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I'm a huge fan of DFW- I'd gone through a massive phase where I read pretty much all the fiction he'd written a couple of years before his death, and am returning to it again now with a recent rereading of Infinite Jest (even better the second time around). One thing I don't really get is all the talk about him being a difficult writer. It's true that he uses a lot of post modern devices and gimmicks in his writing, but the core is comprised of riveting storytelling and relatable characters. Sure IJ is long, sure it has footnotes, but it's so readable and wears it's heart on its sleeve- This approach is so radically different from Pynchon it's hard to understand why there're so many comparisons made between the two. This tension between the stylistic devices that he uses and his longing for genuine human emotion comes up constantly in his work, and is probably one of the things I find most fascinating about him. It's interesting to see the instant effect this has had on other writers, notably Jonathon Safran Foer and Dave Eggers.
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Nov 8, 2009 01:36
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I think that his last collection of short stories, Oblivion, is his best one- the long opening story 'Mr Squishy' is probably my favourite of his stories, and among my favourite short stories of all time. Dave Eggers has definitely dialed back the postmodern tricks in his later novels, but his short story collections 'How We are Hungry' and 'Short Short Stories' still use a lot of these. His best writing is the short story 'Up the Mountain, coming down slowly', which definitely showcases his more mature side.
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Nov 10, 2009 11:00
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