Whose Finite Perspective?

Having not read any of David Foster Wallace's other works I can't write too definitively about Infinite Jest. My theory as of right now, though, is that it would work better, in the present day, as a short story collection.

This theory comes, partially, from the different ways in which people consume media, and the simple fact that Infinite Jest is not in any way linear. It definitely has a plot threaded through it, but that thread is covered from end to end in character and characterization and background information about said characters and the world of the book.

More importantly, perhaps, there's no clear "I" behind the book or within it. It's coming from one creative person, in the same way that multiple perspective series and novels often are the work of a single author, but the singularity of the narrator seems to be just a conceit. The book's tone is consistent, but to whom does that tone belong?

It doesn't appear to be Hal, as might be expected. The book's tone has all of the hallmarks of his characteristic nervous shy repetition, redundancy, and verbal hesitancy, sure. But, there are sections (such as the first chapter) where the narration is clearly well outside of Hal's head.

Because the book's narrator is not one of the book's characters, it's entirely possible that Wallace is using an unreliable narrator. But, to what end, and what effect that has on the book has yet to be seen.