Self's Punishment: A Mystery
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Review
"This compelling tale - the first of three , written with Walter Popp, a fellow lawyer - offers a sharp critique of German postwar society, and its refusal to confront its war time past. The seriousness of this underlying message does not detract from the novel's more entertaining qualities however." (CHRISTINA KONING THE TIMES )
"compelling" (DAILY TELEGRAPH )
"A deserved reprint for a gutsy German detective thriller... This is an atmospheric, tautly plotted narrative with a satisfyingly complex protagonist, elevating an ostensibly pedestrian mystery." (THE HERALD )
"with a cover that is finest film noir... Like all the best fictional detectives he has plenty of curious quirks... Meets the Sam Spade Grade 3/5" (Lorne Jackson BIRMINGHAM SUNDAY MERCURY )
"compelling" (DAILY TELEGRAPH )
"A deserved reprint for a gutsy German detective thriller... This is an atmospheric, tautly plotted narrative with a satisfyingly complex protagonist, elevating an ostensibly pedestrian mystery." (THE HERALD )
"with a cover that is finest film noir... Like all the best fictional detectives he has plenty of curious quirks... Meets the Sam Spade Grade 3/5" (Lorne Jackson BIRMINGHAM SUNDAY MERCURY )
SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY
"Here the crime novel becomes the vessel for a more raw, immediate and violent response to the demands of guilt and reparation than The Reader allows... strangely compelling."
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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First Sentence
At the beginning I envied him. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
At the beginning I envied him. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A good guy with a Nazi past?,
By
This review is from: Self's Punishment: A Mystery (Paperback)
Self is an ex-Nazi prosecutor who ceased prosecuting in 1945 and has since then been a private investigator. His brother-in-law, the head of a huge chemical company has asked Self to investigate how the company's computer system has been hacked into. Self takes on the investigation while simultaneously working on another case for an insurance company into a claim by a dancer for a broken leg.
Self, rather apolitical now, is beginning to worry more about his nazi past and in particular his role in the war-time prosecution of some scientists working for the same company where his brother-in-law was also a scientist during the war. The novel is well-plotted, and in it, as he does in The Reader, Schlink questions, this time with a light touch, the responsibility of an ordinary German for what happened during the Nazi period. Self comes to understand that as far as he is concerned maybe he does need to try to atone for the part he played, even though, like many Germans, he seems to have been to an extent an unthinking participant in the workings of the Nazi system. The central characters have distinct identities and are well-fleshed out without unnecessary trivia, but with enough detail to give the reader a real insight into his life-style and environment. Self is a likeable enough protagonist. This is not an action-packed crime novel, but it is well-crafted.
4.0 out of 5 stars
A very complex yet appealing protagonist in a very good mystery,
By
This review is from: Self's Punishment: A Mystery (Paperback)
First Sentence: At the beginning, I envied him.
Gerhard self has been a Nazi prosecutor, and is now a private investigator. When a computer hacker creaks into the systems of a chemical plant, Self is hired to find the hacker. When the hacker dies in an accident, Self isn't so certain the verdict of "accident" is correct and ventures down a road that takes him back to the past. The first difference between this, and most PI novels, is having a protagonist who is 68 years old. However, his age is chronological only. Self can hold his own in a fight, and is quite the ladies' man, though one of his closest relationships is with his cat, Turbo. Another difference is in the details of his daily life from shopping, preparing meals, going on holiday, going to an open-air concert and dancing; even a scene in a men's bathroom. The author's style is compelling. The passage of time is shown as we move through the seasons and changes in weather with Self. There are wonderful descriptions of food and meals paired with wines. His subtle use of humor is effective and allows us to know the personality of the character..."No one apart from Frau Schlemihl addresses me as `Doctor'. Since I stopped being a public prosecutor, I've not used my title. A private detective with a Ph.D. is ridiculous.", and often focus on things with which one can empathize..."If there's one thing I hate, it's homemade cigarettes. They are way up there with crocheted modesty covers for toilet paper." Living in the Bay Area, I personally enjoyed Self travelling to San Francisco only to find a connection to his own past and events which happened during the war. Written in 1987, it shows how quickly technology has evolved to today from the late 80's when it was still quite young. Interesting detail on air quality monitors. The technical and investigative information is offset by the inclusion of details as to his daily life. I enjoyed seeing a bit of his non-working time, cooking, going to an open-air concert, dancing, going on holiday in Greece...excellent transitions indicating the passage of time. Wonderful descriptions of food and meals paired with wines. This was a very good book. I liked the writing and the details. It was not the strongest mystery but it had a shocking and completely unexpected ending about which I'm not certain how I feel, but I haven't stopped thinking about it. I was never tempted to stop reading it and would definitely read another in the series. SELF'S PUNISHMENT (Hist Mys/PI - Gerhard Self-Germany-Contemp) - VG Schlink, Bernhard (trans. By Walter Popp) - 1st in series Vintage Crime/Black Lizard, 2005, US trade paperback - ISBN: 037570907X
1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Uninvolving.,
By
This review is from: Self's Punishment: A Mystery (Paperback)
I chose this in preference to "The Reader" because I was about to see the film of that book.
What is immediately noticeable is a strange style ,which might be an attempt to portray the naive personality of the central figure,the result of a stilted ,too literal translation,or simply an author failing to convince the reader of his ability. The central plot about fiddling a factory's industrial emissions is complicated and presented in an uninteresting way, and the hints at Self's romantic inclinations seem dated and slightly ludicrous. I had the feel of several disparate parts of a novel which the author has put together unskillfully,and this coupled with the simple language used and the dispassionate uninvolved central figure made it difficult to care about events.Peripheral figures are sketchily drawn,adding to a vagueness about the whole enterprise.I also suffered from some chronological confusion about the hero's age and the exact period of the tale. Nevertheless , my general interest in post-war Germany and it's problems which drew me to the book were sufficient for me to happily complete reading it,and it's shortcomings are not sufficiently serious for me to condemm it.I found it to be an undemanding ,fairly pleasant way of passing the time. I would need to leaf through another work by this author before convincing me to purchase again,however.
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