White Noise
- Downloads：7778
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-09-08 08:56:05
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Don DeLillo
- ISBN：1529077265
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
"White Noise" tells the story of Jack Gladney and his wife Babette who are both afraid of death。 Jack is head of Hitler studies at the College-on-the-Hill。 His colleague Murray runs a seminar on car crashes。 Together they ponder the instances of celebrity death from Elvis to Marilyn to Hitler。 Through the brilliant and often very funny dialogue between Jack and Murray， DeLillo exposes our common obsessions with mortality and delineates Jack and Babette's touching relationship and their biggest ear - who will die first？
Reviews
June Parker
，
I’m probably at least 33% too dumb to fully comprehend this novel， but I did attend the college the one in this book is based upon and let me say: It makes a great deal of sense to set the apocalypse around fake Sarah Lawrence。
Debora Perra
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Classico che mi mancava， dopo Rumore Bianco ho recuperato anche altri titoli di Don Delillo che ha uno stile assai affine ai miei gusti
Aidan Bryant
，
Don’t think I’ve ever read a book quite like this， especially at novel length。 From my very limited literary knowledge， this feels like you took Joyce’s The Dead， and dropped it in the 1980s and added some Debord and Baudrillard to the mix。 Great combo for me。 This also reminded me a lot of one of my all time favorite movies， Network。 “And our children will live， Mr。 Beale， to see that perfect world in which there's no war or famine， oppression or brutality -- one vast and ecumenical holding com Don’t think I’ve ever read a book quite like this， especially at novel length。 From my very limited literary knowledge， this feels like you took Joyce’s The Dead， and dropped it in the 1980s and added some Debord and Baudrillard to the mix。 Great combo for me。 This also reminded me a lot of one of my all time favorite movies， Network。 “And our children will live， Mr。 Beale， to see that perfect world in which there's no war or famine， oppression or brutality -- one vast and ecumenical holding company， for whom all men will work to serve a common profit， in which all men will hold a share of stock， all necessities provided， all anxieties tranquilized， all boredom amused。” When that is the world， what’s left for us？ Excited to read Libra next。 。。。more
Zack Rayner
，
Instantly one of my favorite novels， DeLillo really knows how to make words jump off of the page。 So many deep， well-incorporated themes that detail a human’s place in a world so saturated with information， while grappling to confront our own mortality。 Reading this post-pandemic， this seems like a book that will continue to age like fine wine and only become more relevant as time passes。
Mia
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itchy itchy itchy itchythe last 150-200 pages demanded my attention
Josh Reuss
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A book concerned with that classic human preoccupation， death。 It's both funny and smart in its takes on modernity。 Sometimes， though， I felt that characters were interacting or scenes were conceived just so that DeLillo could share some witty observation。 I felt compelled to finish the book because I enjoyed it， but not because it had a great story。 A book concerned with that classic human preoccupation， death。 It's both funny and smart in its takes on modernity。 Sometimes， though， I felt that characters were interacting or scenes were conceived just so that DeLillo could share some witty observation。 I felt compelled to finish the book because I enjoyed it， but not because it had a great story。 。。。more
Owen Haines
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Sometimes borders on being annoying， but I think mostly avoids it
Annie
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Look， I'm just not that into you， postmodernism。 My heart lies with Romanticism， and there's nothing you can say to me to change that。That said， while White Noise isn't my personal cup of tea， I get why people love it and why it's won a ton of awards。 It's about the Gladney family - protagonist Jack， his wife Babette， and their blended family of I-don't-even-know-how-many children from I-couldn't-even-tell-you how many prior marriages of both spouses。 Jack works as a professor of Hitler studies， Look， I'm just not that into you， postmodernism。 My heart lies with Romanticism， and there's nothing you can say to me to change that。That said， while White Noise isn't my personal cup of tea， I get why people love it and why it's won a ton of awards。 It's about the Gladney family - protagonist Jack， his wife Babette， and their blended family of I-don't-even-know-how-many children from I-couldn't-even-tell-you how many prior marriages of both spouses。 Jack works as a professor of Hitler studies， though he doesn't speak a lick of German。 Because America。 Jack and Babette are both terrified of death。 Jack gets exposed during an airborne toxin spill disaster， and the doctors can't even tell him whether it will shorten his lifespan since the chemical toxin is so new and unstudied， which sends him into a tailspin。 