I am now, much like my quitting smoking fiasco, broadcasting that I have begun to read Infinite Jest in order to prepare myself for the battle that may be awaiting me by using public shaming as an additional buttress.
Wish me luck, though so far having read 1.38% of it, it is every bit as enthralling and mind bending as I had hoped.
If you have ever wanted to read this book, or just are in the mood for something that by all appearances is going to be deeply challenging and equally rewarding and twisted, I maybe sorta hope that you will take the leap and try and read this fucker as I do. Sorta like AA. Or a book club. I'm only on page 15 of 1079 right now, and I imagine I won't make it past page 50 tonight before I fall asleep. Let me know.
21 comments:
yeah, sorry, while traveling internationally, i try to read books that weigh less than 5 pounds. hehe. it is on my list though.
Haha. Point taken. This thing defies my one handed reading habits and forces me to sit up in bed to hunch over it...I'm going get arthritis.
I may be weird, but I'm not a fraud:
http://www.floppingaces.net/2009/04/11/obamas-potemkin-military-receptionno-scandal-troops-plan-who-will-take-what-questions-from-bushhuge-scandal-reader-post/
If you cut it into pieces, how would you deal with the endnotes?
Also: copycat
MPDR
Also, I'm looking forward to a future post in which you talk about trying to read it in the bathtub, and how your arms cramped up from trying to hold it up, causing you to accidentally drop it, resulting in enough water displacement to overflow the tub.
MPDR
RS: I've decided the only way I can continue to survive while engaging in the world is to take some time to enjoy the gnashing of teeth and hysteria emanating from Republicans. Engaging them as people appears to be a lost cause. So, I will go ahead and say "Yay!"
MPRD: You mean reading this book is copycat? Well, I would say your influence prompted the DFW foray, and my DFW foray prompted the Infinite Jest. And my hand DID in fact cramp and almost lose control of the book, but I regained control in time. I am going to have an enormously strong thumb by the end of the month.
Fine HJL, let's engage. Pick a topic, any topic.
RS
No, I think you guys have been right for a long time now. I just never realized it. Disagreement and dissent are unamerican. Discussion is a waste of time. There is a right. And there is a wrong. It's very clear.
There is nothing left to discuss, is there?
But honestly, I will not discuss because I know exactly what you will say. And it's the same ideological fundamentalism I can pick up anywhere else.
If you want to represent that my understanding of your views is actually incorrect, which is a proposition entirely different from whether or not I agree with your views, then I'm willing to discuss. But I believe that I know what you are going to say. Other than a dash of historical fact thrown in, it is always the same.
And it has become too toxic for me and my mental health to continue to frustrate myself by throwing myself against an unyielding ideology only to find that nothing changes and that nothing will change. And this has nothing to do with who is in power. It is precisely that being involved fairly deeply in the workings of the financial system and the economic system and devoting an excessive amount of energy to trying to understand it and learn about it, I have encountered the same childish viewpoint emanating from the modern day Right-wing that has demonstrated no understanding of what it is we are dealing with, and what it will take to solve. And whether or not I believe the solutions have been reached as of yet is not the issue.
Also, as just demonstrated, I have a difficult time separating personal from political at times, and would prefer not to harbor any personal animosity towards you. Sorry.
hmm. i really think you should try cutting it in half and using duct tape. mostly cause i want to know if it works. i bet if you stuck a piece of cardboard on the back and front of the new pieces and taped it, it would work. it would look ridiculous...but meh. i bet it's one of those tall giant books, too, huh? i've read several 1200 pg. short paperbacks, which are ok and can be made to balance. It's that new tall format paperback that takes all the fun out of lounging with a book. Or you could buy this:
http://www.abledata.com/abledata.cfm?pageid=19327&top=10927&productid=185101&trail=22,10825,10926&discontinued=0
That thing is AWESOME!!!!! Though it also makes me sad.
Yeah, it's definitely tall. It's actually even taller than a normal tall paperback, I think. It's like, hardcover sized, but in paperback. To give you an idea, the version of Bel Canto we read is 7.8 x 5.3 x 1 inches. InJest is 9.1 x 5.9 x 1.8 inches .
In any case, I bought this book for 14.95, so it's not really like it's a big deal if I do this right? I might go for the clear packing tape though, rather than Duct tape...which I feel would compromise my one-handed grip, add weight, and be fugtastic. Will report back. With pictures.
All of DFW's paperback books have the exact same size and typesetting as the hardcovers, which is totally atypical. I can only assume it's because they don't want to have to redo all the footnotes, which is kind of hilarious. Shouldn't matter for IJ, since it's endnotes, but they still kept it the same.
MPDR
I think it's because if they increased the font size or made the book normal sized, it would actually verge on 2000+ pages. They make noise about the 1079 pages, but that's 1079 huge pages at a fairly small type.
I won't read the endnotes anyway...or maybe I'll bind it and keep it near. You have any idea if there's an actual need to go through them?
I dunno, the usefulness/interestingness of his footnotes varies, so I'd assume the same with his endnotes. I have a separate bookmark there, in any case. I've glanced through them...there is some crazy stuff in there. For instance, the complete filmography of Hal's father, which comprises dozens of films, complete with quite a number of "UNTITLED - UNRELEASED" entries. You gotta wonder what the point of all that is.
Some of the notes also appear to be narrative in nature, so there might be important subplots in there. I have no idea.
MPDR
Actually dude, I was thinking in engaging in a topic of more importance, like:
If you watch Friends in reverse from season 10 to season one, does Courtney Cox actually appear to get older?
RS
*Snort*
Ideologue.
Don't patronize me.
RS
Don't understand what you mean by that.
I read the first hundred or so many years ago. I might add it to the list post-Wire and 2666.
J
2666 is on my list too, although I don't think I actualy ever finished the savage detectives. hmm.
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