Asymmetry
A Novel
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Narrated by:
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Candace Thaxton
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Arthur Morey
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Fiona Hardingham
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Aden Hakim
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By:
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Lisa Halliday
About this listen
A singularly inventive and unforgettable debut novel about love, luck, and the inextricability of life and art, from 2017 Whiting Award winner Lisa Halliday.
Told in three distinct and uniquely compelling sections, Asymmetry explores the imbalances that spark and sustain many of our most dramatic human relations: inequities in age, power, talent, wealth, fame, geography, and justice. The first section, "Folly", tells the story of Alice, a young American editor, and her relationship with the famous and much older writer Ezra Blazer. A tender and exquisite account of an unexpected romance that takes place in New York during the early years of the Iraq War, "Folly" also suggests an aspiring novelist's coming-of-age. By contrast, "Madness" is narrated by Amar, an Iraqi-American man who, on his way to visit his brother in Kurdistan, is detained by immigration officers and spends the last weekend of 2008 in a holding room in Heathrow. These two seemingly disparate stories gain resonance as their perspectives interact and overlap, with yet new implications for their relationship revealed in an unexpected coda.
A stunning debut from a rising literary star, Asymmetry is an urgent, important, and truly original work that will captivate any listener while also posing arresting questions about the very nature of fiction itself.
©2018 Lisa Halliday (P)2018 Simon & SchusterListeners also enjoyed...
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Marina Keegan's star was on the rise when she graduated magna cum laude from Yale in May 2012. She had a play that was to be produced at the New York International Fringe Festival and a job waiting for her at the New Yorker. Tragically, five days after graduation, Marina died in a car crash. Even though she was just 22 when she died, Marina left behind a rich, expansive trove of prose that, like her title essay, captures the hope, uncertainty, and possibility of her generation.
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Probably buy the book too.
- By Soupergirl on 09-14-15
By: Marina Keegan
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She's Come Undone
- By: Wally Lamb
- Narrated by: Linda Stephens
- Length: 18 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Meet Dolores Price. She's 13, wise-mouthed but wounded, having bid her childhood goodbye. Beached like a whale in front of her bedroom TV, she spends the next few years nourishing herself with the Mallomars, potato chips, and Pepsi her anxious mother supplies. When she finally rolls into young womanhood at 257 pounds, Dolores is no stronger and life is no kinder. But this time she's determined to rise to the occasion and give herself one more chance before really going belly-up.
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Really disappointing narrator!
- By Jessica Williams on 01-21-12
By: Wally Lamb
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The One-in-a-Million Boy
- By: Monica Wood
- Narrated by: Chris Ciulla
- Length: 10 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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For years, guitarist Quinn Porter has been on the road, chasing gig after gig, largely absent to his twice-ex-wife Belle and their odd, Guinness records-obsessed son. When the boy dies suddenly, Quinn seeks forgiveness for his paternal shortcomings by completing the requirements for one of his son's unfinished Boy Scout badges. For seven Saturdays Quinn does yard work for Ona Vitkus, the spry 104-year-old Lithuanian immigrant the boy had visited weekly.
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Loved it
- By Justin on 10-20-16
By: Monica Wood
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One True Thing
- By: Anna Quindlen
- Narrated by: Christina Moore
- Length: 9 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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A young woman sits in jail, accused of the mercy killing of her dying mother. She didn't do it, but she thinks she knows who did. In the last months of her life, Ellen Gulden's mother revealed startling secrets that challenged everything Ellen believed about her family. Now, in jail, Ellen believes those secrets will tell her who had the courage to end her mother's suffering.
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Quindlen's writing skills shine in One True Thing.
- By Bonny on 08-26-13
By: Anna Quindlen
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High Dive
- By: Jonathan Lee
- Narrated by: Doyle Gerard
- Length: 11 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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Taking us inside one of the 20th century's most ambitious assassination attempts - "making history personal", as one character puts it - High Dive moves between the luxurious hospitality of a British tourist town and the troubled city of Belfast, Northern Ireland, at the height of the armed struggle between the Irish Republican Army and those loyal to the UK government.
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Humor? Not Funny.
- By W Perry Hall on 04-10-16
By: Jonathan Lee
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The UnAmericans
- Stories
- By: Molly Antopol
- Narrated by: Jennifer Van Dyck
- Length: 7 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Again and again, Molly Antopol’s deeply sympathetic characters struggle for footing in an uncertain world, hounded by forces beyond their control. Their voices are intimate and powerful and they resonate with searing beauty. Antopol is a superb young talent, and The UnAmericans will long be remembered for its wit, humanity, and heart.
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Sensational stories! Brilliant new author.
