About this title: A collection of insightful and uproariously funny non-fiction by the bestselling author of INFINITE JEST - one of the most acclaimed and adventurous writers of our time. A SUPPOSEDLY FUN THING...brings together Wallace's musings on a wide range of topics, from his early days as a nationally ranked tennis player to his trip on a commercial ...
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: LITTLE, BROWN BOOK GROUP Country = UNITED KINGDOM
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9780349110011ISBN:0349110018
Description: BRAND NEW PAPERBACK. 368 pages. (368 pages) *razor-sharp cultural commentary and hilarious social observation from the bestselling author of infinite jest. (Paperback) read more
Edition: Reprint
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Little Brown & Co
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9780316925280ISBN:0316925284
Description: New. This exuberantly praised--and uproariously funny--first collection of nonfiction pieces by one of the most acclaimed and adventurous writers of our time--the author of "Infinite Jest"--"reconfirms Mr. Wallace's stature as one of his generation's pree... read more
Description: Good. [ No Hassle 30 Day Returns ] [ Underlining/Highlighting: NONE ] [ Writing: NONE ] [ Torn pages: NO ] [ Broken Seams: NO ] Publisher: Back Bay Books Pub Date: 2/2/1998 Binding: Paperback Pages: 368. read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: Little, Brown & Company (UK), UK
ISBN-13:9780349110011ISBN:0349110018
Description: New. Please note that deliveries to addresses in the UK and Europe will be in 4-14 business days. Other countries should refer to Alibris standard times. This collection brings together novelist Wallace's musings on a wide range of topics, from his early days as a nationally ranked tennis player to his trip on a commercial cruiseliner. His observations and analyses expose the faultlines in American culture. ISBN10: 0349110018. read more
Description: New. PLEASE NOTE: All books are promptly shipped from our UK warehouse using Royal Mail International Priority mail. Heavier or more expensive books are shipped with a TRACKING NUMBER. Professional and reliable bookseller (est.1987). read more
Description: New. DISPATCHED FROM UNITED KINGDOM. NO EXPEDITED SHIPPING! Please note orders are confirmed immediately and may take 2-3 business days to ship. This processing time is in addition to the shipping time. Please allow 10-14 days for delivery. Brand new item. Order now. Selling online since 1995. Order with confidence. Code: G20091121062735D. read more
Description: Like New. SHIPS FROM GERMANY. NO EXPEDITED SHIPPING! Allow 10-14 business days for delivery. Please always check the language in the product description section. Few left in stock-order soon. Selling online since 1995. Code: L20091120203155I. read more
Description: New. PLEASE NOTE: All books are promptly imported from the UK using DHL or Royal Mail international mail WITH TRACKING NUMBER. Delivery is typically 5-10 working days. Please do not select expedited shipping. Professional and reliable bookseller (est.1987). read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: Little, Brown & Company (UK), UK
ISBN-13:9780349110011ISBN:0349110018
Description: New. This collection brings together novelist Wallace's musings on a wide range of topics, from his early days as a nationally ranked tennis player to his trip on a commercial cruiseliner. His observations and analyses expose the faultlines in American culture. ISBN10: 0349110018. read more
"So guess what: I still like David Foster Wallace. Funny, serious, attention to detail - what more could I want of creative non-fiction? I didn't even know I was interested in post-modernism and modern television, or why David Lynch films (which I've never seen) are creepy, or what cruises say about American culture.
On Lynch: "I submit that we also, as a audience, really like the idea of secret and scandalous immoralities unearthed and dragged into the light and exposed. We like this stuff because secrets' exposure in a movie creates in us impressions of epistemological privilege, of 'penetrating the civilized surface of everyday life to discover the strange, perverse passions beneath.'"
Anyway, I recommend ASFTINDA for its intelligent commentary on topics I otherwise might have scorned (country fairs, tennis tournaments, etc).
A note on the eponymous essay: there is free version floating around on the Internet from when it was published in a magazine. It is heavily edited, and not as good as the full version (I suspected as much when certain details were omitted)."
"DISCLAIMER: I only read the essay about David Lynch.
Really 3 essays in one: an on-the-set report about Lost Highway, satirical expose about the production of a Hollywood film, and a personal account of the significance of Lynch's work in Wallace's own life. The piece was not helped by is tripartite nature. The stench of Hollywood sleaze was nothing new, nor was the analysis of Lynch's oeuvre, myself being a long time Lynch fan. Wallace's perception of the particular production he was assigned to cover was interesting though. He seemed to have high hopes and foresee positive things about Lost Highway which went on to become one of Lynch's most maligned films.
Was it entertaining? Yes, but I'm in love with the subject matter. Was it enthralling? Hardly. With an editor it could have been easily turned into a run of hill production report. Not that it was poorly written, but it was self-indulgent and didn't make me want to read any of Wallace's novels."
"This is a totally enjoyable book where some of the essays talk about stuff that I would think I have no interest in, like tennis, or a cruise ship, but that are written so well I ended up laughing out loud at some points, something which I never ever do, I am usually the mute laughter sort of reader.
DFW is totally brilliant, I must confess that while reading him I always had my dicionary close by, thus adding new words to my vocabulary, while enjoying everything he writes about. It doesn't get much better than that.
Anyway, why does he make it so likable? It must be his personal approach, he has a totally different way of writing essays, they are an experience, not just something to be analysed, and everything seen through his eyes is so much better for being that.
I loved the one on David Lynch, Blue Velvet, when it came out to me, living in tijuana, and crossing to san diego to see it was a life changing experience, I thought it was the coolest, most bizarre thing I had ever seen in my life, and I loved it, even while being repulsed by it. The movie the essay is about, Lost Highway, was a very strange thing for me, I came out with a big interrogation sign on my forehead, I hadn't seen the tv series... Duh.
There is something that he says in the one about television and fiction writers, that I just loved; "Real rebels, as far as I can see, risk didisapproval. The old postmodern insurgents risked the gasp and squeal; shock, disgust, outrage, censorship, accusations of socialism, anarchism, nihilism. Today's risks are different. The new rebels might be artists willing to risk the yawn, the rolled eyes, the cool smile, the nidged ribs, the parody of gifted ironists, the 'oh how banal'. To risk accusations of sentimentality, melodrama. Of overcredulity. Of softness. Of willingness to be suckered by a world of lurkers and starers who fear gaze and ridicule above imprisionment without law."
Yeah, rebellion is about taking chances, about a risk, and those risks change every day, just as we do ourselves, our ways of comunicating, our way of expressing ourselves.
And the one about the cruise ship, well that was just laugh out loud funny, his portrait of the whole experience is something you don't want to miss. Great great book by a great writer."
We guarantee every item's condition, as described on Alibris. If you are not satisfied that an item is as described, return your purchase for a refund.
rating
