Book · 2009 · Fiction
Infinite jest
#116 of 15,601 books, ranked by how many different people bring it up on podcasts
- mentions
- 26
- people
- 17
- podcasts
- 10
- episodes
- 18
- recommendations
- 3
Infinite Jest is a very very funny novel about people in great pain it's a novel about a world in which entertainment and pleasure is abundant and so easy to get that it kind of is damaging to the soul.
What they say about it
- Celebrates 20th anniversary edition“20th anniversary of Infinite Jest”4
- Discusses premise about lethal entertainment“about a tape that once you watch it once”2
- Notes corporate sponsorship of world“postulated a world where all stadiums were named after brands”2
The best things said about it
Infinite Jest is one of my favorite books just because of his courage in doing the maximalism.
Infinite jest is a david foster wallace yeah it's a book about wireheading really very enjoyable to read very uh well-written you know you will you will you will grow as a person reading this book.
Infinite Jest it's introduced in the first 50 pages is about a tape that once you watch it once you only ever wanna watch that tape In fact you wanna watch the tape so much that someone says Okay here's a hack saw cut off your pinky and then I'll let you watch the tape again and you'll do.
David Foster Wallace your great American author in his book Infinite Jest postulated a world where all stadiums were named after brands where countries and regions were named after brands and it's sort of I mean it's happening.
Reading that it occurred to me that that's a book of monologues.
February of 1996 I am at the end of my junior year in college and Infinite Jest comes out.
Where and when it comes up
Mentions per year
2
3
3
2
3
9
3
1
How it comes up
17 people who brought it up
Why people recommend it
Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace is a sprawling, maximalist novel exploring addiction, entertainment, and modern American culture. Ted Gioia cited it as one of his favorite books on How I Write to illustrate the courage required for maximalist writing, and George Hotz recommended it on the Lex Fridman Podcast as a brilliant, enjoyable, and personally transformative read about wireheading. Other hosts examined the book's darker or more prophetic themes. Steven Bartlett mentioned the novel on The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett while discussing over-entertainment and modern media consumption, a sentiment shared by Amjad Masad on The Joe Rogan Experience, who noted the author's prescient warnings regarding technology's impact on society. Josh Clark admitted on Stuff You Should Know that he had just started reading the massive tome, Chris Hayes noted its status on the a16z Podcast as a famous book that everyone claims to have read, and Jo Nesbo briefly highlighted it on The Book Review when discussing American literature he enjoys.
Every mention
George Hotz Let me know if you have any recommendations what three books technical or fiction or philosophical had an i… 4
Discussed
“So, 'Infinite Jest,' it's introduced in the first 50 pages is about a tape that once you watch it once, you only ever wanna watch that tape. In fact, you wanna watch the tape so much that someone says, 'Okay, here's a hack saw, cut off your pinky and then I'll let you watch the tape again,' and you'll do”
Discussed
“So, 'Infinite Jest,' it's introduced in the first 50 pages is about a tape that once you watch it once, you only ever wanna watch that tape.”
