White Noise

By Don DeLillo,

Book cover of White Noise

Book description

The National Book Award-winning classic from the author of Underworld and Libra-an "eerie, brilliant, and touching" (New York Times) family drama about mass culture and the numbing effects of technology-soon to be a major motion picture starring Adam Driver and Greta Gerwig

White Noise tells the story of Jack Gladney,…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

3 authors picked White Noise as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

I found this book hysterically funny, and the dialogue more imaginative than any book I’ve ever read. The characters are without equal in terms of their originality, including the children of Jack and Babette Gladney.

The sheer number of meaningful topics this story covers is also without equal. The author’s observations are extremely keen. At its core, it is about the fear of death, though it is not a depressing story in any sense. It’s no wonder why it won the 1985 National Book Award.

I couldn't stop smiling as I listened to the bizarre story of Jack Gladney, professor of Hitler studies, and the travails of his strange, colorful blended family as they deal with an 'airborne toxic event'.

When Jack finds out that his wife is taking an experimental drug, he determines to find out why, and the reason gives the third act a real poignancy, even if it's no less bizarre than what preceded it. White Noise is a lot fun to read; a modern masterpiece. 

MortalityWhite Noise is not so much a novel. To me, it's more of a wildly amusing collection of clever observations about life. The book's protagonist is a professor of Hitler studies, something he invented. And that's not the last thing he invents. He's invented a patchwork family of absurd proportions. In fact, he invents so much that he doesn't know what to believe. And there we are at the center of this novel: what can we believe in when we don't even know if death is finite or if there is life after death. The absurdity of mortality…

If you love White Noise...

Ad

Book cover of Rooted in Sunrise

Rooted in Sunrise by Beth Dotson Brown,

Ava Winston likes her life of routine in Lexington, Kentucky. Then a tornado blows it away. Ava is safe in the basement, but when she emerges, only one corner of her home stands. Rather than crumbling under the loss, she feels a load lifted. Maybe something beyond the familiar is…

Want books like White Noise?

Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like White Noise.

Browse books like White Noise

Book cover of American Psycho
Book cover of Trainspotting
Book cover of Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency

Share your top 3 reads of 2024!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,728

readers submitted
so far, will you?

Ad

📚 If you like White Noise, you might also like...

Book cover of Return to Hope Creek

Return to Hope Creek by Alyssa J. Montgomery,

Return to Hope Creek is a second-chance rural romance set in Australia.

Stella Simpson's career and engagement are over. She returns to the rural community of Hope Creek to heal, unaware her high school and college sweetheart, Mitchell Scott, has also moved back to town to do some healing of…

Book cover of A Voracious Grief

A Voracious Grief by Lindsey Lamh,

My book is fantastical historical fiction about two characters who're wrestling with the monstrosity of their grief.

It takes you into London high society, where Ambrose tries to forget about how much he misses Bennett and how much he dreads becoming as cold as their Grandfather. It takes you to…

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in midwest, death, and presidential biography?

Midwest 37 books
Death 399 books