Returning home, 15-year-old Michael Berg is in crisis. He is helped by a 35-year-old woman. Later, the teenager visits her with a bouquet of flowers to thank her. He visits her again because Hannah is the first woman he desires. It is the beginning of a secret love affair. However, a mystery surrounds Hannah. One day she disappears. From his life, not from his thoughts. Years later, he sees her as a law student, in the courtroom. Hannah is accused as a war criminal. The young lawyer is shaken. The past - his love and his country - comes alive again...

A novel with multiple layers of reading, "Reading in the Dark" is distinguished for this advantage that only high-quality works possess and for this reason they are increasingly rare: it is a short and at the same time stunning novel that can be enjoyed by all readers, demanding and non-demanding.

The book has been translated into 28 languages and has achieved unprecedented success everywhere, from America to Japan. The translation by Jacob Koperdi won the German Translation Award in 2000. In the autumn of 2008, the film adaptation of the novel was released by Stephen Daldry (Greek title: "Sealed Lips") starring Kate Winslet, David Cross, and Ralph Fiennes in the lead roles.