Following the loss of her husband and son, Helen Cartwright returns to the village of her childhood after living abroad for six decades. Her only wish is to die quickly and without fuss. She retreats into her home on Westminster Crescent, becoming a creature of routine and habit: “Each day was an impersonation of the one before with only a slight shuffle --- as though even for death there is a queue.” Then, one cold winter night, a chance encounter with a mouse sets Helen on a surprising journey. SIPSWORTH is a reminder that there can be second chances. No matter what we have planned for ourselves, sometimes life has plans of its own.

“What you give in this world,” an old man tells his grandson, “will be given back to you.” Those words illuminate the actions within award-winning author Simon Van Booy's novel and its connected characters. A young man survives two nearly fatal accidents. A Black family saves an orphaned white boy. A pregnant teenager is rescued by the side of the road. A teenager with developmental disabilities is given his first job. Each incident grows in meaning and power over many decades as we see connections sometimes felt but not always apparent to the people themselves.

Over the past decade, Simon Van Booy has been listening to people’s stories. With these personal accounts as a starting point, he has crafted a new collection of short fiction that takes readers into the innermost lives of everyday people. From a family saved from ruin by a mysterious benefactor, to a downtrodden boxer who shows unexpected kindness to a mugger, these tales reveal not only the precarious balance maintained between grief and happiness in our lives, but also how the echoes of personal tragedy can shape us for the better.

When devastating news shatters the life of six-year-old Harvey, she finds herself in the care of a veteran social worker, Wanda, and alone in the world save for one relative she has never met --- a disabled felon, haunted by a violent past he can't escape. Moving between past and present, FATHER'S DAY weaves together the story of Harvey’s childhood on Long Island and her life as a young woman in Paris.

In his first book of short stories since LOVE BEGINS IN WINTER, Simon Van Booy offers a collection of stories highlighting how human genius can emerge through acts of compassion. Through characters including an eccentric film director, an aging Cockney bodyguard, the teenage child of Nigerian immigrants, a divorced amateur magician from New Jersey, and a Beijing street vendor who becomes an overnight billionaire, TALES OF ACCIDENTAL GENIUS contemplates individuals from different cultures and races, and reveals how faith and yearning for connection helps us all transcend darkness of fear and misfortune.

Simon Van Booy brings to the page his unique talent for poetic dialogue and sumptuous imagery in this, his remarkable debut novel of love and loss, dependence and independence.