Hailed for its coiled eroticism and the moral claims it makes upon the reader， this mesmerizing novel is a story of love and secrets， horror and compassion， unfolding against the haunted landscape of postwar Germany.<br><br>When he falls ill on his way home from school， fifteen-year-old Michael Berg is rescued by Hanna， a woman twice his age. In time she becomes his lover—then she inexplicably disappears. When Michael next sees her， he is a young law student， and she is on trial for a hideous crime. As he watches her refuse to defend her innocence， Michael gradually realizes that Hanna may be guarding a secret she considers more shameful than murder.
 

《生死朗读》以叙事人米夏尔・白格的视角记录了纳粹集中营女看守汉娜・ 史密芝的个人史。米夏尔１５岁时遇见３６岁的汉娜，两人保持了一段有畸形色彩的性爱关系。正在热烈之时，汉娜却神秘失踪了，唯剩下米夏尔怅然若失。汉娜是个情绪不稳定的女人，喜欢听米夏尔为她朗读文学书籍，除此之外米夏尔对汉娜几乎一无所知。直至米夏尔升入大学，作为法律系学生参与法庭实习，在旁听审判纳粹集中营罪犯时，方知汉娜的真实身份。 如果说少年时对汉娜母性的畸恋仅是一段插曲，那么对汉娜的审讯则影响了米夏尔的一生。悲剧是出其不意地揭开的。在法庭上，面对证据――――一份至关重要的、向纳粹上司的报告，法官要求汉娜作笔迹鉴定。为了不暴露自己是个文盲，她居然承认是自己撰写了那份报告，从而成为二战末期一场犹太人悲剧的责任承担者，被判处终身监禁，１８年后被赦免。１８年中米夏尔经历了种种变迁，仍关注着狱中的汉娜，并给她寄去了一卷又一卷他朗读的文学名著录音带。不料，在汉娜出狱的前一天，她却以自缢的方式在黎明时分结束了自己的生命。