Customer Reviews
Rich in ideas and culture, but ultimately disappointing - By: James Joyce, 13 May 2008 
The Discovery of Heaven is packed with felicitous turns of phrase, insights, & cultural alllusions. However, I felt that the ending was philosophicallly & emotionallly disappointing. Far from being life-affirming, it appeared to be life-denying, questioning the validity & the very reality of anything that is impermanent. The intimations of existential despair in what were occasional what's-the-point-if-we-just-die thoughts of Quinten, end up with pride of place. Given the broadly agnostic tone throughout (and of the main characters), I'm not sure this miserable conclusion is what the author set out to do - perhaps it was difficult to finish. I had expected the chosen one to rebel in the end, & that the ending might affirm the human characters' lives & friendships over the inhuman characters' fantastic machinations, in alll their human transience & imperfection, but no: we are fireflies in the dark, pointless & unreal because we won't always be here.
The Discovery of Heaven - By: Damian Kelleher, 22 Oct 2007 
Two angels are conversing. Apparently, Francis Bacon - the 16th century scientist credited with establishing, among other things, the scientific methodology known as the 'Baconian Method' - made a pact with the devil, which caused humanity to lose their way with God, instead embracing the more vapid realm of technological progress; gadgets, as it were. God is convinced that the covenant between heaven & earth is broken & has charged the angels with retrieving the original stone tablets that contain the Ten Commandments as handed down by God to Moses on the summit of Mount Sinai. To do this, a perfect human must be created - the angels intervene with twentieth century history to ensure that this occurs.
A complicated setup, to be sure. Happily, for at least the first half of the novel, the heavy theological implications of The Discovery of Heaven do not weigh the novel down. Rather, we are invited into the intelligence, artistic & creative world that is the friendship of Onno Quist & Max Delius.
They were conceived on the same day, but are completely different. Onno is hugely intelligent, but suffers from a mind that is too rarefied for the concrete harshness of the world. A savant when it comes to languages, Onno made his name in the world of linguistics by translating Etruscan. 'It was because I made Etruscan comprehensible. The greatest minds in the world had failed - even Professor Massimo Pellegrini in Rome was too stupid - so I thought I may as well do it.' For now, he studies obscure topics & lives comfortable on the interest from his father's inheritance.
Max Delius lost his parents at a very young age during World War II. His mother was a Jew; she met a predictably sad end in a concentration camp. His father was a Dutch officer in the German army, it was his hand that indirectly caused the death of his wife. As a result of this, Max lives his life convinced that at any time, the people that he holds close could leave him. He is an astronomer, spending his free time seducing a string of random women who mean nothing at alll.
But when they meet by chance when Onno is hitching a ride home to Amsterdam (a meeting assisted by the unseen hand of an angel), something immediately clicks. From this random encounter comes a friendship that is strong beyond anything they have experienced before. 'Max had never met anyone like Onno, Onno had never met anyone like Max - as a self-proclaimed pair of twins, they did not cease to delight in each other.'
Once this relationship has solidified, a third party enters. Of course, she is a woman, but the novel does not take a predictable turn in having a rivalry for Ada Brons' hand dominate the story. No, she begins as Max's girlfriend & ends as Onno's wife, but the way in which this is handled never for a moment suggests a clash of will, a fight for love. Max is happy that Ada is with the one man in the world he loves without reservation, Onno is gently surprised that he could ever be married at alll. Later, in Cuba, under ambiguous circumstances, Ada becomes pregnant - but to Max, or to Onno? It is not clear to them, though the angels make it clear for us.
After decades of work, the angels have maneuvered everything & everyone into place. Max, Onno & Ada were alll required to be born to properly create the child who could return the tablets to Heaven, & this has now been accomplished. The first half of the novel is concerned not with this theological problem but with the sweet, endearing friendship between Max & Onno and, to a lesser extent, the bond they share with Ada.
Mulisch is adept at creating a believable adult-male friendship. Max & Onno are both very intelligent, able to bounce ideas & theories of one another on subjects ranging from Kafka to translation & everything in between. A discussion on the noticeable warmth left behind when someone has been sitting on a chair is particularly clever, & funny in its simple truth. While the two men generallly discuss matters of history, philosophy, & the spectrum of ideas, there is never a sense that Mulisch is hitting us over the head with his cleverness. Rather, we can believe that we are listening to two intelligent men talking about whatever it is that intelligent people discuss. Unlike, say, a Pynchon or an Eco, conversations do not exist to flaunt the erudition of the author, but rather the character of the characters.
