A brilliantly black and funny novel about humanity’s greatest fear – death.
White Noise
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‘An extraordinarily funny book on a serious subject, effortlessly combining social comedy, disaster, fiction and philosophy . . . hilariously, and grimly, successful’ Daily Telegraph Jack Gladney is the creator and chairman of Hitler studies at the College-on-the-Hill. This is the story of his absurd life; a life that is going well enough, until a chemical spill from a rail car releases an ‘Airborne Toxic Event’ and Jack is forced to confront his biggest fear – his own mortality. White Noise is an effortless combination of social satire and metaphysical dilemma in which DeLillo exposes our rampant consumerism, media saturation and novelty intellectualism. It captures the particular strangeness of life lived when the fear of death cannot be denied, repressed or obscured and ponders the role of the family in a time when the very meaning of our existence is under threat. ‘An astonishing novel . . . unforgettable . . . nearly every page crackles with memorable moments and perfectly turned phrases . . . dizzying, darkly beautiful fiction’ Sunday Times
From the Back Cover
Reading the fiction of Don DeLillo is an utterly original experience: powerful, prescient, perceptive. Writing in a prose that is both majestic and muscular, his unerringly accurate vision penetrates deep into the soul of America and consistently leaves readers with a fresh perspective on the world. Since the publication of his first novel, in 1971, he has been acknowledged across the globe as one of the greatest writers of his generation. Jack Gladney is the creator and chairman of Hitler studies at the College-on-the-Hill. This is the story of his absurd life; a life that is going well enough, until a chemical spill from a rail car releases an ‘Airborne Toxic Event’ and Jack is forced to confront his biggest fear – his own mortality. White Noise is an effortless combination of social satire and metaphysical dilemma in which DeLillo exposes our rampant consumerism, media saturation and novelty intellectualism. It captures the particular strangeness of life lived when the fear of death cannot be denied, repressed or obscured and ponders the role of the family in a time when the very meaning of our existence is under threat.
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First Sentence
The station wagons arrived at noon, a long shining line that coursed through the west campus. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
The station wagons arrived at noon, a long shining line that coursed through the west campus. Read the first page
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
42 of 48 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
Reading this book staggered me: the phrasing is so spot on, the themes so unusual yet compelling, the dialogue so full of witty, off-the-wall observation that I was left marvelling at the author's magical ability to put words together in unusual yet telling combinations and searching bookshops for more of his books. But having read three others from different periods of his career (the vastly overrated 'Underworld', the execrable 'Ratner's Star' and the mixed 'Great Jones Street') I am left in little doubt that this is his chef d'oeuvre. By some fortunate inspiration, DeLillo discovered his perfect theme for this book: fear of death. He takes this theme and looks at it from all possible angles; yet this is not at all a morbid book. It is instead the funniest black comedy around: the exchange between Jack and his wife when preparing to have sex made me explode with laughter. I found the latter so hilarious that I even shared it with one of my advanced English as a foreign language classes, whose eyes were standing on stalks by the end! Last but certainly not least, DeLillo's understanding of the impact of popular culture on our minds and lives is remarkable: he forced me to make connections about the insidious influence of technology and the media that I would certainly never otherwise have made, and continue to bear in mind every time I read a newspaper or switch on my computer. If you only ever read one contemporary novel, read this one: this is the book that encapsulates our time, not 'Underworld'.
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
By J. Cameron-Smith
TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback
Jack Gladney teaches at the College-on-the-Hill. He and his wife Babette live, with four of their children from previous marriage (Heinrich, Steffie, Denise, and Wilder) in the quiet college town of Blacksmith. Jack and Babette are both afraid of death and it is this fear that is central to the novel. Whose fear is the greater? "Sounds like a boring life." "I hope it lasts forever," she said.
Jack and Babette's fear of death, the world in which they live and participate is conveyed satirically through a series of events (some of more direct consequence than others) which are peppered with laugh out loud moments. There's a subtlety in the observation and the writing that makes this novel work.
`The family is the cradle of the world's misinformation.'
Jack serves as the department chair of Hitler studies, a discipline that he invented in 1968, despite the fact that he does not understand German. Hitler's importance as an historical figure gives Jack a degree of importance by association: `Some people are larger than life. Hitler is larger than death. You thought he would protect you.' His colleague, Murray Jay Siskind, has come to Blacksmith to immerse himself in what he calls `American magic and dread.' Murray is a lecturer in living icons who is trying to establish a discipline in Elvis studies. Murray finds deep significance in things that are ordinary - especially the supermarket: `This place recharges us spiritually, it prepares us, it's a gateway or pathway. Look how bright. It's full of psychic data.'
The major events in the novel concern an airborne toxic event and its consequences, and Jack Gladney's search for a mysterious psychopharmaceutical drug called Dylar once he discovers that Babette is participating in an experimental study (of sorts). All this fear of death becomes an inability to really live, especially in a world full of white noise, rampant consumerism and simulations, or does it?
`In a crisis the true facts are what other people say they are.'
