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The Innocent Book Summary and Study Guide

Detailed plot synopsis reviews of The Innocent


Leonard is a young British man who works for the British Post Office. He is sent to post World War II, pre-Wall Berlin to work on a top secret joint venture between the American and British military. They are digging a tunnel in order to enable them to tap into Russian phone lines for the purposes of spying. Leonard, who is a total innocent when he arrives in Berlin, is thrust into an unfamiliar world of secrecy and mistrust. Not only is he involved in a project to spy on the Russians, but the Americans and British, who are working together, are mistrustful of each other as well. Leonard works under a paranoid American named Bob Glass. Despite Glass's warnings, Leonard gets involved with a German woman named Maria who has a violent ex-husband that turns up occasionally. Through his relationship with Maria, Leonard loses every kind of innocence he had--sexual, moral, patriotic. The circumstances of their relationship lead Leonard not only to murder and covering up that crime, but also to betrayal of his job and country.
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The review of this Book prepared by Heather B.



Chapter Analysis of The Innocent

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Plot & Themes

Composition of Book descript. of violence and chases 20%Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives 20%Feelings, relationships, character bio/development 40%How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) 20% Tone of story    -   depressing/sad Time/era of story:    -   1930's-1950's Spying/Terrorism Thriller    -   Yes Cloak & Dagger Plotlets:    -   main char. spying/sabotage    -   govt. doing secret bad things abroad Kid or adult book?    -   Adult or Young Adult Book War-time military intelligence mission?    -   Yes Who's the terrorist enemy here?    -   commies! Is Romance a MAJOR (25%+) part of story?    -   Yes

Main Character

Gender    -   Male Profession/status:    -   engineer Ethnicity/Race    -   British

Setting

Europe    -   Yes European country:    -   Germany City?    -   Yes City:    -   dangerous

Writing Style

Accounts of torture and death?    -   very gorey descriptions deaths/dead bodies Explicit sex in book?    -   Yes What kind of sex:    -   actual description of sex Amount of dialog    -   significantly more descript than dialog

Books with storylines, themes & endings like The Innocent

Ian McEwan Books Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s).
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