A historical fiction novel, it follows the lives of two Jewish cousins, Josef "Joe" Kavalier, a Czech artist and magician who escapes Nazi-occupied Prague, and Sammy Clay, a Brooklyn-born writer.

As he becomes romantically involved with Rosa Saks, a bohemian with her own artistic aspirations, Joe's drive to help his family shows through in his work, which remains anti-Nazi despite his employer's concerns.

Meanwhile, Sammy grapples with his sexual identity, eventually entering a secret relationship with Tracy Bacon, the handsome actor who voices the Escapist on the radio.

Joe's efforts to bring his family to the States culminate in securing passage for his younger brother Thomas on the ship The Ark of Miriam.

Tommy, unaware of his father's true identity, encounters Joe and begins to secretly take private magic lessons from him in the Empire State Building.

[3] Other historical figures play minor roles, including Salvador Dalí, Al Smith, Orson Welles and Fredric Wertham.

The novel's period roughly mirrors that of the Golden Age of Comics itself, starting from shortly after the debut of Superman and concluding with the Kefauver Senate hearings, two events often used to restrict the era.

[5][non-primary source needed] Josef "Joe" Kavalier is referred to in the 2006 novel The Chinatown Death Cloud Peril by Paul Malmont.

[9] Fellow Times critic Janet Maslin lauded it as "a big, ripe, excitingly imaginative novel" that maintained its seriousness despite its comic book setting.

[11] Claude Lalumière of January Magazine echoed this assessment, praising both its portrayal of the comics industry and its examination of American society from the Depression through the 1950s.

[15] The novel was featured on Entertainment Weekly's end-of-decade "best-of" list, praised for combining comic books, Jewish mysticism, and American history.

[20] Producer Scott Rudin bought the screen rights to The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay for Paramount Pictures based on a one-and-a-half page pitch before the novel had been published.

"[21] Rudin explained that his problems with the drafts often derived from scenes in the book he wanted kept in the film and which Chabon, "incredibly unprecious about his work", had cut.

[24] In January 2005, Chabon posted on his website that "about a month ago, there was a very brief buzzing, as of a fruit fly, around the film version of The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay.

[26] In June 2006, Chabon maintained that Portman was still "a strong likelihood for the part of Rosa", and listed a number of important plot points present in the book that would be left out of the movie.

[27] Jamie Caliri, director of music videos and short films, posted two and a half minutes of concept footage on his Vimeo channel, stating, "this piece was made as part of the development process...

[31] In a December 2011 interview, Stephen Daldry stated that he was considering making a Kavalier & Clay adaptation as a television miniseries rather than a feature film, preferring to do it "on HBO as an eight-parter...

[32] In 2019, CBS TV Studios signed a multi-year production pact with Chabon and his wife and writing partner Ayelet Waldman including plans to adapt the novel as a Showtime series.