Summary

Chapter 1, entitled "The Present Moment," opens in the autumn of 2004. Successful fiction writer Nathan Zuckerman is 71 years old and currently lives a secluded life in a house in the small town of Athena, Massachusetts. Zuckerman has been struggling with bladder incontinence lately, so he recently went to New York City—where he used to live—for a minor surgical procedure designed to fix the incontinence. Zuckerman’s life in Athena is characterized by solitude, and he spends his time reading and writing. For some time, he had a neighbor named Larry Hollis, whose personality was outgoing and determined. Larry was born Jewish but had purposely cast off his Jewish identity. He married and had multiple children. After befriending Zuckerman, Larry urged Zuckerman to lead a less reclusive life. One day, Larry was diagnosed with cancer, and he killed himself to spare himself and his...