David Foster Wallace – two tributes

It’s hard to know what to say when a literary luminary leaves us far too soon.  Perhaps letting David Foster Wallace speak his own words is the better option.  The reading below was given at a celebration in honor of the 125th anniversary of Harper’s Magazine.

–Leigh Anne

 

One of the authors whose works I most admire died last Friday. In the New York Times obituary, Bruce Weber noted that David Foster Wallace wrote “. . . prodigiously observant, exuberantly plotted, grammatically and etymologically challenging, philosophically probing and culturally hyper-contemporary novels, stories and essays . . .” 

Upon learning of an author’s death, librarians often honor a writer by displaying a collection of his or her works. I checked our catalog, and every D.F.W. book we own was circulating. Here, then, is an electronic display of my favorite D.F.W. books.

 

Girl With Curious Hair

 

 

Infinite Jest

 

 

 

A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again: Essays and Arguments

 

 

Consider the Lobster and Other Essays

 

Though published only on the internet, D.F.W.’s 2005 Kenyon College Commencement Address shines.

One more link — Harper’s Magazine has opened their D.F.W. archives for even non-subscribers to read D.F.W.’s contributions.

–Julie