First published 1988
In this acclaimed collection, David Foster Wallace unleashes a dazzling array of stories that capture the absurdities of contemporary life. From a young woman's surreal encounter with a stranger on a plane to a depressed man's obsession with the minutiae of TV sitcoms, these tales blur the line between the ordinary and the extraordinary. With his signature wit and insight, Wallace navigates the complexities of human relationships, the seductions of popular culture, and the unsettling dance between truth and illusion. Prepare to be swept into a world that is at once hilarious, unsettling, and profoundly moving.
Genres: short-stories, satire, literary-fiction, contemporary
Vibes: dark, intimate, thought-provoking, whimsical
Tropes: satire, unreliable-narrator
Setting: United States
Period: 20th century
373 pages · Paperback · W. W. Norton & Company