<b>The literary event of the season: a new novel from Ian McEwan, as surprising as it is masterful. </b><br><br>Michael Beard is a Nobel prize&ndash;winning physicist whose best work is behind him. Trading on his reputation, he speaks for enormous fees, lends his name to the letterheads of renowned scientific institutions, and half-heartedly heads a government-backed initiative tackling global warming. While he coasts along in his professional life, Michael&rsquo;s personal life is another matter entirely. His fifth marriage is crumbling under the weight of his infidelities. But this time the tables are turned: His wife is having an affair, and Michael realizes he is still in love with her. <br><br>When Michael&rsquo;s personal and professional lives begin to intersect in unexpected ways, an opportunity presents itself in the guise of an invitation to travel to New Mexico. Here is a chance for him to extricate himself from his marital problems, reinvigorate his career, and very possibly save the world from environmental disaster. Can a man who has made a mess of his life clean up the messes of humanity? <br><br>A complex novel that brilliantly traces the arc of one man&rsquo;s ambitions and self-deceptions, <i>Solar</i> is a startling, witty, and stylish new work from one of the world&rsquo;s great writers.<br><br><br><i>From the Hardcover edition.</i>