In conversation with Will Evans of Deep Vellum Publishing and Deep Vellum Books
Bestselling author Paul Auster’s newest novel, 4 3 2 1, is a sweeping story of birthright and possibility, of love and life. On March 3, 1947, in Newark, New Jersey, Archibald Isaac Ferguson is born. Chapter by chapter, four of Ferguson’s possible life paths are explored. Each of the four possible Fergusons has different relationships, family fortunes, athletic skills, and intellectual passions. All four fall under the spell of the magnificent Amy Schneiderman. The reader is moved by each Ferguson’s pleasures and pains as Auster’s unforgettable tour de force tenderly combines “what ifs” with the reality of growing up in New York in the 1950s and 60s. This acclaimed novel is a New York Times bestseller and has been shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize.
Auster, a graduate of Columbia University, is best known for his novels, screenplays, and French translations. His award-winning works include The New York Trilogy, Man in the Dark, and Winter Journal. In 2006 he was awarded the Prince of Asturias Prize for Literature and inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters. His works have been translated into more than 40 languages.
“Ingenious . . . . Structurally inventive and surprisingly moving . . . .4 3 2 1 reads like [a] big social drama . . . while offering the philosophical exploration of one man's fate.”—Esquire