"Exhilerating, magnificent, dangerous."
— The Times Literary Supplement (London)
One of the great novels of the Twentieth Century, described by John Updike as a meditation on "the persistence of trauma, the rapacity of eros, the fragility of our orderly schemes"
On a cold night in Holland two men meet and change each other's lives forever. Max Delius - a hedonistic, yet brilliant astronomer who loves fast cars, nice clothes and beautiful women - picks up Onno Quist, a cerebral chaotic philologist who cannot bear the ordinariness of everyday life. Despite their differences, they fast become great friends.
And when they learn they were conceived on the same day, it is clear that their meeting is no coincidence. As the pair fall into and out of love with the same woman - Ada - so their lives become further intertwined. For all three are on a mysterious journey destined to shape human history.
The Discovery of Heaven is internationally recognized as a masterpiece. Rich in philosophical, psychological, historical and theological enquiry, it is an extravagant, bold and satisfying novel of ideas.