But boy， capitalism sure has a cure for that！ Babette is secretly taking a drug that supposedly cures you of your fear of death。 Jack talks to his rather manic friend， Murray， who teaches classes about Elvis。 Murray and Jack speculate on advertising， the media， capitalism， etc。 Most of it feels pretty unoriginal - you've probably had or overheard these conversations if you've ever been to a wine and cheese function of any kind - but I did particularly like the famous scene where they discuss the "most photographed barn in America，" a picturesque tourist attraction。 Murray says，"NO one sees the barn。 Once you've seen the signs about the barn， it becomes impossible to see the barn。 We're not here to capture an image， we're here to maintain one。 Every photograph reinforces the aura。 Can you feel it， Jack？ An accumulation of nameless energies。 Being here is a kind of spiritual surrender。 We see only what the others see。 The thousands who were here in the past， those who will come in the future。 We've agreed to be part of a collective perception。 This literally colors our vision。 A religious experience in a way， like all tourism。" Certainly a provocative thought in the time of Instagram。 My Insta feed is filled with the same images， of the same landmarks， taken from the same angles， saying absolutely nothing but pretending at individuality and profoundity， I-love-to-travel as a central personality trait: Times Square， the Golden Gate Bridge， the Grand Canyon， the Eiffel Tower。 It's a passage that has aged well， and my favourite in the book by far。 In short: you can't escape society。 You can't escape your society。 You are nothing but society and culture。 Anything that seems meaningful is merely carefully constructed subliminal messaging from advertisements。 Capitalism plays at order， but it's really just rearranging the chaos。 I also like DeLillo's characterization of fear:"It is a grizzly bear。 The sight of this grizzer is so electrifyingly strange that it gives you a renewed sense of yourself， a fresh awareness of the self - the self in terms of a unique and horrific situation。 You see yourself in a new and intense way。 You rediscover yourself。 You are lit up for your own imminent dismemberment。 The beast on hind legs has enabled you to see who you are as if for the first time， outside familiar surroundings， alone， distinct， whole。 The name we give to this complicated process is fear。" 。。。more
Andrew
，
After spending most of my life *not* reading this， the upcoming Noah Baumbach film ultimately proved to be the tipping point， and I'll be goddamned if it isn't one of the best and most invigorating books I've ever been fortunate enough to read。 Although its consumer satire seems more of the '90s （marking it as ahead of its time， having been published in the mid-80s）， the concerns explored here are ultimately eternal and endlessly fascinating to wrestle with。 May write more about this later。 I wa After spending most of my life *not* reading this， the upcoming Noah Baumbach film ultimately proved to be the tipping point， and I'll be goddamned if it isn't one of the best and most invigorating books I've ever been fortunate enough to read。 Although its consumer satire seems more of the '90s （marking it as ahead of its time， having been published in the mid-80s）， the concerns explored here are ultimately eternal and endlessly fascinating to wrestle with。 May write more about this later。 I wasn't expecting to finish it this morning， but I honestly couldn't put it down after a certain point （the "Airborne Toxic Event" passage being perhaps the chief offender in reclaiming my attention）。 The final moments here feel anticlimactic， but it's hard to imagine anything that would have fully satisfied the impressive sprawl of the narrative which preceded it。 I always love DeLillo's work whenever I actually take the time to read it， and the bitterness of his wit here is ultimately faultless。 It provides the high concept narrative with the personality it needs not to falter under the weight of its own ambition。 I'm definitely a little bit overwhelmed， although I can at least imagine what it was in this material that appealed to Baumbach。 An opportunity to expand the canvas against which his typically brilliant approach to dialogue and character takes place。 I can't wait。 。。。more
William
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A unique book。 Succeeds at being both profound and approachable。 Laugh out loud funny at times。 Deeply introspective at others。 The language is beautiful and unique， no word is wasted。 Themes include fear， and fear of death in particular。 It all takes place against the “white noise” of consumerism and American culture in general。 The central protagonists are the blended family of Jack And Babette Gladney， a college professor in middle America and his colleague and sometimes muse Murray。 The book A unique book。 Succeeds at being both profound and approachable。 Laugh out loud funny at times。 Deeply introspective at others。 The language is beautiful and unique， no word is wasted。 Themes include fear， and fear of death in particular。 It all takes place against the “white noise” of consumerism and American culture in general。 The central protagonists are the blended family of Jack And Babette Gladney， a college professor in middle America and his colleague and sometimes muse Murray。 The book is in three sections。 Life and the observation of life before the release of a toxic cloud after an accident nearby。 The toxic event itself and life after the potentially fatal accident。 This is great satire written in a way you will not likely find elsewhere。 。。。more
