"The uncanny beauty of Van Booy's prose, and his ability to knife straight to the depths of a character's heart, fill a reader with wonder....There are so many wonderful sentences in this book, a reviewer groans for want of room to list them." -- San Francisco Chronicle

In The Illusion of Separateness, award-winning author Simon Van Booy tells a harrowing and enchanting story of how one man's act of mercy during World War II changed the lives of strangers, and how they each discover the astonishing truth of their connection.

Whether they are pursued by Nazi soldiers, old age, shame, disease, or regret, the characters in this utterly compelling novel discover in their darkest moments of fear and isolation that they are not alone, that they were never alone, that every human being is a link in an unseen chain.

The Illusion of Separateness intertwines the stories of unique and compelling characters who--through seemingly random acts of selflessness--discover the vital parts they have played in each other's lives.