Where do you begin with a writer as original and brilliant as David Foster Wallace? Here -- with a carefully considered selection of his extraordinary body of work, chosen by a range of great writers, critics, and those who worked with him most closely. This volume presents his most dazzling, funniest, and most heartbreaking work -- essays like his famous cruise-ship piece, "A Supposedly Fun Thing I&apos;ll Never Do Again," excerpts from his novels <i>The Broom of the System</i>, <i>Infinite Jest</i>, and <i>The Pale King</i>, and legendary stories like "The Depressed Person." <br /><br /> Wallace&apos;s explorations of morality, self-consciousness, addiction, sports, love, and the many other subjects that occupied him are represented here in both fiction and nonfiction. Collected for the first time are Wallace&apos;s first published story, "The View from Planet Trillaphon as Seen In Relation to the Bad Thing" and a selection of his work as a writing instructor, including reading lists, grammar guides, and general guidelines for his students. <br /><br /> A dozen writers and critics, including Hari Kunzru, Anne Fadiman, and Nam Le, add afterwords to favorite pieces, expanding our appreciation of the unique pleasures of Wallace&apos;s writing. The result is an astonishing volume that shows the breadth and range of "one of America&apos;s most daring and talented writers" (<i>Los Angeles Times Book Review</i>) whose work was full of humor, insight, and beauty.