Jordan A。
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White Noise is a novel I’ve heard about for a while but never encountered until now。 DeLillo crafts a narrative that is so overloaded with consumerism and technology and noise。 We witness a year in the life of a college professor， as he navigates the banality of life。 There are parts of this that are so hard to track due to the narrator’s train of thought cataloging everything happening around him。 There are parts of this novel that are so profound and well written I had to re read them multiple White Noise is a novel I’ve heard about for a while but never encountered until now。 DeLillo crafts a narrative that is so overloaded with consumerism and technology and noise。 We witness a year in the life of a college professor， as he navigates the banality of life。 There are parts of this that are so hard to track due to the narrator’s train of thought cataloging everything happening around him。 There are parts of this novel that are so profound and well written I had to re read them multiple times。 This is THE postmodernist novel。 It is crammed with words， brimming with intellectual theories and ideas， not a single one of them wasted here。 。。。more
Trisha
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about to be a show on Netflix。 looks interesting。
shane grant
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Rambling postmodern death-obsessed sad-sack narrative， occasionally hilarious and insightful， briefly thrilling but mostly rambling。
Kaylee
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One of the best books I have ever read。 I knew it’d be an all timer within minutes of starting。So so so ahead of it’s time。 Small intricacies weaved together in a world where the fact that nothing makes sense makes it make sense。 My favorite part is the most photographed barn in America。 Just wow。 This book has me floored。Dear god Delillo can write。 Has to be up there with Nabokov with just once in a lifetime talents。
Hojjat Sayyadi
，
موضوعات جالبی داشت ولی بعضی جاها افتاده بود به حاشیه و اضافه نویسی و حوصله سربری。
Brett
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In the beginning， I enjoyed this book。 I had high hopes。 Discovering the nuances of each character， piecing their significance to each other and getting a feel for the atmosphere was enjoyable。 Though， I began to hate the main character。 I didn't like him， I didnt like how he thought， I didn't like the people he hung around， and that seeped into not liking any of the other characters either。 No matter who it was。This isn't entirely a bad thing， it is enjoyable to despise characters in a book。 Th In the beginning， I enjoyed this book。 I had high hopes。 Discovering the nuances of each character， piecing their significance to each other and getting a feel for the atmosphere was enjoyable。 Though， I began to hate the main character。 I didn't like him， I didnt like how he thought， I didn't like the people he hung around， and that seeped into not liking any of the other characters either。 No matter who it was。This isn't entirely a bad thing， it is enjoyable to despise characters in a book。 Though， it began to wear on me because I did not only dislike them， I thought they were insanely stupid and increasingly meaningless to understand or tolerate。 3 stars because he does write uniquely， and there were facets of the story that was interesting enough to prompt completion of the book。 I bought Libra to give him one more chance。In conclusion， "White Noise" by Don DeLillo is fundamentally about Babette's breasts。 。。。more
Chad
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Destined to be a classic of American Lit。 There is so much here， the writing， the social commentary。 Absolutely amazing re read。 1，000，000/5
Lucas Gelfond
，
very very very good， rounding down from 4。5 stars。 tore through this， some of the most vivid / compelling prose in here I’ve ever read
Kerry
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for a novel that is， in part， about how technology， media， and consumerism are rotting our brains white noise is unfairly funny。 anyway delillo's writing was crisp and a nice change of pace for me。 for a novel that is， in part， about how technology， media， and consumerism are rotting our brains white noise is unfairly funny。 anyway delillo's writing was crisp and a nice change of pace for me。 。。。more
Ephrem Arcement
，
A wonderfully prophetic work that highlights the many absurdities of contemporary culture in entertaining ways。 But DeLillo is a prophet of doom offering little hope for meaning or purpose。
Oriol Pérez
