David Foster Wallace: The Last Interview: and Other Conversations (The Last Interview Series) Paperback – December 5, 2012

Clear interviews with a complex author and man. They seem a bit shallow, as his work is SO DEEP,beautifully crafted to seem artlessly hysterical and super genius material. These interviews are off the cuff, made without the thought he told the interviewers he required to do great work and so seem to not give us a good insight into the mind of one of the most brilliant authors I have ever encountered. I expected more...but the author himself said that, to give GOOD or GREAT answers to the sometimes inane questions posed to him, he would have wanted to have written and re-written, EDITED, his responses to truly give much more insightful answers to the questions thrown at him. Still an nice read, as it does show a brilliant mind discussing his work, his life and his habits. And his beloved dogs. I wish one book could have shown us insights into why he suddenly killed himself, beside the usual "he always suffered from deep depression." That seems to be unhelpful in understanding how his mind worked and why he chose to stop it from continuing. Had he discussed what demons drove him, even just a bit, he could have helped his readers understand why he left us. We find much more "explanation" for his choice to die in his actual works of fiction than we find out about The Man here in this too-short volume.

DFW was unique and brilliant. In these short interviews, you get a strong sense of the man and yet, he seems out of reach, as though he came forward and then withdrew. It's difficult to read his interviews because he struggles so in them and it does not seem like a positive experience for him. The last interview, just a few scant pages, was so brief that it felt like a shock to know that that was it. Those were his last printed words (although he didn't print them), and then he would be gone to us. Somehow, I feel an overwhelming sense of sadness about everything that has to do with David Foster Wallace. Maybe because of what I know and maybe because of what we will never know.

I liked seeing several perspectives of a Mr. Wallace, and hearing them in his own voice.I'd recommend this obviously to any fans of Mr. Wallace who still, like me, miss him. But I'd recommend it as strongly to people unfamiliar w/Mr. Wallace and who would like to learn more about him and his work before delving into his writing.I gave it 5 stars because the quality of the interviewing and responses started high and stayed that way.

The book provides further info about DFW--lots of things that I haven't read anywhere else. I found it especially interesting reading the difference between the interviews that were premeditated (e.g. he gave some through email exchanges) and the ones that were done live. There are many interviews included and the quality varies. Surprisingly, I found his "last interview" to be the least interesting.

Huge DFW fan. Love his voice, his divergences, his attempts to put ideas into words even when the ideas aren't yet fully formed. He is a writer who seeks to be honest, but recognizes how complex that goal is.

It's wonderful to read David's thoughts, and these are fine pieces, collected in an attractive volume. Do note, however, that four of the six interviews collected here were already anthologized in the University Press of Mississippi's excellent and devoted "Conversations with David Foster Wallace." Conversations with David Foster Wallace (Literary Conversations Series) The two remaining pieces are easily found online.Here: [...]and here: [...]

What a loss for all who take a broad perspective and interest in people and social themes. Obviously David Foster Wallace struggled mightily with dealing with many aspects of society and in the end could not wrestle successfully with his demons. David Foster Wallace is a great and worthwhile contributor to the land of literature and thought.

These interviews were as incisive and as interesting as his essays. The book was like having a conversation with the man, except the interviewers held up their end much better than I could have. I heartily recommend this to anyone who has some familiarity with DFW's works.

David Foster Wallace, der sich am 12. September 2008 das Leben nahm, gilt zurecht als einer der größten amerikanischen Schriftsteller seiner Generation. Seine Bücher sind komplex und intelligent, doch zugleich von einer traurigen Ironie gekennzeichnet, die bisweilen seinesgleichen sucht.In "The Last Interview and Other Conversations" bringt Melville House sechs Interviews zusammen, die einen Einblick in seine Sicht der Dinge offenbart und es dem Leser ermöglicht, etwas mehr über David Foster Wallace zu erfahren. So äußert er sich in den Interviews unter anderem zum Schreiben von fiktionaler Literatur und Reportagen, sowie welches von beidem ihm besser gefällt; er gibt Einblick in die Redaktionsarbeit rund um seine Essays und warum er Good Will Hunting michte. Er beschreibt, warum er zu Fußnoten griff und welchen Sinn sie in seiner Literatur haben. Der Leser erfährt, wie David Foster Wallace zu Buchkritiken steht; DFW beschreibt die Einsamkeit und Entfremdung in der Gesellschaft und wie es ist, für ein Publikum zu schreiben. Dies und vieles mehr sind Themen, die DFW in den Interviews besprochen hat.Positiv hervorzuheben ist zudem die Gestaltung des Buches, die, wie bei der gesamten "Last Interview"-Reihe, gut gelungen ist.

Al fondo delle interviste rilasciate da Wallace, si sente il richiamo al problema della comunicazione linguistica, propria del racconto, e della scelta legata alla volontà di non rendere la lingua un dizionario ma di assumerne la dimensione realistica; solo in questo modo essa può determinare la democratizzazione del vissuto umano. Il reale è il mondo vero della lingua e la lingua del reale è la base della democrazia linguistica..

Diese Interviews machen ziemlich Spaß, sind aber mehr als nur Gaudi/Zeitvertreib, denn die Antworten von DFW sind immer reflektiert und manchmal fast "weise". Man bedauert, wie bei seinen Büchern auch, daß er nicht mehr lebt, weil man gerne noch mehr gehört/gelesen hätte. What a mind!