Infinite Jest also captures a certain experience of life that rings true. That's what makes a novel great for me, regardless of how much I relate to the experiences of the characters. "Infinite Jest was infinitely boring, a lot of the "edginess" feels dated and the problems the characters deal with feel juvenile. Its also devoid of emotions that feels like the isolation of the American suburbs. I liked many hard to read books, Joyce for example, as well as postmodernism, but I can't recommend this collection of superficial rants and emotional sterility. Curiously, the people that liked this book had the same kind of emotional sterility I despise. Mostly, whiny, stuck up English majors from the suburbs. Often with few life experiences."

Infinite Jest, although it might take you a few tries to get through it. Part of the fun though.

by yasp 8y ago

Infinite Jest, although it might take you a few tries to get through it. Part of the fun though.

I loathed "Infinite Jest" having got through it in one try. The advice I have since received is that I should have started with DFW's shorter pieces. I'm not going to now, but I do feel it's good advice given the love I've seen people who followed that route generally gain for his writing.

everybodyknows 8y ago
As one who shares your reaction to IJ, I would mention that his journalism is very different read. The dozen or so I've got to ranged from good to brilliant.
euroclydon 8y ago
Infinite Jest helped me discover my upper limit for bleakness. Turns out is 500-600 pages. I need someone to admire in a book. It’s a dangerous criteria — usually turns out to be some Pollyanna.

sanderjd 8y ago

Re-posting a dead comment that I don't think should be dead. I totally disagree - I loved Infinite Jest when I read it a bunch of years ago, and think I still would now - but it's not an invalid perspective. It's true that the problems and angst of privileged largely vapid mostly young people are not as bad as those experienced by many (most?) people in the world. But Infinite Jest also captures a certain experience of life that rings true. That's what makes a novel great for me, regardless of how much I relate to the experiences of the characters. "Infinite Jest was infinitely boring, a lot of the "edginess" feels dated and the problems the characters deal with feel juvenile. Its also devoid of emotions that feels like the isolation of the American suburbs. I liked many hard to read books, Joyce for example, as well as postmodernism, but I can't recommend this collection of superficial rants and emotional sterility. Curiously, the people that liked this book had the same kind of emotional sterility I despise. Mostly, whiny, stuck up English majors from the suburbs. Often with few life experiences."