Asymmetry (novel)
| Company type | Novel |
|---|---|
| Industry | Literature |
| Founded | February 2018 |
| Founder | Lisa Halliday |
| Products | Book |
Asymmetry marks the first novel by American writer Lisa Halliday, released in February 2018 through Simon & Schuster. The work garnered widespread praise, with The New Yorker describing it as "a literary phenomenon," and The New York Times listing it among "15 remarkable books by women shaping 21st-century fiction." It was also featured on former U.S. President Barack Obama's 2018 reading recommendations. The initial edition's cover displays a view of Manhattan's Upper West Side, focusing on the turret at 271 West End Avenue near 72nd Street.
Plot
Divided into three segments, the novel explores different timelines throughout the 2000s.
Part 1: Folly
Alice, a 25-year-old working in publishing, embarks on a romantic relationship with Ezra Blazer, a celebrated author. Both living in New York City, their affair unfolds against the backdrop of major global events, especially the start of the Iraq War. Due to Blazer's public stature, much of their time is spent within his apartment, frequently watching television and discussing the 2003 and 2004 ALCS baseball series between the Red Sox and Yankees.
Part 2: Madness
During Christmas of 2008, Amar Jaafari, an Iraqi-Kurdish American, is held for questioning at London's Heathrow Airport while traveling to Iraq. As he undergoes interrogation, he contemplates his experiences in the United States, his journeys to conflict-ridden Iraq, and his absent brother, a doctor who had studied piano in America.
Part 3: Ezra Blazer's Desert Island Discs
By 2011, Ezra Blazer has been awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. In a BBC radio interview, he alludes to a novel by a young acquaintance, implying that Amar's narrative serves as "Alice’s creative escape."
Ezra Blazer as Philip Roth
The character Ezra Blazer echoes numerous expressions and themes from Philip Roth (1933–2018), including:
- Page 4: Roth’s preferred joke ("You're velcome.")
- Pages 5, 271: The phrase "Are you game?" taken from Everyman
- Page 71: Application of Chekhov's gun principle found in chapters of The Counterlife
- Page 252: A military policeman directing traffic reminiscent of My Life as a Man
- Page 253: A story about a Jewish soldier involved with a "blond German girl" from My Life as a Man
- Page 258: Description of a ballet dancer with a "little monkey face" from The Ghost Writer