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Books by David Foster Wallace mentioned on podcasts
David Foster Wallace and his works frequently appear across multiple podcast episodes. On Stuff They Don't Want You To Know, hosts referenced his famous commencement speech and its accompanying book version, This Is Water, noting his well-known anecdote about fish swimming in water to illustrate how people ignore common sounds or fail to notice their surroundings. On How I Write, Michael Dean analyzed David Foster Wallace's 2003 essay collection Consider the Lobster, discussing it alongside George Orwell's work. Dean dissected specific essays from the book, exploring how Wallace successfully mastered fundamental design constraints, shaped a microcosm to represent a bigger idea, satisfied the experience pillar, and structured his writing around a distinct hierarchy of underlying questions. Additionally, on The Ezra Klein Show, Secretary Mayorcas mentioned keeping David Foster Wallace's String Theory on his nightstand as a reading companion to the dictionary due to the author's extensive vocabulary, noting that his interest was motivated by the US Open tennis tournament.
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Infinite jest
Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace is a sprawling, maximalist novel exploring addiction, entertainment, and modern American culture.
Discussed“I mean, and and this is what Neil Postman warned about in his book Amusing Ourselves to Death, a theme that was picked up by David Foster Wallace in Infinite Jest. You know, beginning with television and now the internet and digital media in all its various forms, we are entertaining ourselves to death.”
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Consider the Lobster
Consider the Lobster is a renowned collection of provocative and deeply analytical essays by David Foster Wallace.
Discussed“Have you ever read Consider the Lobster that um Wow, man. I I want to say David Lee Roth so bad, but I know that's not his name at all. Who wrote Consider the Lobster? I've never heard of that, but I I know about the lobster. Who was End of Tour about? That movie. Oh, David Foster Wallace.”
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This Is Water
This Is Water by David Foster Wallace is a famous commencement speech delivered at Kenyon College in 2005 that was later published as a short book, offering philosophical reflections on awareness, empathy, and the meaning of daily life.
Discussed“and in 2005 at Kenyan College he gave this address that was later turned into the book this is water”
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A supposedly fun thing I'll never do again
A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again by David Foster Wallace is a brilliant collection of sharp, deeply observant essays exploring contemporary American culture, media, and leisure through the author's trademark hyper-detailed lens.
Recommended“and I bought a supposedly fun thing I'll never do again the title piece of that book is the story behind it is actually pretty funny”
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The Pale King
The Pale King by David Foster Wallace is an unfinished, posthumously published novel that explores boredom, bureaucracy, and the inner lives of Internal Revenue Service employees.
Discussed“and he and he writes these sort of incredibly moving letters when he's trying to write the pale king which is the end of which is the unfinished novel”
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Brief Interviews with Hideous Men
Discussed“it was a it was an adaptation of a David Foster Wallace book called brief interviews with Hideous men”
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Girl With Curious Hair
Discussed“so tell us the sort of the story he had two previous books the uh broom of the system and girl with curious hair”
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String Theory
String Theory by David Foster Wallace is a celebrated collection of essays focused primarily on the world of tennis and the profound psychological experiences of elite athletes.
Recommended“what I have on my nightstand right now is motivated by the US Open I have David Foster Wallace's string theory and the book that I have as its companion is the dictionary because his vocabulary was far far greater than mine will ever be”
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The Broom of the System
Discussed“so tell us the sort of the story he had two previous books the uh broom of the system and girl with curious hair”
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