Bilateral Symmetry is Proof of God

Bilateral Symmetry is Proof of God is a novel-in-stories about John Patterson, a character based in Albuquerque. It is largely “plotless,” in keeping with the philosophical or meditative tradition of fiction embodied by such works as Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man or McCarthy’s Blood Meridian, though it fits into several literary traditions. As part of the bildungsroman tradition, for example, early stories detail events from John’s early years, namely an experience that results in wariness of religion, and his first hunting experience. In these narratives, themes such as faith, ethics, and a desire for spiritual fulfillment in a post-spiritual age materialize. These themes are fulfilled by later stories in the collection, which detail John’s adulthood, his growth as a hunter, as a paleontologist, and how elements of his character reflect a changing worldview, one in which there is room for both spirituality and science.