{"product_id":"the-pale-king-by-david-foster-wallace","title":"The Pale King by David Foster Wallace (Paperback)","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe \"breathtakingly brilliant\" novel by the author of Infinite Jest (New York Times) is a deeply compelling and satisfying story, as hilarious and fearless and original as anything Wallace ever wrote. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe agents at the IRS Regional Examination Center in Peoria, Illinois, appear ordinary enough to newly arrived trainee David Foster Wallace. But as he immerses himself in a routine so tedious and repetitive that new employees receive boredom-survival training, he learns of the extraordinary variety of personalities drawn to this strange calling. And he has arrived at a moment when forces within the IRS are plotting to eliminate even what little humanity and dignity the work still has.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Pale King remained unfinished at the time of David Foster Wallace's death, but it is a deeply compelling and satisfying novel, hilarious and fearless and as original as anything Wallace ever undertook. It grapples directly with ultimate questions -- questions of life's meaning and of the value of work and society -- through characters imagined with the interior force and generosity that were Wallace's unique gifts. Along the way it suggests a new idea of heroism and commands infinite respect for one of the most daring writers of our time.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"The Pale King is by turns funny, shrewd, suspenseful, piercing, smart, terrifying, and rousing.\" --Laura Miller, Salon\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Next Chapter Books \u0026 Bookmobile","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44415718195337,"sku":"SQ9939806","price":8.5,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0689\/6087\/8729\/files\/The_Pale_King_-_Paperback_-_Front_Cover.jpg?v=1752927575","url":"https:\/\/www.nextchapterbookmobile.com\/products\/the-pale-king-by-david-foster-wallace","provider":"Next Chapter Books \u0026 Bookmobile","version":"1.0","type":"link"}