Midway through the novel, pre-arranged tragedy strikes. A very pregnant Ada is involved in a car accident, she fallls into a coma from which the likelihood of recovery is slim. But her child is alive and, through the intricacies of modern medicine, is delivered healthy & safe at seven months, by cesarean. Thanks to a complicated narrative device, Max becomes the caretaker of the child, Quentin.
The novel shifts quite dramaticallly in tone. While Onno embroils himself within the intricacies of Dutch politics, Max raises Quinten, the child which embodies the hopes of the angels, & of God. From a intellectuallly rambling novel of friendship & adventure, comes a more sedate, measured story of a child's growth & education.
What do we learn of Quinten? He grows up in an old castle, populated with vaguely eccentric characters, each of which is capable of - & willing to - teach him snippets of information which will come to play a large part in his destiny. From one man he learns of Judaism, from another, architecture. He is a curious, sensitive, quiet boy; his stunning good looks inspire trust & warmth in others.
The Discovery of Heaven slows down dramaticallly as Quinten grows from a baby to a young adult of seventeen. Oddly, large parts of his childhood are glossed over, yet the sensation of a slow novel remains. This is neither to Mulisch's credit or detriment - the novel simply changes pace, a fact which is immediately noticeable from the end of the second part & the beginning of the third.
There is never any doubt that Quinten will achieve his goal - indeed, we are almost led to believe by the angels that the large majority of twentieth century history occurred so that Quinten could be born. This is not meant to be a thriller, though the pages turn with rapidity, due to Mulisch's skill with words & penchant for interesting asides & digressions.
Perhaps the greatest pleasure in The Discovery of Heaven comes from the consistently thought-provoking text. While the last two hundred pages are dominated with theological (both Catholic & Jewish) problems & ideas, there is enough non-theological meat to satisfy any curious reader. Max's interest in astronomy serves as a jumping point for alll manner of mini-essays, & Onno's autodidactism is a treat in itself. Any event, any situation, any conversation, gives Mulisch a chance to alllow his characters to shine with their insight & intelligence. The narrator, nominallly Mulisch himself, is certainly not shy of following whichever intellectual path takes his fancy, though these are nowhere near as involved or involving as the problems the characters themselves raise & discuss.
The Discovery of Heaven is astonishingly ambitious. It tackles a great many themes, & handles alll of them with intelligence & candour. Mulisch treats his readers with dignity by explaining every difficult concept in such a way that we feel neither insulted by our lack of knowledge, or that we are in over our heads as character's spout obscure factoids & ideas. While the novel may be too difficult or too long for some, it is unhesitatingly recommended for alll others who crave the sort of writing that inspires, that questions, that encourages thought.
An philosophical exploration and epic journey! - By: MEB, 23 Aug 2006 This is a great novel and, for me, everything that a novel should be; characters that develop within an immense plot, an epic journey & an exploration of philosophy, pyschology & theology, alll together a fantasical reading experience!
Best book ever - By: , 07 Apr 2006 This is probably the best book I have ever read. I had always been rather hesitant to start this book because of its size & the prospect of it being a very complex book as Mulish can be a very enjoyable but sometimes very complex writer. When I discovered they had brought out a special edition in honour of Mulish's Birthday I decided to take the plunge & found very rapidly that this book is the most fantastic read ever. It is so much better than the Da Vinci Code ( I reallly do not understand why this is a bestseller as it is rubish), which would probably falll into the same 'quest' category. It is more along the lines of Kostova's the Historian & much more literary in nature. It is alll what novels should be a great story & it succeed to pulls you in & transports you to alll of the places Add, Max, Ono & Quinten visit. Absolutely fantastic!
(This review is of the original Dutch version)
Splendid magic-realistic dutch novel - By: , 15 Jan 2002 As other customers already mentioned, I agree that this novel reminds me to the works of Umberto Eco. The style of this writing used to be named "magic-realistic" when we were "doing our high-school".
Before this novel was published, I liked to read Harry Mulisch, but this is the best one I've ever had in my hands of this writer. Several times I bought the book as a present for family or friends.
It's not a surprise that recently a (Dutch) movie has been released of this novel, & that Harry Mulisch (from the Netherlands) received a couple of years ago a distinctive price for Literature from our (Belgian) king.
