I watch zombies on public transport transfixed by TikTok videos. The movie, Infinite Jest (aka, ‘the Entertainment“), from which this prescient novel takes its title, could easily develop from this stupefying nonsense. Lot’s of other disturbingly astute predictions also creep in (Zoom calls, sure, but also the filters to disguise one’s appearance in them to mention just a couple).
At page 500 I found one of my old business cards from the FOM Instituut/AMOLF with the words, “if it works on salami it will work on anything.” Nothing to do with the book, but something Jaap Boon uttered during a group meeting I was leading the first time I tried to finish this monstrous tome. It still makes me grin.
And, it’s alright. If you are one of the few out there who still read, you should read it. Don’t skip the end notes!
Endless British Pub Crawl (Part 3) 