Exposing the raw truths and ironies often lacquered over by the typical 9-to-5 was, to put it one way, second-nature to David Foster Wallace’s genius. Indeed, if we’re abiding Wallace’s charge (and taking heed of his observations thereafter) to Kenyon College’s 2005 graduating class to suspend their "skepticism of the value of the totally obvious,” most members of the over-educated working class will find themselves chuckling (or nodding, depending) in acknowledgment. more ›

In the afterward which opens his book-length interview, Although of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself : A Road Trip With David Foster Wallace, David Lipsky writes: "Suicide is such a powerful ending, it reaches back and scrambles the beginning." Addressing the subject of the late author's tragic end right away leaves the rest of the book open to explore the other, less talked about (until now perhaps) side of DFW - the very alive, very vibrant side of a man who took new turns and went to great lengths in his writing. more ›

Adding to what is already a treasure trove of materials from writers including Anne Sexton, Neal Cassady, James Joyce, Don Dellilo, and many more, the University of Texas' Harry Ransom Center recently announced the acquisition of the late David Foster Wallace's archives. more ›

Back in 1996, Junot Diaz published a collection of short stories, Drown, which became one of the most celebrated literary debuts of the Nineties. Drown drew on Diaz’s experiences growing up, first in the Dominican Republic, and later, from the age of six, in a northern New Jersey immigrant neighborhood. Now, after eleven years, he has just published his long-awaited first novel, The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. Wao, the protagonist, is a... more ›