MashReads podcast: 'Infinite Jest' is really hard to talk about

David Foster Wallace wrote a difficult book to talk about, and it's only gotten harder with time. But we didn't let that stop us.

On this week's episode of the MashReads Podcast, I was joined by Chloe Bryan and Brett Williams, other brave souls who tackled the 1,079-page tome that is Infinite Jest.

Wallace's mildly dystopian seminal work takes place somewhere between a junior tennis academy and a halfway house for addicts. It takes place somewhere between Canadian terrorists and a secret fatally addictive film. It takes place between a country run amok with consumerism and radioactive wastelands where feral hamsters roam the countryside.

It's a lot. Which makes it particularly difficult to discuss in just under an hour. But that's what we have for you today, my friends.

In this episode we discussed how we came to such a daunting book, how we chose to read it, what we thought of it, and how the culture's opinion has changed regarding the book and Wallace himself.

It's a wide-ranging conversation about a book that gives us an infinite amount to discuss. Pun intended.

And, as usual, we closed the episode out with recommendations:

Peter recommends the new movie Lady Bird. "I don't think it's a perfect movie, but I think it's an incredibly beautiful one."

Brett recommends This is Water, David Foster Wallace's speech about daily life. He also recommends Three Moments of an Explosion: Stories by China Miéville.

Chloe recommends the show Riverdale. "I think it's a perfect post-post-modern show and I think David Foster Wallace would love it." (Also check out David Foster Wallace's essay on TV E Unibus Pluram: Television and U.S. Fiction). She also recommends How to A Be A Person In The World by Heather Havrilesky.