Enigmatic power of words

War and After

The Goethe-Institute/Max Mueller Bhavan, in collaboration with Toto Funds the Arts (TFA), is holding the reading of the the award-winning novel The Reader by German writer Bernhard Schlink. The book will be introduced to Bangalore audience on
June 12, 6.30 pm at the Bhavan. Entry is free.

The compelling story of The Reader in many ways touches on the deeply transformative power of words and literacy and this will be animated through reading and discussion.

The discussants are Arul Mani, Reader in the English Department at St Joseph’s College and C K Meena, columnist and author. The readers are Cheriyan Alexander, Professor of
English at St Joseph’s College, Srinath Perur, writer and Avinash Kuduvalli, student.

The Reader is a tale about sex, love, reading and shame in post-war Germany. Michael Berg is 15 when he begins a long, obsessive affair with Hanna, an enigmatic older woman. He never learns very much about her, and when she disappears one day, he expects never to see her again. But, to his horror, he does. Hanna is a defendant in a trial related to Germany’s Nazi past, and it soon becomes clear that she is guilty of an unspeakable crime... Written by Berlin law professor and mystery novelist Bernhard Schlink, the semi-autobiographical work was published in 1995, later translated into 40 other languages, and became the first German novel to top the New York Times’ bestseller list, garnering widespread attention in 1999 after Oprah Winfrey chose the title for her popular book club. The novel is considered so important to understand the country’s history that it has even been used as a textbook in German schools. The Reader has been made into a film by Stephen Daldry, with Kate Winslet winning the 2009 Academy Award for Best Actress for her role as Hanna Schmitz.

For details, call 25205305 or visit www.goethe.de/bangalore