The Reader (Movie Tie-in Edition) (Vintage International)

Very good.

Better than the movie

Enjoyed the movie much better than the book

Had a lasting effect on me.

Este libro fue un hallazgo, una perla, nunca pensé que iba a convertirse en una película. Puede ser leído en una noche, por la fuerza de su argumento y la intensidad de la historia y sus protagonistas. Las huellas que puede dejar en el alma de un chico muy joven, vivir una historia de amor con una mujer mayor, con un alma endurecida, con actitudes inexplicables. Mas tarde descubrir que esa...more

Este libro fue un hallazgo, una perla, nunca pensé que iba a convertirse en una película. Puede ser leído en una noche, por la fuerza de su argumento y la intensidad de la historia y sus protagonistas. Las huellas que puede dejar en el alma de un chico muy joven, vivir una historia de amor con una mujer mayor, con un alma endurecida, con actitudes inexplicables. Mas tarde descubrir que esa mujer era una criminal de guerra nazi, cuya verguenza mayor no eran los crímenes cometidos, sino un secreto que guardaba como si fuera el mayor de sus pecados: ser analfabeta. El autor logra transmitir con maestría las emociones de este hombre y hasta qué punto su vida se vio completamente afectada y condicionada por este primer encuentro amoroso.   hide

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So, this book didn't do that much for me. I really wanted to like it, to love it even but it just wasn't there. I think there was a lot lost in the translation from German to English. I couldn't connect with the characters and while the ending was a shock, it should've done so much more to me. The narrator spent so much time talking about how numb he was and about things like law...more

So, this book didn't do that much for me. I really wanted to like it, to love it even but it just wasn't there. I think there was a lot lost in the translation from German to English. I couldn't connect with the characters and while the ending was a shock, it should've done so much more to me. The narrator spent so much time talking about how numb he was and about things like law and stories that were completely irrelevant to what was happening. I just couldn't get into it. I think there are some good points brought up in The Reader. I think everyone who has ever had their heart broken can relate to the "numb" feelings he spoke so openly about. I think we can all relate to the fact that making yourself feel nothing instead of something is just easier and there's no responsibility in that, no guilt. No need to let anything touch you and the feeling of invincibility really is there. Some might be able to relate to Hannah and her situation though I don't think there's ever a "good" reason to do what she did in the end. There are some valuable things to take from The Reader. Some interesting things. It's a really unique book in that it is the woman who is "heartless" instead of the man. It is the woman who leaves her lover and leaves him a disaster. It is the man who is affected for a lifetime by being in love with someone instead of the woman. I really like that. It shows that women aren't always the "weak" ones, that men indeed do have emotions and can be affected and hurt by a relationship. I like the style of writing. The sentences were short and to the point though this also created a lack in character development so you win some, you lose some I suppose. The chapters are short and the book is in three parts, I like that, it goes by quickly. Overall, I wasn't greatly impressed with it. As a part of Oprah's Book Club, I was really expecting it to be just amazing and Kate Winslet in the movie, she ALWAYS delivers but this just wasn't there for me. (I know it's Oprah, but she really does know her books. haha.)   hide

"... se a verdade daquilo que dizemos é aquilo que fazemos, então bem podemos deixar de falar."

Loved it, and read it after seeing the movie, which is rare for me.