Oblivion by David Foster Wallace

 

This is an anthology of eight stories, although several of them could be called novellas.  In one, Wallace writes in the mindset of someone considering suicide and it is masterful.  I've encountered this tragedy personally and as an eternal optimist have had difficult understanding what could trigger it.  This story takes us into the mind that is making the decision and it is the first time I've come anywhere close to understand the tragedy.  Of course, Wallace went on to commit suicide after years of battling depression.  The last story is one of the longer ones and tells the story of a rural artist whose medium was his own excretions.  In this story, what stood out to me was the way each character, no matter how tangential to the story, was given a full backstory and described wonderfully.  

David Foster Wallace was considered one of the best authors of his time.  He wrote novels and short stories and was a professor.  His best known work was Infinite Jest, a lengthy novel which explored personality and addiction and was chosen as one of the best novels of that decade.  His forte was explaining character and that shines through in each of these stories.  This book is recommended for literary fiction readers.