WAITING IMPATIENTLY

In this debut novel, a yoga instructor attempts to save himself from his worst instincts.

Ian’s life is at something of a low point. He’s still in love with his ex-wife, who no longer wants anything to do with him. His cramped apartment is barely large enough for both him and his Buddha statue, and he’s plagued by the nighttime sounds of his roommate’s dalliances with sex workers. He hates his clingy new girlfriend, his horny ex-girlfriend, and all the people who take his yoga class. “I can’t stand these people,” he seethes. “They are pathetic. They aren’t practicing the discipline of yoga. They are just exercising and nothing more. It insults me. They just like the word ‘yoga’ because it makes them feel special.” The lone bright spot is his new student Asha, a calm, formal woman who hires Ian for personal classes. As a virus sweeps across the world, Asha invites Ian to move in with her and her daughter so they can continue their lessons uninterrupted. As Asha helps Ian confront some of his anger, the line between student and teacher—and between the physical world and the spiritual one—becomes increasingly blurred. Housley’s prose perfectly captures Ian’s cynicism and snark even as he yearns for enlightenment: “I understand that the only path to my happiness is to conquer myself, my ego, and to let go of my attachments. On its face, happiness seems to be a modern human problem. Generations have come and gone without the slightest notion of it. My father never understood what the word meant.” The novel is well paced and has some amusing scenes. But Ian is such an unlikable protagonist that it prevents readers from investing too heavily in his spiritual journey. He’s a disdainful, sexual magnet for nearly every woman he meets, and his disgust for overweight people is a bit too pointed to be funny. Ian learns to let go of some of these hang-ups but mostly in a cloistered, abstract way that does not require him to interact with other people.

An intriguing but uneven narrative about a misanthropic yoga teacher in quarantine.