Hermann Hesse: The Return (Hermann Hesse: Die Heimkehr)

"The Return" is about the search for a sense of belonging and for security, the power of normality and exclusion. And it is an unexpected and delicate love story that will prevail against all prejudices. The lead character, August Staudenmeyer, is a wealthy businessman who has made his fortune abroad, before returning to his hometown Gerbersau in the Black Forest. He hopes to make a home there after being expelled from the city in his youth. At first, August is accepted with open arms, because his prosperity promises a financial upswing for the town. But when he takes up with widow Katarina Endriss, who has been excluded by her fellow citizens, August realizes that the narrow-mindedness of the town’s residents has not changed at all.