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Con su característico estilo basado en un abundante uso del diálogo， Don Delillo narra a modo de sátira la vida de una familia pequeño burguesa norteamericana。 Desde discusiones académicas acaloradas pasando por un consumismo enfermizo hasta la llegada de una espantosa nube contaminante。Tal vez sea mejor comenzar con Delillo leyendo Libra o Americana， pero Ruido de fondo es también accesible dentro de su producción literaria。En definitiva， un retrato ácido sobre el modo de vida burgués norteamer Con su característico estilo basado en un abundante uso del diálogo， Don Delillo narra a modo de sátira la vida de una familia pequeño burguesa norteamericana。 Desde discusiones académicas acaloradas pasando por un consumismo enfermizo hasta la llegada de una espantosa nube contaminante。Tal vez sea mejor comenzar con Delillo leyendo Libra o Americana， pero Ruido de fondo es también accesible dentro de su producción literaria。En definitiva， un retrato ácido sobre el modo de vida burgués norteamericano。 。。。more
senseiparks
，
kinda fucking awesome
Miles Dellaha
，
GOOD book！！
Igor
，
Сатирична книжка з цікавими персонажами і влучними цитатами， хоча сатира， звісно ж， дуже привʼязана до часу написання。 Приміром， висміяні тут телебачення і таблоїди тепер здаються дрібницею порівняно з тим， що коїться у соцмережах。 Цікаво подивитись， як книжку екранізували。
Tasos
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Ο Ντον ΝτεΛίλλο είναι ένας από τους συγγραφείς που θέλω να εξαντλήσω τη βιβλιογραφία τους και η πρεμιέρα του White Noise στο 79ο Φεστιβάλ Κινηματογράφου της Βενετίας επέσπευσε την ανάγνωση ενός από τα πιο εμβληματικά του έργα （το πέμπτο του που διαβάζω）。Η οικογενειακή ζωή ενός ακαδημαϊκού με γνωστικό αντικείμενο τον Χίτλερ διασαλεύεται αμετάκλητα μετά από ένα τροχαίο ατύχημα που εκλύει ένα τοξικό νέφος στις παρυφές της πανεπιστημιούπολης， όπου ζει με την τέταρτη κατά σειρά γυναίκα του και τα παι Ο Ντον ΝτεΛίλλο είναι ένας από τους συγγραφείς που θέλω να εξαντλήσω τη βιβλιογραφία τους και η πρεμιέρα του White Noise στο 79ο Φεστιβάλ Κινηματογράφου της Βενετίας επέσπευσε την ανάγνωση ενός από τα πιο εμβληματικά του έργα （το πέμπτο του που διαβάζω）。Η οικογενειακή ζωή ενός ακαδημαϊκού με γνωστικό αντικείμενο τον Χίτλερ διασαλεύεται αμετάκλητα μετά από ένα τροχαίο ατύχημα που εκλύει ένα τοξικό νέφος στις παρυφές της πανεπιστημιούπολης， όπου ζει με την τέταρτη κατά σειρά γυναίκα του και τα παιδιά τους από όλους τους προηγούμενους γάμους。 Σ’ αυτή την τυπικά μοντέρνα αμερικανική οικογένεια της νέας εποχής， η παράνοια που θα ενσκήψει θα βγάλει στην επιφάνεια όλους τους μύχιους φόβους τους και κυρίως το φόβο του θανάτου， που μέχρι τότε υποσυνείδητα καθοδηγούσε κάθε μορφής συμπεριφορά， όχι μόνο δική τους， αλλά και ολόκληρης της αμερικανικής κοινωνίας， της ποπ κουλτούρας， ακόμα και της παγκόσμιας ιστορίας。 Οι σουρεαλιστικοί διάλογοι του ΝτεΛίλλο και οι ακόμα πιο ακραίες κωμικοτραγικές καταστάσεις που παρελαύνουν στις σελίδες δικαιολογούν για άλλη μια φορά γιατί ο Αμερικανός συγγραφέας είναι ο πρωτοπόρος του μεταμοντερνισμού， ενώ η εμβρίθεια της ανάλυσης και της σάτιράς του για τα υπαρξιακά αδιέξοδα μιας ολόκληρης γενιάς που αντικατέστησε τη θρησκεία με την κατανάλωση σού παγώνει το ειρωνικό μειδίαμα， ειδικά με το τέλος για τη νέα ακόμα πιο αβέβαιη ανθρωπότητα。 。。。more
Elena
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 cool book！！！！
talia ♡
，
finally going to read this classic for greta gerwig reasons
Tom
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Inspired me to switch majors and learn German 10/10
Sammy
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this book is weird and i like that about it。
Kyle Kean
，
This book is quite light of a palpable plot with bits and pieces thrown out there guiding us but mostly it's a hangout novel meaning it entirely hinges on whether you enjoy our main characters or at the very least find them interesting enough that you want to throw yourself into the dynamic that's more or less their day-to-day lives （this is especially true for the first of three parts of the book） it's got great bits of satire and poke and prods a lot at how faulty everything around us is takin This book is quite light of a palpable plot with bits and pieces thrown out there guiding us but mostly it's a hangout novel meaning it entirely hinges on whether you enjoy our main characters or at the very least find them interesting enough that you want to throw yourself into the dynamic that's more or less their day-to-day lives （this is especially true for the first of three parts of the book） it's got great bits of satire and poke and prods a lot at how faulty everything around us is taking a stance a lot of media in the Regan-era took of being majorly anti-consumerism in a similar way to American Psycho although the similarities end there。 The novel also has infidelity， airborne death viruses， and a shooting but that stuff is less interesting to me。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=White Noise
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=White Noise&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,White Noise&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0