Best Use of Footnotes/Endnotes In Fiction? (3/26/23)

[Marc]

How do you feel about the use of footnotes and/or endnotes in fiction?
Are there any books you feel stand out as examples of using either footnotes or endnotes extremely well (i.e., it enhanced the story or made the book something unique to you)?

(Note: This question arose from a current read, City of Saints and Madmen, which made me think of other stories that use footnotes or endnotes---House of Leaves, Lost in the Funhouse, Infinite Jest. For more reading about footnotes in fiction, see https://lithub.com/the-fine-art-of-th...)

[Vesna]

Nabokov's Pale Fire immediately comes to mind. The main narrative of the novel is entirely in the footnotes to the poem! Jorge Luis Borges and Danilo Kiš wonderfully used footnotes in their stories to create the illusion of factual explanations and/or diversions. Probably some others too... Somewhat reverse, Daša Drndić used them for actual facts explaining certain names/places/events in her main semi-fictional narrative. I found them all brilliantly done.

[Greg]

Vesna wrote: "Nabokov's Pale Fire immediately comes to mind. The main narrative of the novel is entirely in the footnotes to the poem! Jorge Luis Borges and Danilo Kiš wo..."

Oh yes, Pale Fire was a brilliant use of footnotes . . . and brilliant overall!

[Tracy]

The footnotes were key to my enjoyment of the above, too: Pale Fire, Borges, House of Leaves, Infinite Jest, and the Drndic that I’ve read so far. Sometimes the footnotes were more enjoyable than parts of the text!

Though I think the intent of the question is not the same, I would have been lost in The Divine Comedy if it hadn’t been for the footnotes. I’m still not sure who some of those denizens of Hell were.

[Mark]

It's not exactly footnotes, but I want to put in a vote for novels that involve history to include a READING LIST! One example is Ian McDonald's Brasyl.

[Nadine in California]

Greg wrote: "Vesna wrote: "Nabokov's Pale Fire immediately comes to mind. The main narrative of the novel is entirely in the footnotes to the poem! Jorge Luis Borges and [author:Danilo ..."

I read Pale Fire about 40 years ago and loved it. I almost never re-read, but a few months ago I bought a new copy (my first was disintegrating) and I was shocked that I disliked it so much that I DNF'ed. I saw all the brilliance but the author felt so smug and preening I couldn't stand it. I know that the narrator/protagonist Kinbote is intentionally and powerfully written that way, but now that I know a bit about Nabokov himself, I can't help but see his worst traits in Kinbote. I guess I'm a very different reader than I used to be.

[Greg]

Nadine in California wrote: "I know that the narrator/protagonist Kinbote is intentionally and powerfully written that way, but now that I know a bit about Nabokov himself, I can't help but see his worst traits in Kinbote.."

Sometimes there are things about a writer that you don't want to know, that's for sure. I have had this sort of thing happen for me with other writers.

[Tea73]

The YA Bartimaeus books by Jonathan Stroud have hilarious snarky footnotes.

[David]

I'm actually reading a book now with footnotes, The Whore by Márcia Barbieri. The novel is otherwise a single-paragraph monologue told over 150 pages, so the footnotes are welcome.

[Bretnie]

Marc wrote: "How do you feel about the use of footnotes and/or endnotes in fiction?
Are there any books you feel stand out as examples of using either footnotes or endnotes extremely well (i.e., it enhanced the..."

Ha, the footnotes in City of Saints and Madmen were wild! I still can't decide if I loved them or eyerolled them, but they were what my mind went to with your question, before I saw your post. :)