Homecoming Book

Bernhard Schlink should have written an essay or article on the theory of law, justice and the philosophy of good and evil and left it at that. Instead he tried carve a story about a boy's search for an absent father into this lecture. I think there are some interesting concepts explored in the book, and it had the potential to be another "The Reader"- his first novel, but it needed to be revised (more than once) and a heavy hand of editing would have helped too.
I like books that have a mythological theme throughout, but while Schlink uses the Odyssey and the genre of "homecoming" literature, he isn't able to thread it into the fabric of the story very successfully. In fact it's overused. Instead you read point of view newspaper articles of the mystery character he is researching and in Part 5 you get to attend actual lectures and seminars and hear him pontificate.
When Schlink actually remembered that he was writing a novel, you get a glimpse of what he's capable. The opening of the book where he describes his summer visits to his grandparents is beautifully done. He also makes use of déjà-vous both conceptually and practically and it's well done (except he tries to reuse it at the end again and makes a mash of it). The loveless relationship he has with his mother is also done well and faithfully throughout the entire novel.
The ending (Part 5) is a huge disappointment. The bizarre climatic event was actually annoying (so much so that I admit to skimming through a few pages - and I NEVER do that). Thinking about it, Schlink needed something to break his desire to continue seeking his father. The event is what allows him to turn off the TV midway through watching his father being interviewed on National TV. He irrevocably shuts his father from his life in the same manner his father did to him as a young boy.
A book is supposed to give you something. Sometimes it's just the pure pleasure of an author's style of writing, sometimes it's the pure genius creativity of the story. It could be that you are learning something new….like travelling in the shoes of someone different and gaining their perspective on life, or you could learn about the country and culture in which the book takes place. Sometimes you can relate to the author (they are in similar circumstances as you) or they are describing places and events you've been. This novel didn't give me anything other than the enjoyment of reading Part 1 (which I will always remember as a short story), and perhaps the knowledge that the philosophy of law, good, evil and justice are topics I am not genuinely interested in.