The Last of Mr. Norris, Chapters 1, 2 and 3 Summary

This book is actually a compilation of two short novels originally published separately. Both are set in Berlin between World Wars I and II, both contain colorful characters and intriguing incidents, and both are narrated in the voice of a young man who, with apparent deliberateness, chooses to emotionally distance himself from his subjects. Both stories explore themes relating to the unknowable mystery at the heart of an individual's life, the value of live observed vs. life lived, and the blurring of the line between reality and fiction.

Chapter 1

The narrator (William Bradshaw - see "Characters") narrates his initial encounter with Mr. Norris, a fastidious older man who, the narrator writes, wears a very good wig and with whom he shares a train compartment during a journey to Berlin. At the...