- By MidwestGeek on 05-04-14
By: Molly Antopol
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The Wednesday Sisters
- By: Meg Waite Clayton
- Narrated by: Julie Dretzin
- Length: 10 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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For 35 years, Frankie, Linda, Kath, Brett, and Ally have met every Wednesday at the park near their homes in Palo Alto, California. Defined when they first meet by what their husbands do, the young homemakers and mothers are far removed from the Summer of Love that has enveloped most of the Bay Area in 1967.
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Loved it!
- By Denise Wallace on 06-26-09
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When It Happens to You
- A Novel in Stories
- By: Molly Ringwald
- Narrated by: Molly Ringwald
- Length: 6 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Story
When it happens to you, you will be surprised. That thing they say about how you knew all the time, but just weren't facing it? That might be the case, but nevertheless, there you will be. Molly Ringwald mines the complexities of modern relationships in this gripping and nuanced collection of interlinked stories. Writing with a deep compassion for human imperfection, Ringwald follows a Los Angeles family and their friends and neighbors while they negotiate the hazardous terrain of everyday life - revealing the deceptions, heartbreak, and vulnerability familiar to us all.
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Narrated by Molly!
- By JillHen on 03-01-13
By: Molly Ringwald
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Stars over Sunset Boulevard
- By: Susan Meissner
- Narrated by: Ann Marie Lee
- Length: 10 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Los Angeles, present day. When an iconic hat worn by Scarlett O'Hara in Gone with the Wind ends up in Christine McAllister's vintage clothing boutique by mistake, her efforts to return it to its owner take her on a journey more enchanting than any classic movie.... Los Angeles, 1938. Violet Mayfield sets out to reinvent herself in Hollywood after her dream of becoming a wife and mother falls apart, and she lands a job on the film set of Gone with the Wind.
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Pass on this
- By Lulew on 03-24-17
By: Susan Meissner
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The Rest of Her Life
- By: Laura Moriarty
- Narrated by: Julia Gibson
- Length: 11 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Leigh is the mother of high-achieving, popular high school senior Kara. Their relationship is already strained for reasons Leigh does not fully understand when, in a moment of carelessness, Kara makes a mistake that ends in tragedy, the effects of which not only divide Leigh's family, but polarize the entire community.
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Obnoxious musical interludes ruin the story
- By Joan on 12-25-11
By: Laura Moriarty
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The Poison Tree
- By: Erin Kelly
- Narrated by: Jennifer Ikeda
- Length: 11 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Successful journalist Erin Kelly has electrified readers and critics alike with her debut novel The Poison Tree. In this scintillating work, Karen and her daughter Alice have established a safe, happy life free from the madness of Karen’s past. But when Karen’s former lover Rex is released from prison, her old associations intrude upon the present - and threaten everything she holds dear.
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I couldn't stop listening the book.
- By Gladys on 07-29-15
By: Erin Kelly
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When two young lovers abscond from a Puritan colony, little do they know that their humble cabin in the woods will become the home of an extraordinary succession of human and nonhuman characters alike. An English soldier, destined for glory, abandons the battlefields of the New World to devote himself to growing apples. A pair of spinster twins navigate war and famine, envy and desire. A crime reporter unearths an ancient mass grave—only to discover that the earth refuse to give up their secrets.
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What listeners say about Asymmetry
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- isabella
- 06-07-18
great book
This is a wonderful book told by three different people. Each section is a story on to itself though there seems to be a link between the 3. I especially liked the middle section which is about a young man stuck in the London Airport because of his origins. The narrator has a beautifully modulated voice and his story is heart wrenching without being maudlin.
The first and third sections are also quite good though I found those two stories (which are more closely linked than the 2nd) of less interest. The first is about a young woman's affair with a well known writer who is much older than she is. Some of the descriptive passages are quite beautiful and it is not hard, on some level, to sympathize with the protagonist's sense of futility
and loneliness but it doesn't have the same relevance as the 2nd section.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Joe Mama
- 01-04-19
Wow. Took me a bit to get into it, but glad I kept listening
I love the way this author weaves her deeper thoughts into the everyday stories of her characters. The first story took me a while to get into. I was frustrated that Mary Alice didn’t seem to have a voice. I’m happy I kept going. Very meaningful and thoughtful work. Thank you Lisa Halliday!
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- Brian
- 02-24-18
Leaving a Doll's House, again
This novel was powerful, quiet, and more than the sum of its parts. I enjoyed it more knowing some of the biographical background for the first section. As another reviewer noted, the first part can be hard to follow because of the insertion of other texts and perspectives (and maybe the narrator could have offset these sections better), but you'll figure it out all right. It took me a couple of hours to get into this novel, but it was worth it.