Recommended
“Let me know if you have any recommendations what three books technical or fiction or philosophical had an impact on your life or you would recommend perhaps uh maybe we'll start with the least controversial uh infinite jest”
Recommended
“infinite jest is a david foster wallace yeah it's a book about wireheading really very enjoyable to read very uh well-written you know you will you will you will grow as a person reading this book”
Ted Gioia Infinite Jest is one of my favorite books just because of his courage in doing the maximalism 1
Recommended
“Infinite Jest is one of my favorite books just because of his courage in doing the maximalism”
Pamela Paul so it is the 20th anniversary of infinite just and you have uh published a new 20th anniversary edition wit… 3
Discussed
“so it is the 20th anniversary of infinite just and you have uh published a new 20th anniversary edition with a forward by Tom Bissell I mean how did you decide”
Discussed
“Tom Bissell joins us now um he wrote a new forward to the 20th anniversary edition of infinite just by David Foster Wallace”
Discussed
“Michael Peach who is the CEO of of hasette ù ù and was David Foster Wallace's editor ù ù and recently the 20th anniversary edition of infinite just came out and so ù he came in and we talked about that”
Chris Williamson isn't it like some ridiculously difficult sci-fi book Infinite Jest 2
Discussed
“isn't it like some ridiculously difficult sci-fi book Infinite Jest”
Discussed
“didn't you tackle Infinite Jest”
George Saunders and also I've been reading I I I hadn't read infinite J until a few years ago and reading that it occurred… 2
Discussed
“and also I've been reading I I I hadn't read infinite J until a few years ago and reading that it occurred to me that that's a book of monologues”
Discussed
“also I've been reading I hadn't read infinite J until a few years ago and reading that it occurred to me that that's a book of monologues”
Michael Schur i also have a copy of infinite jest that wallace inscribed to me when i met him that is probably if i had t… 2
Discussed
“february of 1996 i am at the end of my junior year in college and infinite just comes out and uh my friend rebecca says to me hey have you heard about this book everybody really likes this book uh we should go buy it we went to the harvard bookstore and we both bought a copy of the book”
Discussed
“i also have a copy of infinite jest that wallace inscribed to me when i met him that is probably if i had to choose that's probably the one i would take”
Russell Brand you know in David Foster Wallace your great American author in his book Infinite Jest postulated a world wh… 2
Discussed
“you know in David Foster Wallace your great American author in his book Infinite Jest postulated a world where all stadiums were named after brands where countries and regions were named after brands and it's sort of I mean it's happening”
Discussed
“in David Foster Wallace your great American author in his book Infinite Jest postulated a world where all stadiums were named after brands where countries and regions were named after brands”
Amjad Masad David Foser Wallace um you know the guy from infinite just wrote a uh wrote a a essay on on TVs and you kno… 1
Discussed
“David Foser Wallace um you know the guy from infinite just wrote a uh wrote a a essay on on TVs and you know he he he committed suicide before um before like you know the emergence of of mobile phones and things like uh but he was very preient on the impact of technology on on on society and”
Chris Hayes I mean with the possible exception of David Foster Wallace and Infinite Jazz. But but it's one of those boo… 1
Discussed
“I mean with the possible exception of David Foster Wallace and Infinite Jazz. But but it's one of those books everyone claims to read but no one's actually read.”
Emily St. John Mandel i just found infinite jazz to be really overrated 1
Critiqued
“i just found infinite jazz to be really overrated”
Gilbert Cruz what's it like reading infinite just on its 20th anniversary David Foster Wallace's editor Michael Peach an… 1
Discussed
“what's it like reading infinite just on its 20th anniversary David Foster Wallace's editor Michael Peach and his friend Tom Bissell who wrote the forward to the new edition will join us to talk about Wallace and his work”
Jo Nesbo Infinite Jest with Wallace 1
Discussed
“Infinite Jest with Wallace”
Josh Clark I just started Infinite Jest and I'll bet I regret ever announcing it publicly because Is that David Foster… 1
Discussed
“I just started Infinite Jest and I'll bet I regret ever announcing it publicly because Is that David Foster Wallace? Yes.”
Michael Kearns well my favorite novel is Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace which actually coincidentally much of it ta… 1
Discussed
“well my favorite novel is Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace which actually coincidentally much of it takes place in the halls of buildings right around us here at MIT”
Michael Peach infinite chest is a very very funny novel about people in great pain it's a novel about uh a world in which… 1
Discussed
“infinite chest is a very very funny novel about people in great pain it's a novel about uh a world in which entertainment and pleasure is abundant and so easy to get that it kind of is damaging to the soul”
Steven Bartlett I mean, and and this is what Neil Postman warned about in his book Amusing Ourselves to Death, a theme that… 1
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.”
Tim Ferriss And this is barring from, I think it might've been from Infinite Jest, but everyone worships something. 1
Discussed
“And this is barring from, I think it might've been from Infinite Jest, but everyone worships something.”
Also mentioned in the same episodes
Other mentions (3: passing, ad reads, own books)
Passing
“it's like infinite Gest it's like one of those books that's just notoriously like a little bit of a log”
Passing
“which is of course something that David Foster Wallace very deliberately did with infinite Jess”
Passing
“You butt chugging the contents of Infinite Jest was a Parthenon-level work of art.”