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4.08 AVERAGE
4.08 AVERAGE
It flies in the face of DFW to rate a book like this, but obviously it was very good.
Even though it's just interviews, it reaffirms that DFW is my favorite author. Ever. The interview with Larry McCaffery is life changing.
I so miss how DFW seems to be able to see for us while we're busy knocking about our lives, blindly.
Not anything a real DFW fan hasn't read before, but it's still worth returning to the brilliant man's words and ideas. Some of the early interviews are really fascinating - especially the pre Infinite Jest conversations when he talks about the work he's doing and you can feel his frustration and excitement.
Worthwhile, but only if you're a certified nerd like me.
Worthwhile, but only if you're a certified nerd like me.
It is remarkable how bored DFW himself seemed with most of these conversations. A lot of the pieces included in this collection are just filler - I could have done without the various profiles published in print media outlets, in which DFW's voices is subsumed by the hack sent to interview him. The most meaningful pieces are the legendary interview with Larry McCaffery, and the final piece, a profile by David Lipsky (author of "although of course you end up becoming yourself," the ultimate DFW interview) published after DFW's death that seems to come closest to portraying the real DFW, to the extent that it's possible for another person to do so.
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
I agree with a previous review, that a lot of the things talked about in this anthology of interviews spanning the early 90s to the middle 00s does repeat itself in theme, but qualify that by suggesting this is not a bad thing given that DFW is interesting and is never interesting in exactly the same way when he answers questions.
As a previous reviewer did, here's a link to audio interviews he gave to KXRW throughout his career:
http://www.kcrw.com/sitesearch?SearchableText=david+foster+wallace&dosearch=1
Know these are as good as any of the book's interviews.
They made the claim that the book was a little floppy and presented nothing in terms of value that these interview did not contain. One oversight is the idea that in the KXRW interviews, which are f/t/r [to use a DFWism in form] fascinating in their own right, are all administered by the same guy, meaning that those conversations tend to repeat themselves.
The primary contribution of this book is a well-selected record of what he said on different things. You can tell that as he gets older he becomes less like he's on Philosophy Jeopardy and more like he's a humble person trying to hack it as best as he can. While I enjoyed all of these, I always enjoy seeing his expressiveness and enthusiasm (Look him up on YouTube for his Charlie Rose and his interviews on media if you haven't already), like here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_sQrxAorDo
This video shows where he likes to aim and how he tends to misfire. In this video he suggests that according to Latin etymology one intending the notion "before" who uses the phrase "prior to" really ought to be saying "posterior to," which seems odd from him given his philosophy background and the common usage of "a priori" and "a posteriori" within the discipline. I'm not sure what's going on here. I suspect he intends to say "anterior," the opposite of posterior. Correct or not, I love this video if only for the English-nerd rage he embodies so well.
Variety is a great reason to read this book. I believe it's Cleveland State where he gives an interview to a student for the school paper in his hotel room. That's a rare thing and quite interesting to read him expressing himself to a student.
The book ends with David Lipsky's fantastic essay, the work product of his interviews represented in Although of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself. It's a narrative essay in a book of mostly dialogue so it seems like an odd man out, but it is a nice finish.
4/5.
As a previous reviewer did, here's a link to audio interviews he gave to KXRW throughout his career:
http://www.kcrw.com/sitesearch?SearchableText=david+foster+wallace&dosearch=1
Know these are as good as any of the book's interviews.
They made the claim that the book was a little floppy and presented nothing in terms of value that these interview did not contain. One oversight is the idea that in the KXRW interviews, which are f/t/r [to use a DFWism in form] fascinating in their own right, are all administered by the same guy, meaning that those conversations tend to repeat themselves.
The primary contribution of this book is a well-selected record of what he said on different things. You can tell that as he gets older he becomes less like he's on Philosophy Jeopardy and more like he's a humble person trying to hack it as best as he can. While I enjoyed all of these, I always enjoy seeing his expressiveness and enthusiasm (Look him up on YouTube for his Charlie Rose and his interviews on media if you haven't already), like here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_sQrxAorDo
This video shows where he likes to aim and how he tends to misfire. In this video he suggests that according to Latin etymology one intending the notion "before" who uses the phrase "prior to" really ought to be saying "posterior to," which seems odd from him given his philosophy background and the common usage of "a priori" and "a posteriori" within the discipline. I'm not sure what's going on here. I suspect he intends to say "anterior," the opposite of posterior. Correct or not, I love this video if only for the English-nerd rage he embodies so well.
Variety is a great reason to read this book. I believe it's Cleveland State where he gives an interview to a student for the school paper in his hotel room. That's a rare thing and quite interesting to read him expressing himself to a student.
The book ends with David Lipsky's fantastic essay, the work product of his interviews represented in Although of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself. It's a narrative essay in a book of mostly dialogue so it seems like an odd man out, but it is a nice finish.
4/5.
The Larry McCaffery interview is certainly a highlight. The collection is interesting but considering the nature is very repetitive.