Michael Berg is 15 years old when he develops Scarlet Fever and must stay in bed for months. As he recovers, he searches for the 30-something woman who helped him when he first became sick. He finds her, and they become lovers. She insists that he read to her each time before they make love. When he turns 16, she leaves. Years later, in law school, he finds her again. This time, she is being tried by a German court: she was a guard over women at Auschwitz and sent them to their death. He struggles because he knows a secret about her that could result in her receiving a lesser prison sentence, but it is something she does not want to admit.