The Howling Fantods

Turning to Page One Again

Tuesday, 09 June 2009 19:57 Infinite Jest

I was playing catch up the whole time during the latest wallace-l listserv Infinite Jest group read, IJIM (Infinite Jest In Memoriam), and finally finished it, again, last night.

This is getting ridiculous. I have now officially lost count of how many times I've read IJ in full. It has to be five or six times now (based on the dates on some of my bookmarks) I just can't be sure anymore. I was so alert and buzzing after the final, beautiful, sentence that I couldn't sleep, so I did what I always seem to do, turned to the beginning and started again. Is this maybe a cause for concern?

I found the final 100 or so pages the most compelling on this read (the first time, Hal, second, Marathe and Steeply, third time around, AA and Gately). It really felt like time slowed waaay down as I closed in on the end this read. I still find it surprising that there is still so much to marvel at after so many passes. Thanks to everyone over at wallace-l, the conversation for the closing pages has been fantastic.

I posted about Infinite Summer (winter in this hemisphere...) at the end of last month and I, like many DFW fans, am watching with anticipation to see how it all pans out. Looks like I might even read along. I think I am most keen to read the responses and reflections of first time readers.

Today's Infinite Summer blog entry by Mimi Smartypants, Why read Infinite Jest? is worth having a look at.

An Oblivion group read is slated to start later this month on wallace-l, I'm expecting it to be a good one. How am I going to juggle this with anotherrun through of IJ?

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FT.com Girl with Curious Hair Cover review

Tuesday, 09 June 2009 19:33 General Updates

The Financial Times, FT.com, reviews the cover of Girl with Curious Hair.

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John Krasinski on Brief Interviews

Tuesday, 09 June 2009 19:31 BIWHM Movie

John Krasinski speaks to Blast about a number of things, including his adaptation of Brief Interviews with Hideous Men. Skip to the end where he opens up a little more about BIWHM.

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The Fantods Awarded an Eddy

Wednesday, 03 June 2009 20:20 General Updates

The nice people over at The Morning News have included The Howling Fantods in their 2009 Eddy list - the 2009 Editors’ Awards for Online Excellence. Things like this make it all worthwhile.

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Death is Not the End: David Foster Wallace: His Legacy and his Critics

Tuesday, 02 June 2009 20:34 Critical Analysis

Jonny Thakkar, co-editor of the new twice-yearly journal, The Point, has let me know that an outstanding piece of DFW critical analysis has been published in their latest issue. Jon Baskin's Death is Not the End: David Foster Wallace: His Legacy and his Critics is worth every second of your time.

In a nut-shell, it is a close look at the ways in which many critics have misunderstood the nature of DFW's work. We have all read reviews that suggest DFW is 'style over substance'. The same reviews never take the time to consider how the style and stucture might work to contribute to the emotional substance of his work. This article addresses the crtitics issue, and also considers the influence of Wittgenstein to DFW's body of work.

It is a very quotable article. Here's just one part that resonates with my current re-reading Infinite Jest:

Jest challenges its readers most directly not with endnotes, long paragraphs, or obscure references to post-structuralist critics (we were ready for all those things), but by validating a life-approach that cuts against everything we’ve learned is worthy of our attention. Many people in America already knew that AA worked; Wallace, however, was the first to propose it as a solution to the problem of postmodern thinking. This problem had the structure of addiction, he suggested. That was why it took a sophisticated, difficult novel like Infinite Jest to make the people who tend to read sophisticated, difficult novels think hard about things that were meaningful and true.

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Last Updated on Tuesday, 10 April 2012 00:14

The Influence of Anxiety: Wading In

Tuesday, 02 June 2009 20:16 This is Water

Don't miss Marie Mundaca's essay over at the hipsterbookclub The Influence of Anxiety: Wading In. It is an enlightening, moving and personal account of her involvement in the design of This is Water, as well as her work on Oblivion and Consider the Lobster.

(Thanks, Marie)

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SWF Panel Clip on ABC Fora

Sunday, 31 May 2009 15:52 Conferences

A clip from our SWF panel has been posted on the ABC Fora website as part of the upcoming previews section. The clip shows Kate Crawford (I'm next to her) speaking about DFW's journalism. Enjoy.

On another note, still writer's fest related, I've been thinking about a lot about my response to question from the audience about what I think happens at the end of the story Girl with Curious Hair. I found myself not wanting to give a specific answer, but it's probably more correct to say I was uncomfortable answering. I think I said I didn't really want to think about the implications of where the story was headed in that final scene.

I wish I'd also said what I thought about while the next question was being asked, which was, I get the feeling that what Sick Puppy does is not really the point. Maybe not knowing exactly what he does in minute detail (à la Bret Easton Ellis. Whose work we know DFW was not particularly fond of, and I get the feeling the tone of this story is in part response to) is the point. Could that be the point? I'm still not sure. Thanks for the question if you are reading. Clearly I've not yet been able to let it go. Which means I'll likely pick up the story again soon.

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Last Updated on Sunday, 31 May 2009 16:29

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