The Professor of Immortality
A Novel
Eileen Pollack
- **“A
- tragicomedy
- about
- the
- paradoxes
- of
- trying
- to
- be
- a
- decent
- human,
- and—maybe
- even
- trickier—of
- trying
- to
- be
- a
- decent
- mom”
- by
- the
- author
- of
- A
- Perfect
- Life
- (**Rivka
- Galchen,
- author
- of
- Little
- Labors).Professor
- Maxine
- Sayers
- once
- found
- her
- personal
- and
- professional
- life
- so
- fulfilling
- that
- she
- founded
- the
- Institute
- for
- Future
- Studies,
- a
- program
- dedicated
- to
- studying
- the
- effects
- of
- technology
- on
- our
- culture
- and
- finding
- ways
- to
- prolong
- human
- life.
- But
- when
- her
- beloved
- husband
- dies,
- she
- is
- so
- devastated
- she
- can
- barely
- get
- out
- of
- bed.
- To
- make
- matters
- worse,
- her
- son,
- Zach,
- abruptly
- quit
- his
- job
- in
- Silicon
- Valley
- and
- has
- been
- out
- of
- contact
- for
- seven
- months.But
- Maxine
- is
- jolted
- from
- her
- grief
- by
- her
- sudden
- realization
- that
- a
- favorite
- former
- student
- (and
- a
- former
- close
- friend
- of
- her
- son)
- might
- be
- a
- terrorist
- called
- the
- Technobomber
- and
- that
- Zach
- might
- either
- be
- involved
- in
- or
- has
- become
- a
- victim
- of
- this
- extremist’s
- bombing.
- Deserting
- her
- teaching
- responsibilities,
- her
- ailing
- mother,
- and
- an
- appealing
- suitor,
- Maxine
- is
- compelled
- to
- set
- out
- in
- search
- of
- her
- son
- in
- order
- to
- warn
- and
- protect
- him—even
- though
- she
- knows
- she
- should
- report
- her
- suspicions
- to
- the
- FBI
- to
- prevent
- greater
- carnage.“The
- Professor
- of
- Immortality
- is
- intimate
- and
- sweeping,
- funny
- and
- terrifying,
- and
- most
- of
- all
- dead-on
- in
- its
- observations
- of
- what
- it
- means
- to
- want
- to
- know
- everything
- about
- people
- we
- love
- while
- still
- being
- frightened
- of
- what
- we
- might
- find
- out:
- it’s
- a
- detective
- story,
- and
- a
- story
- of
- motherlove.
- Eileen
- Pollack
- is
- a
- splendid
- writer.”
- —Elizabeth
- McCracken,
- author
- of
- Bowlaway“In
- this
- exceptional
- novel,
- Eileen
- Pollack
- writes
- with
- great
- immediacy
- about
- the
- impact
- of
- grief
- on
- a
- parent’s
- perception
- of
- the
- world.
- Tender,
- wry,
- full
- of
- unexpected
- revelations,
- The
- Professor
- of
- Immortality
- gripped
- me
- from
- the
- first
- scene,
- and
- the
- urgent
- questions
- it
- poses
- have
- stayed
- with
- me.”
- —Idra
- Novey,
- author
- of
- Those
- Who Knew
