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Summary: Inexplicable
Review: Some things in life are just inexplicable. In a rational world, we spew forth words to express meaning, as though we really "know" something. In The Reader, we are faced with a story where the familiar is just a facade; like a building in war torn Germany. Underneath that facade there is a 15-year old boy trying to be a man. There is a 36-year old woman trying survive in literate world with an inability to read. There is a mother and daughter deserving justice, who never find it, even when their perpetrator sentenced in a court of law and dies in prison. There are silent victims who speak loudly from the grave, but are only faintly heard. Most inexplicable, is human compassion, where one can love even heineous war criminal, yet not "know" them for who they truly are.
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Summary: The story abbsolutely captivates the reader!
Review: I enjoyed this book. The ending wasn't the climax I expected, but it was still very thought provoking. The story shows how naive and strong people can be through life.
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Summary: Terrific for discussion groups!
Review: Great for discussion groups because it presents at least four morality issues. Endless discussions for students and book groups. Appropriate for mature students.
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Summary: tremendous and disturbing
Review: I could't put this book down. The imagery Michael presents of his memories with Hanna--juxtaposed with the realities of who she really was--allows us to consider our own frailties and our own ideas of both who and what we are. What is real? How do we cope? Michael's discussion with a man who justifies his involvement in WWII continues the underlying dichotomy--what is the manner in which we would have behaved under the same circumstances? What would you have done? The moral dilemmas stay with me. The characters and theme are reminiscent of Camus' The Stranger. I was thankful for the sparse yet powerful language. It allowed me to ruminate on what occurred without telling me how. A disturbing and intriguing read.
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Summary: Haunting...
Review: I read this book a few weeks ago and it continues to haunt me. I realize most of us will never deal directly with anything so horrific in our own lives, however we all have demons to deal with. Americans have had to learn to live with a less than perfect history. The novel has so many layers for such a short novel--it leaves you with much to think about and much to share with your children.
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Summary: An important and well written book. However, VERY boring.
Review: This book has a very important message and is extremely well written. I loved the author's style which is simple and not overly wordy. However, I did not like a single character that I met in this book. Perhaps that was intentional. The whole time I was reading it I had to ask myself why I didn't just put it down. It's a book that must be finished. It is important. It's just not entertaining.
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Summary: A touching story written in a most poetic form......
Review: This book spoke to me in a way that few do. The way the author used the language and described certain situations were absolutely relatable. "The Reader" should be missed by no one. It's a fast easy read and should be picked up for a beach day book.....it won't disappoint.......kris/nj
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Summary: A thought-provoking contemplation of the Nazi past
Review: I am astonished by the number or reviewers who missed the point of this novel enough to give it one star. I have to wonder if they bothered to finish it.Although I was sometimes annoyed by the fact that the point-of-view is so legal, I kept in mind that Schlink is not a novelist by profession but a scholar of law. In that sense, his very direct method of moral analysis seems perfectly appropriate. Schlink simply approaches the novel and its penetrating moral questions from his area of expertise, and there's certainly nothing wrong with that. As a scholar of the German language and culture, however, I am disturbed that so many of my fellow Americans missed the point so completely. Perhaps many of us are incapable of comprehending and analyzing difficult moral issues and their effects of the human psyche. The United States has, after all, never had to deal with the guilt that invariably follows an event as inexplicable and horrifying as the Holocaust. Understanding of such difficult moral questions is the only way to avoid complicity in our own Holocausts, and, as such, it is essential that we dismiss neither the far-reaching effects of such a tragedy nor our own moral failures. _The Reader_ eloquently examines the questions and guilt that modern-day Germans continue to face -- even 55 years after the Third Reich. This novel forces the reader to ask herself what she would have done in Nazi Germany and to ponder how one can finally free oneself from guilt. If you like thought-provoking novels -- and especially if you're a Germanophile, you'll love this book.
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Summary: Conflicted - both in content and theme
Review: This book is interesting in that the reviews are either 5 stars or 1-2 stars. People either love it or hate it - no middle of the road. I have read it once and will have to read it again before giving it an intelligent review. However, I think it is a book that everyone should read, just to gain their own opinion - it isn't something you should take someone else's opinion for. Kind of like "Catcher in the Rye" or "Grapes of Wrath" - you may not like the message or even enjoy the book - but you should read it.
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Summary: Was Disappointed
Review: I thought this book was going to incorporate more history in the story. I had a hard time with the moral issues prevalent in the book, but at the same time was illuminated by how impressionable young people are. At the tender age of 15 major events can and most likely will have a lasting impression on that persons life. Was a quick read, but was disappointed. It was not all I expected.
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