Equilateral: A Novel

Equilateral: A Novel

Equilateral is an intellectual comedy set just before the turn of the century in Egypt. A British astronomer, Thayer, high on Darwin and other progressive scientists of the age, has come to believe that beings more highly evolved than us are alive on Mars (he has evidence) and that there will be a perfect moment in which we can signal to them that we are here too. He gets the support and funding for a massive project to build the Equilateral, a triangle with sides hundreds of miles long, in the desert of Egypt in time for that perfect window. But as work progresses, the Egyptian workers, less evolved than the British, are also less than cooperative, and a bout of malaria that seems to activate at the worst moments makes it all much more confusing and complex than Thayer ever imagined. We see Thayer also through the eyes of two women--a triangle of another sort--a romantic one that involves a secretary who looks after Thayer but doesn't suffer fools, and Binta, a houseservant he covets but can't communicate with--and through them we catch sight of the depth of self-delusion and the folly of the enterprise. Equilateral is written with a subtle, sly humor, but it's also a model of reserve and historical accuracy; it's about many things, including Empire and colonization and exploration; it's about "the other" and who that other might be. We would like to talk to the stars, and yet we can barely talk to each other. Kalfus’ previous novel, A Disorder Peculiar to the Country (2006), won raves for its trenchant satire of post-9/11 relationships and garnered a National Book Award nomination. Coloring outside the lines of mainstream fiction and into alternative history, his latest work tells the fanciful story of Sanford Thayer, a famous nineteenth-century astronomer who galvanizes support for a grandiose plan to a light a triangular beacon in the Egyptian desert bright enough to captivate earth’s Martian neighbors. Inspired by the 1877 discovery by colleague Giovanni Schiaparelli of Martian canals (in reality, later debunked as an optical illusion), Thayer marshals the financial support of businessmen worldwide who salivate over the bounty Martians will bestow on earth when they realize its inhabitants are civilized, too. Yet only weeks away from its planned completion, construction of the triangular trench, dubbed the Equilateral, is going badly, with Thayer fighting fevers and insurrections from the project’s Arab excavators. Although Kalfus’ new novel may appeal to a more selective audience, his writing takes a big step forward with stylistic elegance and deeper insights into human nature. --Carl Hays “A virtuosic portrait of the animating power of self-delusion.” ― Nathaniel Rich, The Daily Beast, Novel of the Year “Kalfus writes so well that his storytelling carries us along...that narrative becomes darker and more complex, evolving into a more intricate fable, an exploration of man's hubris.” ― Andrew Wulf, New York Times Book Review “Few American novelists get as many rewards from their investment in ideas.” ― The New York Times “Like Thayer's enormous triangle, the Big Idea underlying Equilateral the novel isn't illuminated until nearly its completion. It's a pretty neat trick for a novelist to pull off, to obscure the fact that what at first looks like an intricate fantasy novel actually contains pointed social commentary.” ― Maureen Corrigan, NPR's "Fresh Air" “Equilateral reads as a compact and deeply satisfying work of fiction, which, moreover, boasts that rarest of endings: one that's surprising yet, if you've been reading closely, inevitable.” ― NPR.org “Thayer's late 19th-century fascination is enough to carry the book, but Kalfus adds a love triangle as well as a cast of characters -- some who support the professor's efforts and others who rebel against them -- for an even richer story.” ― NPR's "Morning Edition," Critic's List: Summer 2013 “Kalfus…has woven a tale that is both fantastical and believable. He's done it not just with an expansive imagination and sharp writing skills, but a convincing aptitude in the disciplines of astronomy, trigonometry and history…erupts in a satisfying climax.” ― Denver Post “Intriguing . . . a slender but substantial new novel by Ken Kalfus…who manages here to blend history, humor, politics, science--and even a little bit of romance.” ― Los Angeles Times “By turns sophisticated, suspenseful, and entertaining, Equilateral uses this fantastic conceit to deconstruct the late 19th century's empirical, Social Darwinist ("survival of the fittest"), and colonialist worldviews, elements of which remain dominant in our own time.” ― Philadelphia Inquirer “Just crazy enough to work.” ― Flavorwire, "20 Highbrow Books to Read on the Beach This Summer" “Kalfus has as demonic imagination. The glamour of consistent disaster is recognizable in every line, every scene, every lacquered articulation: it is what we moderns like to call a neo-classical construct