This novel was published in the mid-1980s, and while I read it then, I enjoyed it a whole lot more this time around. Disturbingly, it made more sense.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
Jack and Babette's fear of death, the world in which they live and participate is conveyed satirically through a series of events (some of more direct consequence than others) which are peppered with laugh out loud moments. There's a subtlety in the observation and the writing that makes this novel work.
`The family is the cradle of the world's misinformation.'
Jack serves as the department chair of Hitler studies, a discipline that he invented in 1968, despite the fact that he does not understand German. Hitler's importance as an historical figure gives Jack a degree of importance by association: `Some people are larger than life. Hitler is larger than death. You thought he would protect you.' His colleague, Murray Jay Siskind, has come to Blacksmith to immerse himself in what he calls `American magic and dread.' Murray is a lecturer in living icons who is trying to establish a discipline in Elvis studies. Murray finds deep significance in things that are ordinary - especially the supermarket: `This place recharges us spiritually, it prepares us, it's a gateway or pathway. Look how bright. It's full of psychic data.'
The major events in the novel concern an airborne toxic event and its consequences, and Jack Gladney's search for a mysterious psychopharmaceutical drug called Dylar once he discovers that Babette is participating in an experimental study (of sorts). All this fear of death becomes an inability to really live, especially in a world full of white noise, rampant consumerism and simulations, or does it?
`In a crisis the true facts are what other people say they are.'
This novel was published in the mid-1980s, and while I read it then, I enjoyed it a whole lot more this time around. Disturbingly, it made more sense.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
6 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a brilliant novel, which satirizes so many things: disjointed families, the way families communicate, marriage, academia, consumerism, intellectualism, fear of death, and conspiracy theories.
Then there's the 'airborne toxic event' - both literal and also a sort of metaphor for the information-overload 'white noise' of modern life that buzzes around us all the time. If anything, White Noise has become even more relevant since it was published.
It's very funny, too. Listen to the perfectly judged rhythms of DeLillo's dialogue. People looking for a 'straight' novel might be disappointed, especially since large chunks of it deliberately have very little 'plot'. But if you want an inspired slice of blacker-than-black comedy, which pretty much sums up where things were heading in the 1980s, look no further.
(Note: if you like the character Murray Jay Siskind, he also shows up in this novel DeLillo wrote under a pseudynom: Amazons: An Intimate Memoir by the First Woman Ever to Play in the National Hockey League.)
Then there's the 'airborne toxic event' - both literal and also a sort of metaphor for the information-overload 'white noise' of modern life that buzzes around us all the time. If anything, White Noise has become even more relevant since it was published.
It's very funny, too. Listen to the perfectly judged rhythms of DeLillo's dialogue. People looking for a 'straight' novel might be disappointed, especially since large chunks of it deliberately have very little 'plot'. But if you want an inspired slice of blacker-than-black comedy, which pretty much sums up where things were heading in the 1980s, look no further.
(Note: if you like the character Murray Jay Siskind, he also shows up in this novel DeLillo wrote under a pseudynom: Amazons: An Intimate Memoir by the First Woman Ever to Play in the National Hockey League.)
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Important book from an important time
This is a great book. Set in the early mid 80s when technology and consumerism was starting to take over daily life. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Ultrawarden
1.0 out of 5 stars
IRRITATING NOISE
This is an alleged 'masterpiece' of modern day American literature.
It is alleged by some that White Noise is a great piece of literature: IMO it is anything but that: It is... Read more
It is alleged by some that White Noise is a great piece of literature: IMO it is anything but that: It is... Read more
Published 3 months ago by RAY RIDGE
1.0 out of 5 stars
Couldn't finish it.
I tried very hard to get to the end but after days of struggling with this book I said to myself that life was too short and that better books were waiting for me on the... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Elle S.
1.0 out of 5 stars
Not what I expected from the title and cover photo.....
My own fault for not having read the blurb about the storyline etc BUT The photo and title suggested to me that it was the book of the film with the same name. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Sable
4.0 out of 5 stars
Quirky and amusing
A professor who created the Hitler Studies department and is a world-acknowledged expert, but can't manage to learn German. Read more
Published 6 months ago by autodidact
3.0 out of 5 stars
Confusing
I found White Noise a bit confusing. But having taken most of the book to get used to the authors style I started to enjoy it. It is a bit weird though.
Published 8 months ago by Merry Bear
5.0 out of 5 stars
Remarkable story
This is one of the most extravagant, original, interesting and excellent books I have ever read in my life!!! Read more
Published 9 months ago by Calwen
1.0 out of 5 stars
Not for me? Not for anyone!
I bought this book as the Amazon reviews divided opinion. I was interested to understand why the book divided opinion so much and now having read two-thirds of the book I am no... Read more
Published 18 months ago by Robin
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Story of the Man that Took the Blue Pill in the Matrix...
I can see why some people wouldn't like this book. The characters are not in the least realistic and the plot (if there is one) just seems too subtle to be noticeable. Read more
Published 19 months ago by Angus Vantoch-wood
2.0 out of 5 stars
suburbia just isn't this strange
DeLillo is supposed to be one of our best contemporary novelists. Alas, when I picked up this book, I found a world of Hitler obsessions, death worries, multiple divorces, sexual... Read more
Published 21 months ago by rob crawford
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