In Chuck Klosterman's new novel, therapist Victoria Vick is contacted by a cryptic man who insists his situation is unique and unfathomable. As he slowly reveals himself, Vick becomes convinced that he suffers from a complex set of delusions: Y__, as she refers to him, claims to be a scientist who has stolen technology from an aborted government project in order to render himself nearly invisible. He says he uses this ability to observe individuals within their daily lives, usually when they are alone. Unsure of his motives, Vick becomes obsessed with her patient and the disclosure of his increasingly bizarre and disturbing tales. Over time, it threatens her career, her marriage, and her own identity.
The Visible Man touches on all of Chuck Klosterman’s favorite themes—the consequence of culture, the influence of media, the complexity of voyeurism, and the existential contradiction of normalcy. Is this comedy, criticism, or horror? Not even Y__ seems to know for sure.
Don DeLillo, one of the greatest writers of our time, has recently released his first collection of short stories, The Angel Esmeralda. If you haven't read DeLillo, start with the stories then pick up Underworld, "DeLillo's most affecting novel yet... a dazzling, phosphorescent work of art." --The New York Times
Congratulations to Siddhartha Mukherjee, author of The Emperor of All Maladies, winner of the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for general nonfiction.
