The Reader

Interesting Facts

• The book explores complex themes of guilt, shame, and moral responsibility through the love story between a teenager and a woman who turns out to be a former concentration camp guard.
• One of the key themes of the book is illiteracy, which plays a significant role in the fate and actions of the main character.
• The novel was adapted into a film in 2008, and the movie won an Oscar for Best Actress, awarded to Kate Winslet.
• The book raises questions about how subsequent generations should relate to the crimes of the Nazi regime and how they can reconcile with the past.
• The work became the first German novel to top The New York Times bestseller list.