The Pale King Lib/E (Compact Disc)

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The Pale King Lib/E By David Foster Wallace, Robert Petkoff (Read by) Cover Image

The Pale King Lib/E (Compact Disc)

$110.99


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Staff Reviews


"David Foster Wallace proves his mastery of his craft in his final
novel by taking one of the most mind numbing and boring jobs and writing
about it in a way that makes it seem mind-blowingly interesting.
This story was at first intimidating to me. I knew there were
multiple narrators and I was having a hard time keeping track of who was
narrating when. It soon occurred to me that I should not focus on the
more formal structure of the traditional novel I was so desperately
seeking out and instead focus on the story itself.
As soon as my focus shifted to the story alone, a wonderful image of a
place and a time started forming in my mind... 
I would suggest that any lover of postmodern literature or
contemporary American authors read this novel right away! It wasn't an
easy read, but they say the best things in life don't come easy, right?" ~Lucas

 Read Lucas's full review Between the Covers.

— Lucas is now a TC staff-alum, but an ongoing TC blogger

The agents at the IRS Regional Examination Center in Peoria, Illinois, appear ordinary enough to newly arrived trainee David Foster Wallace. But as he immerses himself in a routine so tedious and repetitive that new employees receive boredom-survival training, he learns of the extraordinary variety of personalities drawn to this strange calling. And he has arrived at a moment when forces within the IRS are plotting to eliminate even what little humanity and dignity the work still has.

The Pale King remained unfinished at the time of David Foster Wallace's death, but it is a deeply compelling and satisfying novel, hilarious and fearless and as original as anything Wallace ever undertook. It grapples directly with ultimate questions-questions of life's meaning and of the value of work and society-through characters imagined with the interior force and generosity that were Wallace's unique gifts. Along the way it suggests a new idea of heroism and commands infinite respect for one of the most daring writers of our time.


Product Details ISBN: 9781609417321
ISBN-10: 1609417321
Publisher: Hachette Book Group
Publication Date: April 15th, 2011
Language: English