A teacher marks one essay wrong—and a nation marks him for death of the soul.
Who drives the story
A lonely geography and history teacher, son of a bitter disabled veteran, who no longer believes in God but still believes in marking wrong answers wrong. His honesty costs him his job, his world, and finally hands him a mission: find the God who left.
The detached boy with a blue-stoned ring who reads the Bible in secret while his classmates scream slogans. Falsely accused of murder, exonerated, he emigrates to Africa because he can't breathe in Germany anymore.
The boy who defines honor as revenge and then kills N in a fight over Eva and a stolen ring. The court praises his 'Aryan spirit' and lets him off lightly.
The student whose racist essay starts everything; he steals T's ring and is found dead in the woods with his skull crushed by a rock.
A poor village girl secretly meeting several boys from the camp, including N and Z. Her tangled loyalties hold the key to the murder.
Also in the story
The regime's man at the school, who warns the teacher that one marginal note could cost him his job because N's father is a high-ranking party official.
How they are connected
The boy who defines honor as revenge and then kills N in a fight over Eva and a stolen ring.
The boy who defines honor as revenge and then kills N in a fight over Eva and a stolen ring.
The student whose racist essay starts everything; he steals T's ring and is found dead in the woods with his skull crushed by a rock.
A poor village girl secretly meeting several boys from the camp, including N and Z.
The regime's man at the school, who warns the teacher that one marginal note could cost him his job because N's father is a high-ranking party official.
The regime's man at the school, who warns the teacher that one marginal note could cost him his job because N's father is a high-ranking party official.
Go deeper
Truth as a punishable act · The dehumanization of youth · God abandoned, God sought · Desire beneath the drills
Themes explainedThe full story act by act, the ending explained and a quick quiz.
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