Reunion Summary - Fred Uhlman

• Title :                   Reunion 
• Author :               Fred Uhlman 
• Language:            English
• Genre:                  Autobiographical novel
• Publication date : 1971 
• Time and place of the story : Germany, city of Stuttgart, early 1930s. The story takes place in the former Duchy of Swabia.

Summary 

Hans, the narrator, comes from a Jewish family. At the time of the narration, he is an adult who writes about his life as a teenager and the deep friendship that binds him to a young German aristocrat. At sixteen, Hans has a great passion for Germany, his country. Among his classmates, he does not know any that he really wants as a friend. The teenager is a loner. He is interested in all things literary and has a great deal of knowledge about them. He reads and writes poetry and has built up a collection of old coins. His father practiced as a physician and was highly respected in his field. He fought in World War I and was decorated. Hans' family has always lived in the city of Stuttgart and has done so for generations.

Hans is a lonely high school student. His days are similar and little by little, monotony finds its ease in his daily life. But the arrival of the new boy in his class will change Hans' life. Conrad von Hohenfels comes from a large aristocratic family whose fame still endures. He distinguishes himself from his classmates by his impeccable dress. He was always very well dressed, from head to toe. If his family name is enough to inspire respect among his classmates, his elegance forces their admiration. Conrad is a studious student. As solitary as Hans, he does not try to make friends, but neither does he show any haughtiness towards them due to his social status. As soon as Hans looked at Conrad for the first time, he recognized in him the friend he wanted. To attract the young aristocrat's attention, he decides to be the best student in his class. His efforts are soon rewarded when he catches Conrad watching him during a difficult exercise at the high bar. Over the next few days, the few ancient coins taken from his collection and brought to class overcome Conrad's polite reserve. The young aristocrat confided in Hans that he also had a collection of ancient coins. As time goes by, Hans realizes that behind Conrad's feigned reserve lies a certain shyness. Just like him. A great friendship is born and grows between the two boys. They discover the same passions for poetry, but especially for their country. Inseparable, they go to school together, organize walks through the Swabian countryside. Then the time came for Hans to introduce his best and only friend to his parents. He invites him to his home. Hans' mother welcomes the young man, who is a friend of her son, with open arms. Then Hans takes Conrad to introduce him to his father's doctor. But what was his amazement at his father's attitude? When he saw the young aristocrat, he welcomed him with great honor and the miraculous title of Count. His speech of that day finished to make him go down in the esteem of his son.

In order to return Hans' courtesy, Conrad invites him to come to his home, to the castle of his ancestors. However, Hans notices something that intrigues him. Whenever the two teenagers arrive at the castle, Conrad's parents are never there to greet them. Hans' mind is full of questions, including whether Conrad is ashamed of himself. But on the evening of the performance of Beethoven's Fidelio at the opera house, where Hans and his parents are going, Conrad pretends to ignore him. He was with his parents and their arrival filled with respect and admiration from the audience removed Hans' doubt. Hurt by his friend's behavior, Hans demands clarification. His insistence finally pays off. Conrad confesses his mother's visceral hatred of Jews, and that every time Hans visits the castle, Conrad suffers his mother's admonitions and the injuries she inflicts on him.

Months later, the political situation in Germany was in turmoil. A party was born with a certain Hitler at its head. The Nazi party movement, which was extremely nationalistic and anti-Semitic, gained momentum. The doctor optimized the situation by calling it a temporary health problem. In the meantime, the Nazis and the Communists enter the war, but the city of Stuttgart, where Hans and his parents live, is not affected. This lull does not last. When Hans returned to school after the summer vacations, some of his classmates and then his teachers scolded him. The animosity towards the Jews intensified. Hans no longer felt safe at his school. One day his father announced his decision to send him to the United States, he first and later his parents would follow. Hans' former classmates give him a letter, a poem riddled with insults, aimed at hurting him in his passion and in his being. The second letter comes from Conrad. His friend expresses his regret to see him leave, his optimism about the future of the new Germany led by Chancellor Hitler. At the end of the letter, as a token of their deep friendship, he reassures his friend about the fate of his Jewish parents who had remained in the country. Hans then leaves his country, the Germany he loves so much.

Hans moved to the United States. He graduated in law from Harvard University and practiced as a lawyer. His professional success is evident. He never set foot in Germany again and three decades passed.

Chancellor Hitler had lost the war, Germany was devastated, the city of Stuttgart was destroyed, and so was Hohenfels Castle. Hans' parents killed themselves to avoid the Nazi violence.

One day he received a letter from Germany asking for donations. A project to build a memorial plaque in his former high school was launched. All the names of the former students who died during the war are listed in an attached document, and he finds the name of his friend Conrad. A truth that affects him deeply, even though his best friend was executed for taking the life of Chancellor Hitler, the Nazi leader in whom he had once had some hope for Germany.