Review: The Book of Illusions by Paul Auster

A strangely captivating novel I didn’t expect to love so much

Picking Up a Book I Knew Nothing About

I found The Book of Illusions completely by accident—pulled it off my parents-in-law’s shelf because the title looked mysterious enough. Honestly, I didn’t expect much. 

The first pages were interesting and well written, sure, but I didn’t think it would be the sort of novel that hijacks your entire afternoon.

Spoiler: it absolutely did.

A Tragedy So Heavy You Almost Want to Look Away

Auster opens the book with a heartbreak so intense that it almost feels unfair to read about it. Your first reaction might be exactly that: This isn’t fair. David Zimmer, the protagonist, has been shattered by loss. And then, in a way only Auster can pull off, Zimmer begins to crawl out of his despair through the oddest possible gateway: a sudden obsession with a forgotten silent-film comedian named Hector Mann.

It’s such a strange setup—but somehow it works.

Falling Down the Rabbit Hole With David Zimmer

As Zimmer dives deeper into Mann’s mysterious past, you find yourself diving with him. It becomes one of those books where you tell yourself, Just one more chapter, and then suddenly it’s two hours later, and your coffee is cold. The story-within-a-story structure pulls you in, and the deeper you go, the more you want.

Auster is known for playful structures—if you’ve read The New York Trilogy, you’ll recognize the same love of doubles, secrets, and shifting identities. But in this novel, everything feels more emotional, more grounded in genuine grief. It’s a mystery, but also a portrait of someone trying desperately to hold himself together.

Yes, It Has Long Chapters—but Don’t Let That Scare You

Some readers get intimidated by Auster’s long paragraphs and sometimes dense structure. I get it. But here, the story is so intricate—and so quietly suspenseful—that the heaviness fades away. Before long, you’re not thinking about paragraph length at all; you’re too busy turning pages.

It gave me the same feeling I had reading Sebald’s Austerlitz or even Nabokov’s Pale Fire: that sense of one life being revealed through another, and the pleasure of piecing together a puzzle that isn’t fully meant to be solved.

Characters You Can’t Help but Care About

Zimmer is easy to empathize with. On the surface, this could be the story of a widower’s slow return to life, and in some ways it is. But Auster layers it with so much mystery, longing, and cinematic nostalgia that it becomes something richer. 

The moment a certain woman appears in Zimmer’s life, you think you know where the story is headed—but trust me, you don’t.

Auster is sneaky that way.

A Dramatic, Breath-Stealing Ending

And then there’s the ending. Dramatic? Yes. Unexpected? Definitely. Perfect? Honestly…yes. It’s one of those conclusions that snaps the whole book into focus and leaves you sitting there quietly processing for a moment.

Auster has always been great at endings—Moon Palace, Oracle Night, and The Music of Chance all have that same “pause and breathe” effect. This one might be his most haunting of all.

Final Thoughts

The Book of Illusions surprised me in the best possible way. What begins as a story about grief turns into a meditation on art, identity, and the strange illusions we create to survive. It’s emotional, mysterious, and beautifully told.

If you’re already a Paul Auster fan, this book is an essential read. And if you’re new to him, this might be the perfect place to start.