Oblivion

By David Foster Wallace,

Book cover of Oblivion: Stories

Book description

In the stories that make up Oblivion, David Foster Wallace joins the rawest, most naked humanity with the infinite involutions of self-consciousness -- a combination that is dazzlingly, uniquely his.

These are worlds undreamt of by any other mind. Only David Foster Wallace could convey a father's desperate loneliness by…

Shepherd is reader supported. When you buy books, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Why read it?

1 author picked Oblivion as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

DFW’s hyperbolic virtuosity is on display in this collection of stories about fakery, imposterdom, trauma, and the nature of consciousness, of which Good Old Neon, the monologue of a salesman who traffics in fakeries, is the showstopper.  DFW knew depression well as he did psychopharmacology and rehab and our mental health apparatus—his work is imbued with the details of these worlds and he conveys possibly better than any other what it is like to be trapped in a depressed, quizzical mind.  The collection is a moving and hilarious tour-de-force.

From Carol's list on funny books about serious subjects.

Want books like Oblivion?

Our community of 11,000+ authors has personally recommended 80 books like Oblivion.

Browse books like Oblivion

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in San Francisco, depression, and mental health?

San Francisco 205 books
Depression 92 books
Mental Health 193 books