Although God Knows departs from Heller's previous three novels in portraying a historical period and place remote from contemporary America and in not attacking a particular bureaucracy, as Heller does with the military in Catch-22 (1961; see separate entry), corporate business in Something Happened, and the federal government in Good as Gold, it shares with Heller's other books major thematic concerns. For example, Heller's first four novels all explore problematic father-son relationships, contain graphic sex scenes, depict jockeying for political power, convey a strong awareness of mortality, and paint a world that seemingly lacks justice and rationality. Furthermore, all four novels focus upon a protagonist who feels alienated and insecure.

Stylistic parallels between Heller's four novels are also apparent, especially in their fragmented chronology and caricatured characterizations. Probably God Knows is best likened to Something Happened, for in both works Heller employs a first-person monologue that through...