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6 people found this helpful
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- kaylady
- 08-13-19
Confusing
Maybe I did not pay enough attention to the audiobook when I listened to it, but I was left feeling confused.
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- Kathryn
- 01-29-19
Worth your time
Perfect title. The more I think about this story, the more I appreciate it. Basically, it is a catalyst for comparing how shallow, in some ways, Americans can be when compared with those who deal with wars and corruption...the kind we support.
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- Andrei
- 05-29-19
A masterpiece
A masterpiece! Before you read this novel you have to have the notion of what constitutes a post-modern fiction. I noticed how favorably people rated Pynchon's masterpiece Gravity's Rainbow. These people were ready for what they encountered in the novel. Asymmetry is the novel of enormous complexity and difficulty (Obama loved it for a good reason; Orange Covfefe probably has no idea that it even exists). Read post-modernly the novel deconstructs your already deconstructed reading. Ah? Let's presume that you hated parts of the novel (think of a second the schmaltzy a la Hosseini mediocre Kate Runner or Herman Hesse's absolutely deplorable Damian part; I hated the second part). You've been deconstructed if you love the first part which I loved since it is impossible not to love its staccato almost absurdist rhythm. I am a hater now but if I recognize that hating here is intrinsic to my reaction (in a way I hate Tchaikovsky- Stalin's favorite composer) then I deconstructed my own being deconstructed. Etc. But now ...Three....Why do think that there three parts? Why Blazer wants to write his quite oddly structured post-modern trilogy? Why Bible, Quran and Torah are mentioned in the third part at all? Who is Blazer? Who wrote the second novel? Is the the second novel beginning, middle of the end of the world? Of course the last. Pertinently peruse carefully ): Ulysses. Adumbrate schematically its existential contours. Apropos the novel ask: What is love? What is love? What is love? Possession? Can love be deconstructed? In my humble opinion-NO! Read it and think about it. Don't dismiss it because it does not fit into the non-existent linear a priori perspective of things. The genius of Kant knew that a priori is a transcendental category and is thus a non-sustainable category in the realm of the noumenal (real) world of things-in-themsevles. What a brilliant observation! Suspend yourself while reading the novel. You won't be wasting your time - time that does not exist.
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- sfgirlnow
- 10-04-19
Interesting to think about...
but I wouldn't really recommend this book. I didn't like the first chapter but really liked the second. Didn't know why the author chose to leave Mary Alice's character without much depth, but still pondering it.
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- Richard R Elliott
- 09-07-20
review
first half was wack. good book doe. would recommend for my homies and homespices. yes
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- Aparries
- 12-06-18
I don’t get it
I’ve seen reviews that say 2 unrelated stories are brought together amazingly by a final coda. I have a degree in Literature. Reading this book and reviewing it in an academic scope I can see it has merit, but, to me, the best literature doesn’t have to be examined and over-explained by experts in order to be understood. It should be accessible.
This is 2 really good short stories and some epilogue that makes little sense. They both suck you in before you know it. They are very well written, engrossing and deliberate In how the stories are told and what parts of the character’s stories are told.
Decent stories as 2 short stories, unfortunately, to really understand the “asymmetry” of the story you have to have a degree in Literature.
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- David
- 01-28-19
Top of the World, and Not
“Asymmetry” became more intriguing the more I listened. Each new section (there are three) causes the reader to think differently about the prior sections.
The novel opens with a love affair between a stylish young editor in Manhattan and an aging, worldly novelist (reportedly modeled after Philip Roth) whom she meets while sitting on a park bench. The novelist appears to have everything—culture, intelligence, respect, the financial security to support needy acquaintances (like the guy at the neighborhood newsstand), and the charisma to attract beautiful young women. Apart from his serial wives, the novelist tries to do good and to live an exemplary life.
The second section shifts to a different world. The narrator is an Iraqi-American economist, held at a London airport as he tries to fly to visit his brother in Iraq. Through flashbacks, the narrator calmly recalls his history in both America and Iraq, where much of his extended family remains. Those in Iraq have lived through chaos and terror, but the tone is light, as if the narrator were distancing himself from his suffering relatives. The asymmetry seems to be between the affluent and sophisticated New Yorkers of the first section, trying to do good and be fair while living well, and the nearly helpless Iraqis, also educated and trying to live well, but surrounded by constant threats and danger. America's role in creating the Iraqi situation is frequently invoked.
The third section returns to a character from the first. The character is seen in a different light. This section was especially well-narrated by Fiona Hardingham and Arthur Morey.
The novel regularly slips into brief philosophical discussions, which I found interesting. Overall, despite a slow start, “Asymmetry” was a well-written, thoughtful and provocative listen.
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