| Fifteen-year old Michael Berg is on his way home from school when he is sick outside an apartment building. A woman helps him to clean up and takes him home. When he returns to thank her, he and Hanna become friends. Hanna takes an interest in Michael's school work, insisting that he study hard and asking him to read aloud to her from his school books. Even though Hanna is twice his age, she seduces him, and the two embark on a friendship and affair which ends abruptly when Hanna disappears.
Many years later, when Michael is studying law, he sees Hanna again, this time in a court of law. Hanna and a group of other women are accused of horrifying war time atrocities. Michael becomes obsessed with the trial. He at last understands some of the mystery surrounding Hanna. However, Hanna refuses to defend herself in court, and Michael is left with a new mystery about the women he realizes he knew so little. As Michael strives to understand Hanna's past, he also tries to understand where he fit into Hanna's life. | ||
|
Plot & Themes Tone of book? - thoughtful Time/era of story - 1960's-1970's Romance/Romance Problems Yes Kind of romance: Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book Lover is Main Character Gender - Male Profession/status: Ethnicity/Nationality Main Adversary Identity: - Female Age: - 40's-50's How sensitive is this character? Intelligence - Average intelligence Setting How much descriptions of surroundings? - 4 () Europe Yes European country: - Germany Small town? Yes Misc setting Writing Style Sex in book? Yes What kind of sex: - vague references only - descript of kissing Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |
||