Friday reads

Today The Atlantic features an interview with Michael Pietsch, who has edited each of David Foster Wallace’s books since Infinite Jest. He talks about the experience and process of assembling The Pale King after Wallace's suicide in 2008. The article states:

Though Pietsch was struck by the completeness and polish of The Pale King's many individual pieces, Wallace had not indicated a plan for the book's overall structure. The author wanted the book to be non-linear and challenging; there was no obvious or straightforward way to order the manuscript. . . . Wallace, in one note, said he wanted to create a "tornadic" experience—a narrative that moves like a twister whirling around an unreachable, secret center. So Pietsch, still mourning his friend, threw himself into the storm.

In less weighty reading, have you explored Featherproof Books’ Light Reading Mini-Books? The pdf files are free to download. They fold like origami. Two new titles are available from Chicago authors: That King of Diamonds Flapping by J. Adams Oaks, and Chore Boy & the Brawny Man: A Love Story by Tim Jones-Yelvington. These are fun.

I can attest to the legitimacy of the claim that dogs will ingest any paper product, homework or otherwise. Now, here’s photographic evidence that dogs do not discriminate against e-ink, from Reddit reader acalmerkarma.

Karen Zemanick

Karen Zemanick, an MFA student at Northwestern University, has published creative nonfiction and video essays. She also practices and teaches psychiatry in Chicago. She sees narrative as a tool to foster listening, community, and understanding.

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Thank your librarian, perhaps in haiku form

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If poetry scares you, you're not alone