The title character, Asterios Polyp, is a professor and architect of Greek and Italian descent who teaches at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.

The novel is interspersed with scenes from his past (ostensibly narrated by his stillborn twin brother, Ignazio), including his childhood and troubled marriage, as well as dreams and allegorical sequences.

[1] Some of the false dichotomies touched upon are: Apollonian vs. Dionysian; reason vs. emotion; destiny vs. free will; and nature vs. nurture.

[2] Asterios Polyp grew out of a story idea that would have filled the entire fourth issue of Rubber Blanket.

[3] It was published as a hardcover, with an architectonic design that alluded to themes of form and function within the text, including a dust jacket shorter than the size of the book that revealed the structure underneath.