Book of Today: Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace

IJ CoverBecause:

October 5, 1953: The first documented meeting of Narcotics Anonymous.

October 5, 1970: A British trade minister in Montreal is kidnapped by the Front de liberation du Quebec, a violent separatist group seeking sovereignty for Quebec.

The day also saw the debut of the Beatles’ first single “Love Me Do” (1962); the first episode of Monty Python’s Flying Circus (1969); and the founding of the Public Broadcasting System (1970). McDonald’s founder Ray Kroc was born on October 5, 1902, and Apple founder Steve Jobs died on October 5, 2011, making it a big day for two of America’s most iconic business leaders. And because of the implementation of the Gregorian Calendar, October 5, 1582 doesn’t technically exist in Italy, Portugal, Spain and Poland.

– Michael Moats

Leave a Reply