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Homecoming
Bernhard Schlink
#UC0402
Hardcover, 260 pages; 2008
$19.20
After reading discarded bits of paper in the home of his Swiss grandparents, who run a small publishing house, young Peter Debauer tries to piece together an intriguing story written by a German soldier during WWII. As he grows older, clues from the story lead Peter to search for his long-lost father, wondering if he might have been the writer of the story. (His mother offers little help in the process.) When he eventually finds his father—now a famous professor at Columbia University—their reunion evolves into an intellectual battle. Learning of his father’s unconscionable behavior during the war and his revolting political philosophy—and reeling from his own repugnance at it—Peter returns to Europe. Oddly enough, knowing who and what his father really is somehow takes the edge off a lifetime of insecurity. There’s hope that he’ll start a new life, knowing the truth and yet leaving it behind.
(EE)
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